Metcash chief executive Doug Jones has urged governments and law enforcement agencies to crack down on organised crime, after the grocery wholesaler reported a sharp drop in tobacco sales due to the growth in illegal trade.

Metcash is one of the nation’s biggest tobacco vendors but is selling 40 per cent – or $1.3 billion – less since peak sales in 2021 as high excises prompted a surge in black market trade, much of it controlled by criminal gangs.