Tauranga is to set to get a new high-tech drug detection tool which will help protect the border as Customs steps up its fight against the importation of drugs.
Earlier this week Customs Minister Nicky Wagner unveiled 14 of the state-of-the-art "FirstDefenders" mobile drug analysers which will be used at ports and international arrival airports.
Ms Wagner said these devices would be a fundamental piece of equipment for front line officers, making drug identification "quicker, safer, and more efficient".
Being portable and easy to use, the drug analysers were ideal for use at ports and during Customs' search warrants or taken on board vessels being searched, she said.
The $60,000 devices use a laser beam to analyse the molecular fingerprint of a suspect substance, often without the need to open the packaging, to determine its legality.