British American Tobacco CEO Tadeu Marroco was recently in Rome meeting with stakeholders, and spoke with Milano Finanza about how the company views Italy as a strategically important market, citing its stable regulatory and taxation framework, strong supplier base, and growing adoption of next-generation products, which now account for around 45% of BAT’s Italian revenue compared with 18% globally.
“Italy represents one of the most strategic markets for BAT and [is] one of the countries in which the group can concretely realize its vision for the future,” he said. “From Italy, we continue to buy tobacco up to 15 thousand tons, which will be purchased in the three-year period 2026-2028, supporting over 400 small and medium-sized enterprises that employ 6,000 people.”
Marroco said BAT is reinforcing its European innovation and production footprint through its Trieste Innovation Hub, where the company is investing €500 million through 2027 to expand non-combustible product manufacturing. The facility is expected to reach full capacity with 16 production lines and generate employment growth linked to BAT’s broader supply chain investments, including continued tobacco sourcing agreements supporting domestic agriculture and SMEs. The company maintains its target of deriving 50% of global revenue from smoke-free products by 2035, while also navigating regulatory complexity and illicit market growth in key regions, which BAT argues can hinder innovation and undermine public health and fiscal outcomes.
