Symposium Held on Partial Substitution of High-Quality Leaf Tobacco for Imports

Source from:  tobacco.gov.cn 04/04/2007

China National Leaf Tobacco Corporation held a symposium on partial substitution of homegrown high-quality leaf tobacco for expensive leaf tobacco imports in Kunming - the capital city of southwest China's tobacco-producing Yunnan Province - on March 27-28, unveiling plans for promoting the production of high-quality leaf tobacco to partially substitute for leaf tobacco imports in 2007. A deputy general manager of China National Leaf Tobacco Corporation delivered a keynote speech at the meeting calling on the manufacturing and commercial sectors of China's tobacco industry to join hands in promoting the growing of high-quality leaf tobacco in China, in order to provide material guarantee for realizing the target of developing more than a dozen key manufacturing enterprises and more than a dozen key competitive cigarette brands set by the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration (STMA). In the speech, the deputy general manager said that since the start of production of high-quality leaf tobacco to partially substitute leaf tobacco imports in 2004, 326,000 mu (21,733 hectares) of high-quality leaf tobacco to partially substitute for leaf tobacco imports has been grown in China, with the yield reaching 922,000 dan (46,100 tons). The production of high-quality leaf tobacco to partially substitute for leaf tobacco imports has involved 31 counties in nine Chinese provinces and 17 tobacco manufacturing enterprises in China. Through unremitting efforts over the past three years, the tobacco industry of China has made remarkable progress in the development of technologies for producing high-quality leaf tobacco, including integration of production technologies, the research and development of leaf group substitution technologies, development of technologies for producing leaf tobacco with unique characteristics and the development of near infrared identification technologies, contributing to significantly improving the quality of leaf tobacco, the deputy general manager said, adding that the leaf tobacco grown is of relatively vast potential in the production of high-grade cigarette products. In accordance with the STMA-set target of developing more than a dozen key manufacturing enterprises and more than a dozen key competitive cigarette brands, priority will be given in 2007 to developing high-quality leaf tobacco with unique characteristics, bringing the leading role of manufacturing enterprises, tobacco-growing regions and researchers in the production of high-quality leaf tobacco into full play, strengthening the management of leaf tobacco production and ensuring stable and reliable supply of high-quality leaf tobacco to partially substitute for leaf tobacco imports in cigarette production. In 2007, efforts will be made to generalize the application of technologies of leaf tobacco threshing by the blending formula and comprehensive leaf group substitution, raise the rate of contribution of high-quality leaf tobacco production in partial substitution for leaf tobacco imports, lower the tobacco industry's reliance on leaf tobacco imports from Zimbabwe, and ensure steady expansion of key competitive cigarette brands of China's tobacco industry, said the deputy general manager. In the year, 373,600 mu (24,907 hectares) of high-quality leaf tobacco to partially substitute for leaf tobacco imports will be grown in China, with the yield expected to reach 1.11 million dan (55,500 tons), including 40 percent of high-grade leaf tobacco, and with the up-to-standard rate of leaf tobacco supply from traders to tobacco manufacturers expected to top 85 percent, according to the deputy general manager. Efforts will also be made in the year to develop four or more high-quality leaf tobacco production bases with remarkable characteristics, realize relatively concentrated processing of high-quality leaf tobacco grown in partial substitution for leaf tobacco imports, reserve 250,000 dan (12,500 tons) of high-quality leaf tobacco in supply for key competitive cigarette brands, and choose eight or more advantaged testing products, including two or more expected to be chosen for large-scale experiment. Enditem