Pakistan Tobacco Company
P
akistan Tobacco Company (PTC) time employment for over 25,000 farmers has been consistently recognized and thousands of people across the 200 as one of the best governed sales and distribution companies associated industrial companies in Pakistan with it. It also helps to provide livelihood and has played an important support for over 800,000 retailers around role in the country’s economy. Formed in the country. The company is thus a major October 1947 out of the old Imperial Tobacco contributor to the national economy. Company of India, PTC was incorporated Last year, PTC contributed nearly 40 immediately after partition, and is the billion rupees in excise revenue, which was oldest multinational company operating in nearly one third of the total excise revenue the country. Since that date, it has grown generated by the government of Pakistan. alongside Pakistan, making significant “Last year, our sales volume grew by two contributions not only to the economy in to three per cent, which was basically the form of billions of rupees in taxation driven by the growing purchasing power but also to developing talent of consumers. It was also a in the corporate sector; and result of existing smokers to national development switching from traditional through its extensive work non-tobacco products to cigarettes,” explains in improving sustainable Asim Imdad Ali, head of agriculture in Pakistan. Number of people Corporate and Regulatory The company is part of employed by PTC the global tobacco company Affairs at PTC. in management and BAT (British American Cigarette production manufacturing Tobacco) and produces takes place at two factories. around 40 billion cigarettes One plant is located in a year. Enjoying around a 50 per cent share Punjab province, where around 20 per cent of the legitimate cigarette market, its of the tobacco crop in Pakistan is grown. products are the traditional BAT brands and However, the primary plant, along with a fall into three value streams. Dunhill and leaf threshing plant, is located in the Khyber Benson & Hedges are the premium brands; Pakhtunkhwa province (KPK), where nearly Gold Leaf, which is one of the most well- three quarters of the tobacco is grown. “In known brands in South Asia, is aimed at these areas of the country, tobacco farming the middle income market; while Pall Mall, is of fundamental importance to the Gold Flake and Embassy fall in the value- regional economy. In the last few years this for-money category. economic importance of tobacco crop has Directly employing around 1,000 people grown even further as these regions in KPK in management and manufacturing, the were adversely affected due to the fallout of company is also responsible for creating full the defence operations undertaken to fight
1,000