According to a report from Corse-Matin on September 27, the last cigarette factory in France, Macotab, will close its doors in December. The tobacco facility is located in Furiani, in the Upper Corsica region.
According to reports, the factory produces approximately 850 million cigarettes per year. This decision comes as a result of a project to restructure certain operations in Europe, as the legally sold volume of cigarettes in France continues to decline, being replaced by smuggled and counterfeit goods. Additionally, Philip Morris International (PMI) terminated part of its production contract with Macotab, leading to the ultimate decision to shut down the company. Similarly, due to the same reasons, the Coretab packaging plant project in Reunion Island is also under consideration for closure.
Macotab cigarette factory is the last remaining cigarette manufacturing plant in France since the closure of the Riom factory in 2016. It operates within a production area of 10,000 square meters with only 29 employees. Currently, a major portion of cigarette production in Europe is concentrated in Germany and Poland.
The Macotab factory, established in 1961, is a subsidiary of Seita (Tobacco and Match Industry Development Company) Group, which is a privatized French tobacco monopoly. Since 1995, it has become a subsidiary of Imperial Brands Group and produces cigarettes for Corsica and other regions of France.
