The sale of tobacco products fell sharply last year, with cigarette sales dropping by 10 percent and hand-rolling tobacco by seven percent. Turnover, however, rose because of higher prices.

The Cigarette Industry Foundation (SSI) says that though people would be smoking less because of the smoking ban and higher prices, this would not account for a 10 percent drop. Research in the tobacco sector reveals that five percent of Dutch consumers are smoking ‘illegal’ cigarettes from abroad.

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