Exec urges Ilocos farmers to plant more tobacco

Multi-sectoral meeting to revitalized tobacco industry in Ilocos Norte. (Lei Adriano)

By Leilanie G. Adriano

Staff Reporter

LAOAG CITY—Bright prospects looms ahead for tobacco-producing municipalities in the province as a multi-national tobacco company assured local government units and farmers to give their all-out support from beginning to end should they decide to closely work with them in revitalizing the tobacco industry here.

In a multi-sectoral meeting attended by mayors, policy makers, farmers, private tobacco buyers and personnel of the National Tobacco Administration and other concerned national government agencies at the Capitol session hall, Winston Uy, president of the Universal Leaf Philippines, Inc. expressed commitment to give their all-out support to tobacco growers in the Ilocos region.

“We are committed to work with you. So, we are asking your help to reintroduce tobacco growing as a livelihood. We will be there until the end,” said Mr. Uy citing the company have technicians to help farmers produce good variety.

To revitalize the tobacco industry in the province, the ULPI with the support of the local government units here and the National Tobacco Administration based in Batac City is offering a contract growing scheme to farmers.

This way, farmers are assured to have ready market for their products. Both technical and financial assistance will also be provided to them.

“Let us help create that cycle of goodness. We can only provide a good profitability. If local government unit helps, farmers win,” Mr. Uy said.

To help in the documentation of tobacco production in the province, the ULPI president promised to create a software for transparency on real time basis.

“Let’s create more safeguards. Whatever planted will be registered in our system. You get transparency before harvest,” Mr. Uy explained in response to the current problem on the presence of cowboys (middle men) who are buying tobacco to farmers in Ilocos Norte and then sell it in other provinces, resulting to lesser share of the province in terms of tobacco excise tax.

For his part, NTA administrator Robert Seares told farmers the agency also provides soft loan to them should they wish to avail of their farm mechanization program.

Globally, the demand for tobacco remains high according to tobacco traders but buyers also require quality products. This is the reason why old tobacco growers need to level up and embrace farm mechanization to improve their quality of production.

In Ilocos Norte, the Office of the Provincial Agriculture reported a total of 1,541 hectares of tobacco in the cropping year of 2018-2019 which is slightly less than the 2,001 hectares planted in 2017-2018.

Active tobacco growers in the province are the towns of Banna, Batac, Dingras, Marcos, Sarrat, Piddig, Paoay and Pinili.

“Ilocos Norte has always been proud of its contribution to tobacco industry. We can do so much more,” said Ilocos Norte Governor Matthew Joseph M. Manotoc as he assured the provincial government will always be in full support to revitalized the tobacco industry in the province.