New pressures on a straining industryStill, tobacco remains Cuba’s top export, and in 2024, its government reported record revenue from its sale: nearly $827m.Lloyd Smith explained that the demand is linked to prestige. Around the globe, Habanos are considered a symbol of luxury.“A lot of people, when they think of the cigar, they automatically think of Cuban cigars,” he said.That reputation for exclusivity has been bolstered, in part, by the fact that Cuban cigars are illegal in the US due to a longstanding embargo.The trade restrictions were largely a response to the 1959 Cuban Revolution, which ushered in the island’s communist government.The new regime quickly nationalised the island’s industries, much to the ire of US authorities.Traditional tobacco brands like Montecristo and Romeo y Julieta fell under state control, and new products were launched. They included the premium cigar brand Cohiba, a favourite of the late Cuban revolutionary Fidel Castro. A Havana resident smokes a cigar while fishing on the Malecon, the Havana seawall [Euan Wallace/Al Jazeera]But experts say the US blockade has exacerbated the woes of a cigar industry that has faced multiple supply-side shocks in recent years.In September 2022, Hurricane Ian ravaged Pinar del Rio, damaging as many as 90 percent of the province’s tobacco curing barns, where the leaves are dried.That season saw just 5,150 hectares (13,725 acres) of tobacco planted, the lowest level since records began. Tobacco growth has remained sluggish in the years since.Just last month, the Cuban gover …
