PINAR DEL RÍO. – With prospects to contribute more than 260 million dollars to the country's economy during 2019, tobacco maintains its status as Cuban agriculture’s main exportable line.
The sector's development program has produced more than 30,000 tons of the leaf during the last three seasons, supplying the industry with all necessary prime material, and resuming exports of raw shredded tobacco, explained Justo Luis Fuentes, director of the Tabacuba Enterprise Group in this province, discussing the beginning of the 2019-2020 planting campaign.
According to the official, some 16,300 growers will participate in the effort, in which more than 30,000 hectares will again be planted.
Despite the situation in the country, due to the tightening of the U.S. blockade by the Trump administration, the Tabacuba executive reported that all fundamental resources for the campaign are in the hands of the country’s 23 tobacco companies.He also indicated that the Group is taking a series of steps to increase revenues. Among them, the increase in special editions of Premium handmade cigars, as well as sales of raw shredded tobacco, a surplus not used in the hand-rolling process."Apart from this, we are also intent upon raising the quality of our wrapper leaves, beginning at the agricultural stage, something that also increases the value of our productions."
