Within the distress increasingly voiced by beleaguered farmers across the continent, the plight of tobacco growers is rarely heard. The understandable global drive to reduce smoking means that tight regulations are applied to all aspects of tobacco production. The result is that these farmers do not receive agricultural subsidies. With a series of new regulations due to be imposed on the EU over the next two years, from a new Tobacco Excise Directive (TED) to Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) reforms, farmers are warning that their
family businesses could collapse. They also raise the spectre of cheaper and less sustainably-grown tobacco entering the market from unregulated countries. Italy produces the largest quantity of tobacco in the European Union; some 34,000 tonnes (in 2024), which accounts for 33% of production. Worldwide, it is the 18th largest producer, growing varieties of tobacco including Virginia and Burley that are tailored for cigarettes, rolling tobacco and heated tobacco electronic devices. Member-run association Despite cultivating tobacco since the 16th century, the number of farmers in Italy
is slowly contracting. The largest association of growers in the country, and Europe, is the Organizzazione Nazionale Tabacco Italia (ONT). Run by farmers, it represents half of Italy’s tobacco growers, farming more than 5,000 hectares. Its director Massimo Spigola explains that the industry employs some 45,000 people across the country in a sector that is highly labour-intensive. “Tobacco is hand-picked, not mechanised,” he says. Strict regulations apply, recount Spigola: “The farmer must notify the government of the area where the tobacco is grown and what
type of agreement is in place so that it can be traced and controlled by public agencies. There are also administrative controls on the whole supply chain, up to the delivery of tobacco. Each tobacco leaf in Italy is strictly traced.” When contemplating the raft of new rules proposed by the European Commission, he is concerned about the inclusion of rolled tobacco in the upcoming financial directive. It is currently classified as an agricultural product. With farms potentially going out of business, Spigola says European
raw tobacco could be replaced by imports from outside the EU and heighten the risk of an increase in illicit products. In the face of regulatory uncertainty, combined with rising energy costs, he denounces the lack of consultation with farmers. “The rules must be balanced before being implemented. We need risk assessments,” he concludes. As the sector requires a high level of investment and long-term guarantees, the growers association has a long-standing integrated value chain agreement with tobacco company Philip Morris International (PMI), running until
2034. Spanning from the seed of the tobacco plant to the final product, it also ecompasses sustainability projects focused on water resources, pollution and insects. A farmer’s story Alberto Mantovanelli is a tobacco grower from Verona who also serves as president of the Italian Tobacco Producers Organisation (OPIT). He is the third generation of his family to grow tobacco. “Continuing the work of my grandparents and my parents means building on a solid foundation while constantly innovating it,” he says. “Today, farming means operating in
a complex context shaped by climate change, cost volatility and growing social attention,” adds the farmer. “We have invested in skills, technologies and organisation, building a more structured and resilient business.” Mantovanelli is convinced integration between agriculture and industry has transformed the role of the farmer, “to a key player in a modern supply chain that is sustainable —environmentally, socially and economically — and future-oriented.” PMI factory The final element of the integrated chain is the Crespellano Manufacturing and Technology plant on the outskirts of
Bologna. PMI invested €1.5 billion to develop and produce smoke-free products in 2015, adding a new Centre for Industrial Excellence in 2021. It is has been key to the company’s switch since 2008 from traditional cigarettes to reduced risk alternatives – including heated tobacco, vaping and oral nicotine. On the outside, the plant is a gleaming, glass-facade structure, while inside it is a minimalist hive of activity employing more than 2,500 people. The highly-automated plant with numerous production lines fabricates a range of heated sticks
for the company’s flagship IQOS devices, which are exported to more than 70 different markets around the world. A visitor display illustrates the mechanics of these sticks, from the tobacco plug and hollow acetate tube to the filters. A central metal element that heats the tobacco is carefully inserted. An ensuing site visit of the plant – all sanitised spaces requiring protective clothing – reveals each meticulous stage, including ground tobacco powder transformed into sheets that are rolled onto bobbins before travelling through each digitalised
process until arriving at the packaged product. For each step, every composite part is traceable and is processed without any human contact. The site’s director Matteo Zompa explains that the state-of-the art centre of excellence has a unique ecosystem, benefitting from the research and training provided by the University of Bologna. “This has taken us to the new frontier of innovation,” he underlines. The fully integrated economy and supply circuit includes the recycling of electronic components. Flagship store In the chic Galleria Cavour in the
historic centre of Bologna, the IQOS boutique store is designed and marketed with adult smokers in mind. A strong design aesthetic imbues the modern space: colourful displays of the smoke-free devices, tobacco sticks and accessories that help entice confirmed smokers to switch to the less harmful products. Staff provide guidance and support in navigating the world of cigarette alternatives with new clients invited to explore the devices in a special isolated room. The future of tobacco cultivation in Europe Although far smaller in number compared
to their counterparts in Italy, Belgian growers also decry the disappearance of European agricultural subsidies that has made labour-intensive production no longer profitable. Belgium’s tobacco growing tradition, dating from the 17th century, has waned to the point where Wervik in West Flanders is the only remaining producer. Its National Tobacco Museum concedes that tobacco cultivation has increasingly becoming a folkloric activity, as is the case in the Semois Valley in Luxembourg province. Once famed for its tobacco, growers are now restricted to private production. The
fierce debate on tobacco will continue to rage with the public health implications for new policies paramount. Tobacco companies, spearheaded by PMI’s commitment to a smoke-free future, call for recognition of their alternative products, and all smokers deserve a panoply of incentives to quit cigarettes beyond higher taxation. Photos: (main image) Crespellano plant ©PMI; Italian farmers prootesting in Brussels ©ONT; laboratory ©PMI; IQOS store Bologna; ©National Tobacco Museum
Italy tobacco growers, EU regulations, Tobacco Excise Directive, CAP reforms, agricultural subsidies, Organizzazione Nazionale Tabacco Italia, ONT, Massimo Spigola, rolled tobacco, illicit products, Philip Morris International, Crespellano plant, IQOS