Cuba’s 2026-27 tobacco season “will be difficult again”

The target of 12,000 hectares of plantings in the province of Pinar del Río is close to the results of previous years.

The 2026-2027 Cuban tobacco season was officially kicked off at the La Palma tobacco collection and processing company (ABT) in Pinar del Río, singled out for its results during the previous season.

The state-owned group Tabacuba plans to plant 20,000 hectares nationwide, including more than 12,000 in the province of Pinar del Río, for an expected collection of 22,000 tons of tobacco. Pinar del Río, home to the Vuelta Abajo, generally accounts for about two-thirds of the tobacco harvest destined for export Havanas.

During the last season, half of the irrigation systems depended on the electricity grid, and growers suffered greatly from power cuts, especially in Pinar del Río, which affected yields, Marino Murillo, president of Tabacuba, recalled. This year, about 50% of the 20,000 hectares will be irrigated by systems powered by renewable energy, mainly photovoltaic. Despite the country’s difficulties, the resources for the season are guaranteed, the official asserts.

Social and energy crisis

Osvaldo Santana Vera, agricultural director of Tabacuba, quoted by the Spanish news agency EFE, warns that the season “will be difficult again” (“volverá a ser difícil”), because of the US oil blockade, which has worsened the crisis since January 2026. This social and energy crisis notably led to the cancellation of the Festival del Habano, scheduled for late February 2026. It is not known whether the 2027 edition can be held on the island next February.

In 2024-2025, Tabacuba aimed to plant 14,000 hectares but had to revise this figure in January 2025 due to a lack of drying barns. The season ended at 10,500 hectares, a level close to the previous season.

In 2025-2026, 11,426 hectares were planted in the Vuelta Abajo, against an initial target of 14,623 hectares.

Photo: © Periodico Guerillero