China: Prefecture Government, Tobacco Research Board in Zimbabwe sign Cooperation Pact

Source from:  TobaccoChina Online 10/27/2010

The government of Liangshan Prefecture in southwest China's Sichuan Province and the Tobacco Research Board in Zimbabwe signed an agreement on bilateral cooperation in the development of technologies for leaf tobacco production in the provincial capital city of Chengdu on October 22. Under the agreement, the two sides will launch cooperation in the development of tobacco varieties in three years, in order to selectively develop fine tobacco varieties introduced from Zimbabwe that will be suitable for growth in Liangshan Prefecture. In the next three years, the two sides will also jointly conduct research and development and make experiments for developing support technologies of tobacco growing and curing, simultaneously introduce "fine tobacco varieties and fine production methods" into Liangshan Prefecture, and jointly conduct human resources training. Specifically, the Tobacco Research Board in Zimbabwe will send technicians to Liangshan to offer technological guidance and training, and will help Liangshan Prefecture train 300 technicians for frontline operations. Meanwhile, Liangshan Prefecture will send production managers and technicians to the Tobacco Research Board in Zimbabwe to conduct technological exchange and study operating skills. Liangshan Prefecture hopes to develop leaf tobacco brands that will be well known in the world, and to promote the establishment of a national-level high-quality leaf tobacco production base in Liangshan, through technological integration, introduction of fine tobacco varieties from Zimbabwe, and application of advanced Zimbabwean technologies for leaf tobacco growing and curing. According to Agrotechnician Xing Xiaojun with Liangshan Prefecture Tobacco Company, bilateral cooperation between the two sides has already been started so far, and fine tobacco varieties introduced from Zimbabwe have been planted in 3,000 mu (200 hectares) of tobacco fields in three counties in Liangshan on an experimental basis. Evaluation by experts suggest that both the quality and quantity of aroma of the fine tobacco varieties are higher than those of local tobacco varieties. "Our target is to increase the annual leaf tobacco output of Liangshan Prefecture to 4.5 million dan (225,000 tons) in the 2011-2015 five-year period. Meanwhile, we will take steps to enlarge the annual production capacity of Xichang Cigarette Factory, in order that its annual cigarette output will reach 25 billion cigarettes (500,000 cases), and in order that the tobacco industry will become a backbone industry supporting the growth of income of local farmers and development of the local economy," said Wu Bing, deputy chief of the tobacco work office of Liangshan Prefecture government. Enditem