JTI signs leaf agreement in Italy
Japan Tobacco International yesterday renewed an agreement with Italy’s Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Forestry Policies for the purchase of Italian tobacco for the four-year period 2017-2020.
The deal is estimated to be worth a further €160 million for the local industry, which will bring JTI’s total investment in the Italian tobacco sector to €620 million by 2020.
“Our agreement means a significant financial commitment toward the purchase of Italian leaf over the next four years,” said Vassilis Vovos, president of JTI’s Western Europe Region.
“It reflects our support to the many growers and workers who represent an important activity in Italy, and to a tobacco leaf which has always met our worldwide quality standards.”
Meanwhile, PierCarlo Alessiani, chairman and MD of JTI Italia said that JTI was proud of the agreement because of the “Italian tobacco chain’s excellence and its importance to our country”.
“For the first time, the company is committing to a four-year memorandum of understanding designed to secure further stability for the Italian tobacco sector.”
In a note posted on its website, JTI said that its 10-year co-operation with the Italian tobacco sector had involved more than 1,700 workers in the cultivation, harvesting and primary processing of the crop and the purchase of about 128,000 tonnes of leaf for an overall value of more than €460 million since 2005.
‘Until today JTI had a number of three-year purchase commitments with the Ministry of Agriculture,’ the note said. ‘Today’s four-year agreement has the objective of guaranteeing greater stability to the Italian tobacco chain through purchases of leaf and the application of the Agricultural Labor Practices (ALP), Good Agriculture Practice (GAP) and Minimum Agronomic Standards (MAS) to ensure sustainability and improved working conditions for the sector in the long term.
‘Since 2012, JTI has supported the sector through commercial agreements with Consorzio TTI (Trasformatori Tabacco Italia), which over time has become a model of efficiency that has attracted an ever increasing number of growers from the various Italian tobacco growing regions.’
The agreement was signed at a press conference attended by Maria Elena Boschi, Minister for Constitutional Reform, Maurizio Martina, Minister of Agriculture, Vovos and Alessiani.
