Há mais de 30 anos
promovendo o tabaco
curado no Brasil.
Over 30 years promoting the cured tobacco in Brazil.
ROOTED
Thepioneer initiativeby JoãoRoque (whose initialswereused in thebest knownbrandsof theJR
company) stems fromhis life in theproductive sector. “I grewupamid this activity, inadistrict 12kilo-
metersawayfromItajobi,thelandoftobaccoandlemon”,thefounderrecalls.“Myparentsusedtopro-
duceropetobaccoandIbegantolikethisactivity”.Attheageof28,hedecidedtodevotehislifetocom-
merce: he started traveling and buying rope tobacco. He created the Arapiraca, in a partnership with
Zeneratto, his pal. Now, at 71, whenhis children are in charge of the administrationof the businesses,
hecontinueshistravelsacrossmanystates,likeMinasGerais,GoiásandMatoGrossodoSul,toacquire
ropetobaccofromlocalproducers,who,justlikethesales,continueactivelygrowingthistobacco.
Intheexpectationtocontinueexpandingthisbusinessanditsclientele,withthedistributionbyCi-
fal, Tiagoand thecollaborators visit events andproductionareas. They visitedExpoagroAfubra, inRio
Pardo (RS), checked for themselves the cultivation of this tobacco in the region of Sobradinho, in Rio
GrandedoSul, and theyhold inhighesteemthe Intertabac, global event of thesector that takesplace
inDortmund, Germany. “We verify the trends inproducts and their presentation, andwe can see that
themarketoffersplentyofopportunities”,saysTiagoRoquePinheiro.
According to him, currently Arapiraca processes from 7 to 8 thousand kilograms of tobacco per
month. Around 10% of the raw material is acquired in the region of origin, in the surroundings of
Bebedouro, where cultivation persists. The remaining portion comes fromother states, and demand
signaled by Cifal is more andmore served by partnerships with companies and other suppliers. “We
arebeginningtoconsiderexports,withpossibleclientsincountrieslikeBelgium,HollandandSwitzer-
land”,hesays,afactthatstemsfromcontactsinDortmund.
Onanotherfront,innovationbecomesevidentintheefforttomeetspecificdemands,likequalityci-
garsandpackaginginlinewiththerealneeds,forexample,umbandashrines,amarketnichethat,ac-
cording tohim, proves tobepromising. “Theperspectives, ingeneral, and inall areas, are reallyprom-
ising”,heconcludes.
Inor Ag. Assmann
