Big Tobacco Manufacturer Invests Heavily in Developing Leaf Tobacco Production, Supply Base

Source from:  Wuhan Tobacco Group 04/04/2006

Wuhan Tobacco Group in central China's Hubei Province - the third largest Chinese tobacco manufacturer - is investing heavily in the establishment of leaf tobacco production and supply bases in close partnership, in order to guarantee stable supply of high-quality leaf tobacco for its cigarette production. Facing both increasingly intense market competition and new development opportunities in the 2006-2010 five-year period, Wuhan Tobacco Group has decided to give priority to establishing a number of leaf tobacco production and supply bases in close partnership in different Chinese regions favorable for tobacco growth, in a move to back its principled plan to greatly promote the development of its big competitive cigarette brands, particularly the Yellow Crane Tower, the Red Golden Dragon and the Great Golden Dragon. So far this year, Wuhan Tobacco Group has managed to raise 20 million yuan (2.46 million U.S. dollars) as investment in scientific-technological development projects for leaf tobacco production and supply bases, mainly including projects for floating development of tobacco seedlings; generalization the application of organic fertilizer, microelements, new types of pesticides and new types of curing barns; development of irrigation facilities; demonstrative generalization of mechanized farming; research of production organization models, technical training, etc. Meanwhile striving to promoting the establishment of leaf tobacco production and supply bases in close partnership, Wuhan Tobacco Group is also stepping up efforts to promote the application of new technologies to steadily improve the quality of leaf tobacco grown in the basis. It has invited experts with Henan Provincial Agricultural University, Qingzhou Tobacco Research Institute, Hubei Provincial Tobacco Research Institute and other research institutions in different parts of China to provide technical assistance in its efforts to analyze the ecological conditions, development potential, schemes of production technology application, research and experiment, etc, at its leaf tobacco production and supply bases in different regions. Wuhan Tobacco Group is planning to establish 30,000 mu (2,000 hectares) of model tobacco plantations for demonstrative application of new technologies for leaf tobacco production in 2006, in efforts to significantly improve the quality of leaf tobacco produced in the bases. Wuhan Tobacco Group has decided to turn Xuan'en County in Enshi District, which is a key tobacco producing region in Hubei given priority in development by Hubei provincial government, into the first leaf tobacco production and supply base in close partnership with it. In February, Wuhan Tobacco Group and Xuan'en County Tobacco Company reached agreement that Xuan'en County would supply the leaf tobacco of all grades produced in the county to Wuhan Tobacco Group in 2006. Enditem