Dubai: Seven tobacco shops were slapped with hefty fines and their goods confiscated and destroyed in a recent inspection campaign, said a senior official at Dubai unicipality.
Redha Salman, director of Public Health and Safety Department at the municipality, said that 30 electronic cigarettes were also seized in 11 outlets located in the areas of Bur Dubai, Al Hudaiba and Al Murar.
“During the campaign, as much as 100kg of tobacco were confiscated because they were not sold according to standard practices, and were sold in in bag instead of cardboard packages,” said Salman.
ALSO READ:
• Most of shisha users start habit from families
• Switch to e-cigarettes could slash smoking deaths?
• Vaping thrives in UAE despite ban
In the recent inspection across the city, Salman explained that 200 packets of artificially-flavoured tobacco were withdrawn from the market, “because the package did not specify the origin of the product or its ingredients, and did not have any warning labels accompanied with the goods.”
The sale of e-cigarettes and e-shishas are prohibited under Federal Law No.15 of 2009, and under the regulations issued by the General Secretariat of UAE Municipalities, “outlets that sell vapes and electronic cigarettes have their goods confiscated and are issued with a warning for the first offence.”
If the offences are repeated, outlets may face a hefty fine of up to Dh500,000.
