Tobacco Asia

52 tobaccoasia Issue 1, 2026 January / February 2025. Burley, however, faces structural challenges, according to Marques. Many farmers are shifting to alternative livelihoods such as poultry farm‑ ing, while Argentine Burley is becoming increas‑ ingly competitive. "It's not impossible now to find 100% Brazilian burley grade right at source; it merely got a little harder" Marques said. But interestingly, Marques also predicted cheaper burley next season. "There are still con‑ siderable quantities stashed away in warehouses from the 2025 crop, also due to US taxation issues that caused merchants to hold back volumes," he explained. Learning from past climate shocks Brazil recently has been marked by economic vola‑ tility and natural calamities. "Two years ago we had our biggest climate tragedy in history," Marques recalled, with waist‑deep floods devastating half the growing regions. Tobacco prices skyrocketed, prompting farmers to plant aggressively as soon as the waters had receded. The record 2024/25 crop was a direct result of that. But now Marques sees the market slowly stabilizing again, with big buyers balancing farmer incentives and quality discipline. Processing capacity and growth B2B Tobacco Processing has expanded rapidly since its inception a mere couple of years ago. "In cut rag, we are working with around half a million tons per month," Marques reported. In its first export year, 2024, the company shipped around 3 million kilos of laminae and byproducts. "Next year [i.e. 2026], our expectation is 6 million kilos." Meanwhile, machinery investments and upgrades are already underway to double that capacity and be ready towards the end of 2026. Export markets and customer feedback Being fiercely export‑oriented, the company has already established contracts in Indonesia and the US while expanding into South America, too. "We are exporting cut rag to Bolivia, Peru, and Argen‑ tina," Marques noted. Argentina's improving eco‑ nomic stability makes it a promising future mar‑ ket. In Europe, B2B supplies stems and scrap to customers in Hungary, the Czech Republic, Italy, and France. "Until now, we have had 100% good feedback from our customers," Marques proudly insisted. Malawi Crops 2023-2025 Crop Year 2023 2024 2025 Vol. (t) Vol. (t) Vol. (t) Burley Tobacco 103,220.4 117,817.7 204,464.8 Flue Cured Tobacco 15,097.4 13,630.9 14,741.4 Dark Fire Cured Tobacco 2,290.8 1,896.6 2,043.2 TOTAL 120,608.6 133,345.2 221,249.4 Financing and investment Expansion is financed through a combination of reinvested profits and bank support. "Brazil sup‑ ports a lot of investments in tobacco," Marques said. Exporting provides access to lower‑interest bank loans, enabling the company to buy leaf and ship with confidence. "But our machinery invest‑ ments solely come from reinvesting our business profits," he added. For Marques – and by exten‑ sion the company ‑ reputation is paramount. "Our main focus now is not making money. The prior‑ ity is to making the customer happy," he insisted. Building trust takes time, but once established, it secures long‑term market share. "Reputation is ev‑ erything," he said. "Everything else falls into place after that." The China question Marques gave himself quite relaxed when talking about China's increasingly aggressive tobacco‑ buying activities in Brazil. The country, driven by a powerful state tobacco monopoly that "buys high quality and asks for huge volumes" is capable of shifting Brazil's market dynamics overnight. It doesn't faze B2B Tobacco Processing much, though. The company is calmly concentrating on what it can control, including deepening inter‑ national relationships in Indonesia, the US, and South America, while also nurturing longer‑cycle opportunities in Europe. The playbook is clear: reputation first, closely followed by disciplined quality, fair pricing, and smart field sourcing to match precise blend specs. If stability in Argentina continues and its machinery upgrades come online, B2B will have the scale and resilience to engage China on its own terms… and once timing and specification align‑ ments make sense. Until then, Marques' message to buyers at large is steady: "Brazilian supply will remain reliable, with or without China." Malawi and Brazil's paths forward Malawi's East Bridge Tobacco Limited is position‑ ing itself as a new force in the country's export economy, building on Malawi's global reputation for burley while investing in DFC and FCV variet‑ ies. In Brazil, B2B Tobacco Processing is scaling quickly, expanding machinery and export reach. while pursuing a strategy designed to reassure buy‑ ers and forge strong bonds. Taken together, these two young firms re‑ flect a broader story: new entrants in established tobacco nations are bringing energy, discipline, and ambition to the market. For importers and manufacturers, this signals that Malawi and Brazil are not only maintaining their importance but are actively shaping the next chapter of global tobacco supply.

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