Tobacco-producing countries from North, Central, and South America have been invited to participate in the International Tobacco Growers’ Association (ITGA) “Americas Regional Meeting on April 24 in Jujuy, Argentina
The ITGA is convening stakeholders from the tobacco sector across the Americas to address key issues currently impacting the industry. This year’s discussions will place particular emphasis on the increasing regulatory pressure from the World Health Organization (WHO), driven by its Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), which will host its Eleventh Conference of the Parties (COP11) this coming November.
Brazil—currently the world’s largest exporter of tobacco and the second-largest producer after China—has taken one of the strongest opposing stances in the context of these WHO negotiations. The Brazilian Tobacco Growers’ Association (Afubra) will be in attendance to advocate for the socio-economic importance of tobacco in the regions where it is cultivated and to showcase initiatives that promote family farming both within and beyond the tobacco sector.
“We must support our Brazilian brothers in defending the sector because it affects us all and must be seen as a joint struggle,” said José Aranda, president of the ITGA.