8 Countries that Produce the Most Tobacco in the World

Tobacco is in very high demand all over the world. Primarily tobacco is used to produce cigarettes. Alongside cigarette, there are several other usage  of tobacco, such as it is processed to make the chewing tobacco, and many other addictive substances. Well, we would like to make something very clear, that we do not endorse tobacco consumption. It is a very harmful habit, both financially and physically. Many people die every day because of this deadly addiction. Now that being said, financially tobacco is a very important product.

Which are the countries that produce the most tobacco in the world? If you ever wondered which are countries that are successfully answering to high tobacco demand coming from smoking factories all over the world, you have come to the right page.

8. Argentina

2013 production: 115,334.00 tonnes

We start this list with a country that is known in the world, not only as one of the biggest tobacco producers, but also as one of the biggest tobacco consumers. Unfortunately, tobacco consumption in Argentina is constituting the second leading cause of death. They are trying to fight this problem by increasing the prices of cigarettes, and raising awareness about the health issues smoking may induce, but they had no significant improvement for now.

7. Malawi

2013 production: 132,849.00 tonnes

Tobacco produced in Malawi for almost a century now. The biggest production growth was seen back in 1970, and ever since then Malawi has been one of the countries known for their big tobacco industries. For Malawi’s economy, this industry is very important, as it brings a serious income. When the tobacco industry decreased in the West, many of the world famous cigarettes brands, like Camel and Marlboro, became interested and started using tobacco grown and produced in Malawi. Their tobacco is known for high nicotine content. Read More>

Migori tobacco farmers' fury as buyers exit

Tobacco farmers in the county are a frustrated lot after some of their key buyers withdrew from the market.

Tobacco and sugarcane are the major cash-crops in the region and a main source of income for most families.

Some of the cigarette companies that had been buying the crop have left and prices for farmers remain uncompetitive.

Edna Mohabe has had to uproot the crop from her two-acre farm and resort to farming maize for subsistence.

“For more than a year, I have held on to the hope that things might get better. I thought another company might venture in or the existing might one upgrade their operations and buy our crop even at a lower rate,” she said.

She echoed the sentiments of over 15,000 tobacco farmers in the region struggling to make ends meet over what could be termed as the collapse of the tobacco sector. Read More>

Swiss Tobacco Factory Facing Closure

Since it was opened in 1938, Fermenta in Payerne, canton Vaud, has been preparing tobacco for international cigarette producers. But a number of factors have led to its decline: fewer people smoke, fewer farmers are growing tobacco, and the strong franc has made production costs double those of rival factories in France, Italy, Germany and Poland.

Burley tobacco, valued locally at CHF17 ($17.60) per kilogram, is being sold to multinational cigarette manufacturers for just CHF4 per kg. As there is a big difference between the production costs and sale price, the branch is supported by a tax on cigarettes: the co-operative society for the purchase of Swiss home-grown tobacco collects CHF0.13 from every cigarette purchased in Switzerland.

The tobacco leaves are harvested mostly in the area around Payerne, but the number of growers is diminishing. At its peak after the Second World War, the Swiss tobacco-growing industry counted more than 6,000 growers for a total production area of 1,450 hectares. Today there are just 198 growers over a total area of 468 hectares. 

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A Brief History of the Tobacco Society

1492: Christopher Columbus was among the first Europeans introduced to the plant. He described fragrant leaves given to him as gifts along with fruits and trinkets. In a move that will surprise few modern scholars of the age of exploration, the myopic Columbus threw the leaves away, believing them worthless.

1531: After European presence in the New World becomes more common, the purposes of tobacco use become clear to them, and cultivation of tobacco crops by Europeans begins.

1548: Brazil, which would later become the South American capital of the African slave trade, begins the mass cultivation of tobacco for export to Europe. By 1560, tobacco has been introduced in Spain, France and Portugal.

Sir Francis Bacon warned about the addictive nature of tobacco.NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY

1610: Sir Francis Bacon, writing three years after Jamestown is established in the tobacco-rich colony of Virginia, declares that tobacco use is on the rise in England, and that once begun, the habit is extremely hard to stop. Read More>

This is it: Cigar box guitars

Robert Nugent of Conception Bay South says he first began building cigar box guitars as part of his step-daughter's homework assignment.

"She had a build your own instrument assignment, and I helped her build a one-string electric guitar," said Nugent.

He first discovered how to make the unique instruments when he came across directions online.

From then on, he was hooked.

Robert Nugent will turn this cigar box from the Dominican Republic into the body of an electric guitar. (Heather Barrett/CBC) Read More>

Tobacco Farmers Rake in U.S.$50 Million

Tobacco farmers have raked in nearly U.S.$50 million from the sale of the crop. The new tobacco payment system has resulted in some farmers spending days camped at the auction floors waiting to process their money. This season, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe introduced a new payment system where tobacco farmers will no longer get cash as the money will be deposited into their bank accounts.

Farmers at the auction floors complained that the new system had resulted in them staying for a longer period than they used to do when they were getting cash during the past seasons.

Trelawney farmer, Mrs Koshiwayi Gadzikwa said she had been staying at the floors for three days as her money was taking long to reflect in her bank account.

"The process is proving to be long. We have been going to the bank to check if the money is reflecting and we are afraid we may spend the weekend at the floors. We do not have enough money to buy food and we end up incurring huge losses.

"My husband ended up losing his particulars to thieves. We want to go back to the farm and grade our crop," she said. Read More>

Despite Regulatory Pressures, Opportunities in Tobacco Abound

Efforts to increase the legal buying age for tobacco products. Electronic cigarette taxes. Flavor bans. These are just a few issues on the agenda of legislators at every level across the United States.

To date, Hawaii is the only state where consumers must be 21 to purchase tobacco products. But that doesn't mean it's the only place in the nation with a legal buying age higher than the federal age, which currently stands at 18.

Speaking at the 2016 NATO Show in Las Vegas on Wednesday, Thomas Briant, executive director of the National Association of Tobacco Outlets (NATO), noted that 117 municipalities in Massachusetts alone have adopted the age push to 21. The New England state also leads the way in flavor bans — at 43 municipalities. It's no wonder Briant calls Massachusetts a "hotbed" when it comes to tobacco legislation.

Such measures highlight the need for NATO to sharpen its focus on legislative and regulatory issues, bringing an end to its five-year trade show. This year's event marked the last. The association plans to build upon the NATO Local Project, which was founded in 2012 and currently has a three-member staff working directly with retailers to address regulatory issues at the local level. Read More>