The Cure Coffee joins its neighbours by becoming smokefree

27 May 2016

The Cure Coffee in Westown is demonstrating its support for Smokefree Aotearoa 2025 by becoming a smokefree café.

The Cure Coffee’s announcement of their smokefree stance comes in the lead up to World Smokefree Day on Tuesday 31 May.

Jill Nicholls, Taranaki District Health Board (Taranaki DHB) Health Promoter said, “Smoking and tobacco use is the single biggest preventable cause of illness and early death for Taranaki people, so The Cure Coffee’s decision to go smokefree is a positive step towards normalising a community free of tobacco.”

Mieke Verschoor, Manager of The Cure Coffee said, ”When we were approached by Taranaki DHB about going smokefree we knew we wanted to be part of the move towards a healthier, smokefree community but were also wary of what some of our customers would think.”

“To the contrary, our customers, including the smokers, have been supportive of our decision to become a smokefree cafe,” added Ms Verschoor.

The Cure Coffee’s smokefree stance means they join their neighbours the Hospice, the Hospice Shop and Taranaki DHB Campus which are also smokefree.

Mrs Nicholls said, “We really wanted to extend the smokefree area and help support our community in making positive choices regarding their health, so we’re really pleased The Cure Coffee has adopted the smokefree policy.”

“We hope to see other businesses and organisations in Taranaki follow suit. The less smoking is seen in public, the less normal it is for people to smoke. This is particularly important in stopping young people taking up smoking,” said Mrs Nicholls.

“If Taranaki was smokefree there would be fewer strokes, fewer heart attacks, fewer people with chronic obstructive airways disease and fewer cancers. That means less people in hospital and more independent older people with a better quality of life,” added Mrs Nicholls.

Taranaki DHB offers pathways to a wide range of free support services for those in the region wanting to quit, including Aukati Kaipaipa, GPs, midwives and LMCs, Quitline and the Stoptober Challenge coming up in October.

For more information and support to quit smoking:

Tui Ora in New Plymouth (06 75 94 064)
Ngati Ruanui Health Centre in Hawera (06 278 1310)
Quitline (0800 778 778)

For more information please call
Cressida Gates-Thompson, Communications Manager, 027 703 6177

Last updated: Friday, May 27, 2016