The German company Reemtsma Hamburg, a majority owner of the only Slovak cigarette producer Slovak International Tabak (SIT), has pledged to keep tobacco acreage at a constant level and to support domestic producers through the end of 1996 though harvested areas have decreased drastically. In 1986, tobacco was planted on 3,536 hectares in Slovakia, but that has declined to total only 640 hectares last year. Reemtsma is hinting that it may start purchasing cheaper tobacco from abroad after 1997, which would cause domestic producers to lose their only customer.
23. Oct 1996 at 0:00 | From press reports of TASR and SITA
