PMI and BAT invest in tobacco cultivation in Italy, with the blessing of the Ministry of Agriculture

Philip Morris Italia and BAT have reached agreements with the Ministry of Agriculture that will lead to record investments in tobacco cultivation in Italy in the coming years. Clear violations of Article 5.3 of the FCTC, which also go against the upcoming World No Tobacco Day.

Despite encouraging recent directions in favor In the fight against smoking, Italy remains a favorite field for the tobacco industry in Europe. Two agreements concluded between tobacco multinationals and the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forests (MASAF) thus strengthen agricultural production of tobacco and ensure the supply of processing plants.

Massive investments in agriculture and industry in Italy

In an agreement signed with Patrizio La Pietra, MSAF Undersecretary, Philip Morris Italia (PM Italia) announced that it would invest 500 million euros over the next five years in the agricultural tobacco sector, to supply its plant in Crespellano, near Bologna. This is a record investment in agriculture by a private company, but it is in line with the two billion euros invested by Philip Morris in Italian agriculture since 2000.[1]. PM Italia will thus acquire 21,000 tonnes of tobacco per year, half of Italy's production. The Crespellano plant, which produces heated tobacco sticks for many other countries, itself cost 1.1 billion euros and would be the largest industrial investment in this country in the 21st century.

In parallel, British American Tobacco Italia (BAT Italia) has also signed an agreement with Patrizio La Pietra on the same theme, for a three-year investment plan. After investing 300 million euros over the last ten years in tobacco cultivation in Italy, BAT will now spend 60 million euros per year to purchase 15,000 tons of tobacco.[2]BAT Italia has also invested 500 million euros in its Innovation Hub in Trieste, dedicated to the transformation of tobacco. Sums that confirm the intention of tobacco multinationals to make Italy one of their main bridgeheads in Europe.

Tobacco at the expense of food sovereignty

These investment intentions run counter to public health policies and the theme given this year by the World Health Organization (WHO) to World No Tobacco Day: "We need food, not tobacco".[3]. Fearing tensions on food production, the WHO is encouraging farmers in all countries to redirect land used to plant tobacco towards food crops or more profitable ones. Not very profitable, tobacco growing actually turns out to be very greedy in natural resources and chemical inputs. While European subsidies for tobacco growing have ceased since 1^er January 2010[4] and that this production is decreasing in Europe, the government's encouragement of the tobacco agricultural sector is restricting Italy's food autonomy.

The fact that these investments in tobacco production were the subject of agreements with the government is in itself a form of interference by the tobacco industry in public health policies. The implementing guidelines for Article 5.3 of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), ratified by Italy in 2008, prohibit any contact with the tobacco industry beyond that which is strictly necessary. However, the validation of this development plan raises questions about the intentions of the government, which is delighted with the 500 companies and 50,000 employees who will make a living from it, but seems to forget the 93,000 deaths attributable to tobacco each year in Italy. The proximity of Italian political leaders to the tobacco industry has also been revealed in recent years in several cases, whether culture tobacco or traceability cigarettes.

Keywords: Italy, PMI, BAT, tobacco cultivation, article 5.3

©Tobacco Free Generation

M.F.

[1] Tobacco, Ministry-Philip Morris Italia agreement for 500 million euros, Italy 24 Press, published March 20, 2023, accessed April 3, 2023.

[2] Agriculture: BAT Italia invests at least 60 million euros and is not subject to the acquisition of Italian tobacco and the digitalization of the sector, Confagricoltura, published on March 20, 2023, consulted on April 3, 2023.

[3] WHO, World No Tobacco Day 2023: We need food, not tobacco, accessed April 3, 2023.

[4] Tobacco, European Commission, Agriculture and Rural Development, accessed 3 April 2023.

National Committee Against Smoking |