Sale et tabacchi, the inscription on the logo of Italian tobacconist shops, still speaks of tobacco’s long history on the peninsula. It calls to mind the country’s monopoly on salt and tobacco in colonial times.
Today, Italy is the European Union’s largest producer of leaf tobacco, with an annual production of 50 million kg, representing a market share of 27 percent. The country’s economic powerhouse in the north is home not only to leaf tobacco cultivation but also to leading cigarette companies’ and suppliers’ manufacturing sites, which continue to invest in the region.
Philip Morris International has a state-of-the-art tobacco heating factory in Bologna, BAT recently inaugurated an innovation hub in Trieste, Tobacco Technology has a set up a flavorings lab in the region and Montrade is expanding its operations, to name just a few developments.
In the runup to TabExpo Bologna 2023, Tobacco Reporter’s Stefanie Rossel traveled through northern Italy to learn about the tobacco industry’s latest investments. In this special report, she shares her insights.
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