Leaf agreement signed

Japan Tobacco International has signed an agreement with the Spanish Ministry of Agriculture under which the company is committed to continue to purchase leaf tobacco from Extremadura.

The three-year agreement was signed by Minister Isabel García Tejerina and Vassilis Vovos, JTI’s president of its Western Europe region, in the presence of the President of Extremadura, Guillermo Fernández Vara.

The signing ceremony took place yesterday in the headquarters of the ministry in Madrid.

The tobacco sector is said to sustain more than 61,000 direct and indirect jobs in Spain.

And tobacco is a strategic crop for the region of Extremadura where it provides an income for more than 20,000 families.

“This memorandum of understanding reaffirms our long-term support to the innovative local tobacco growing sector and the quality of the leaf which meets our worldwide standards”, said Vovos during the signing ceremony.

In a statement posted on its website, JTI said it owned the biggest tobacco manufacturing plant in Spain where it produced its global brands Camel and Winston.

‘The company employs more than 750 professionals in its state-of-the-art factory and commercial offices,’ the statement said.

‘JTI’s leading HR practices are widely recognized and the company recently won the Top Employer 2017 award for Spain as well as for Europe.

‘JTI is committed to the local communities where it operates and in Spain, the company supports social and cultural projects through partnerships with Prado Museum and Teatro Real among others.’