STMA to Invest Heavily in Establishing High-Quality Tobacco Production Bases in Sichuan

Source from:  Sichuan Daily newspaper 01/09/2008

The State Tobacco Monopoly Administration (STMA) - the regulator of China's tobacco industry - is planning to invest 6 billion yuan (800 million U.S. dollars) in establishing high-quality tobacco production bases in southwest China's Sichuan Province over the next three years, in an effort to turn Sichuan into a strategic high-quality tobacco production region in China. The STMA investment plan was disclosed at a meeting of the panel of leaders of Sichuan Province in charge of the development of the provincial tobacco industry held on January 3, 2008. The meeting set the target of turning Sichuan into a major national-level strategic high-quality tobacco production region, and also a large and powerful region for producing both leaf tobacco and cigarettes in China. Panxi region in Sichuan is a zone most suitable for high-quality tobacco growing. High-quality leaf tobacco produced in Sichuan is an indispensable raw material for big Chinese tobacco manufacturers to produce cigarettes of key competitive brands, and always falls short of demand. Therefore, the STMA is planning to make heavy investment in the establishment of high-quality tobacco production bases in the province. Enditem