NDARC Postdoctoral Research Fellow Dr Michala Kowalski and NDRI alcohol policy researcher Dr Nic Taylor write about the focus of the upcoming Illicit Alcohol Roundtable.

In 2024, Victoria Police and the Australian Tax Office (ATO) raided a billion-dollar illicit alcohol operation in regional Victoria that was found to have supplied illicit alcohol to more than 80 licensed premises in Melbourne and across the state over the course of two years. While Australians have become familiar with the illicit tobacco market in recent years – currently believed to be the most violent criminal market in the country that has involved firebombing retailers, robberies, and assault – there are concerns that illicit alcohol sales may also be increasing. Last November, the ATO estimated that illicit alcohol sales are worth at least AUD$767 million, which is far higher than World Health Organization experts were expecting for the Australian market. This is the equivalent of 19 million standard bottles of vodka, or more than 10% of all spirits consumed legally in Australia. 

Illicit alcohol, in Australia believed to be predominantly spirits, is alcohol that is manufactured and/or distributed illegally, and can contain potentially harmful adulterants that are not fit for human consumption. The tragic results of illicit alcohol consumption were seen in South East Asia in 2024, when six young backpackers died of methanol poisoning. While there is no public research into the typical content of illicit alcohol in Australia, the ATO has reportedly found adulterated alcohol for sale across the country, often containing toxic compounds used to denature ethanol that is not intended for consumption. Illicit alcohol can be sold cheaper than legal alcohol by dodging the excise tax, creating a broad margin for profits. People with limited disposable income, such as young people and people from lower socio-economic brackets, and heavy drinkers are all more likely to consume cheap alcohol, and thus may be disproportionately affected by the presence of illicit alcohol products. Unlike other illicit substances, illicit alcohol is often sold through otherwise legitimate liquor outlets, outwardly appearing to be a legal product. This subterfuge in the distribution chain of illicit alcohol means that unsuspecting consumers may not be fully aware of what they are purchasing. 

In response to these growing concerns, and forthcoming original research conducted by the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre (NDARC) at UNSW Sydney and the National Drug Research Institute (NDRI) at Curtin, NDARC is hosting a two-day illicit alcohol roundtable on the 12th – 13th of February sponsored by the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia, NDRI and NDARC. The roundtable brings together government and community stakeholders from Justice, Health, Enterprise, Treasury and Home Affairs from across the country, alongside researchers from public health (UNSW, University of Queensland & Curtin), criminology (Deakin), social sciences (UNSW), law (University of Melbourne) and forensic science (University of Technology Sydney) to discuss this emerging market. We will use the roundtable to begin mapping our collective knowledge, and perhaps more importantly, our knowledge gaps, and seed collaborative work to fully understand the scale and nature of this issue. We will also discuss potential courses of action, and hear advice regarding best practices to combat and contain illicit alcohol from renowned public health researcher Professor Jürgen Rehm from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto, Canada. We hope that in addition to informing our understanding about the current situation, the roundtable will contribute to strategising about how to prevent the growth of this emerging market, and establish collaborations between the different stakeholders.