Smoking a cigar that has been sprayed with pesticides, then fertilized with manmade chemicals before being surrounded by herbicides to keep the weeds back has a rather repulsive ring to it, doesn't it? Oh, let's not forget the oh-so controversial "Red Dye #5" that gets applied to the wrapper to give it that signature corojo color.

Man... can you imagine marketing a cigar like this and then standing behind it? Yikes.

Fortunately, cigar manufacturers and the farms that supply the tobacco crops they rely upon continue to do things the old-fashioned way. By this point, the modern interpretation of the cigar has been around for centuries, and if you take a peek at any marketing campaign, it becomes pretty obvious that cigar manufacturers are not keen on rushing things or cutting corners in any way.

However, a recent discussion with a friend of mine regarding the organic nature of growing cigar tobacco prompted me to do a bit of follow-up research on a subject that we discussed a few years back here at Klaro. The title of the article was Growing Green: 4 Cigar Manufacturers That Are Adapting to Help the Environment, and while far from being considered something that I would call "in-depth," the blog did highlight a few key points regarding the cultivation of tobacco, as well as the cigar production process.

But my friend's question was very direct, and that little article of mine did not provide an exact answer to it, so I began to do a bit of research. For the last time I checked, there was only one certified organic cigar on the market, so I, too, was left wondering the same question: Why aren't there more organic premium cigars?

Are You Organically Grown? It's Complicated...

Upon hearing that there was only one organic cigar on the market, my friend raised an eyebrow, and asked, "So does that mean that all the other cigars out there are sprayed with chemicals?"

My friend's response was well-founded. For many people, when they hear that something they are putting in their mouth may not be organic, the knee-jerk response is to presume the precise opposite. But when it comes to cigar tobacco, the answer lies in a muddy grey area, where old school farming techniques meet modern day governmental red tape. 

The primary reason why 99.99% of all cigar manufacturers are not actively pursuing an organic stamp of approval on their products is that it is a massive headache of an undertaking. Unlike Cuban cigars, which hail from only one country, the majority of premium cigar blends are exactly what they are marketed as: A blend of tobaccos from around the world. 

To become certified organic, you would need to get the appropriate paperwork approved for every leaf from each country where the tobacco is grown, as well as from the nation where the cigar is rolled. You would also need to get certification for your cigar glue, which isn't really glue but a flavorless, odorless vegetable gum.

Oh, and let's not forget about the final stage, where the country in which you plan to promote your organic stogie must have all of your paperwork on file, at which point it will be up to them to decide whether or not all of your hard work is worthy of receiving an official organic stamp of approval. 

This explains why so many cigar manufacturers and farmers skip the whole organic approach, and just stick with doing things the old way, which coincidentally is as close to organic as it comes.

Screw the Certification, We're Gonna Grow Regardless!

Instead of relying upon chemicals for fertilization, pest control, and weed suppression, tobacco growers continue to tap into the farming techniques that have worked for generations. Integrating new-school sustainable agriculture techniques into the broad scope of things has further upped the ante, and thanks to tobacco being something most animals view as inedible, the need to focus on soil upkeep, disease prevention, and weed control remains the top priority.

Utilizing no-till planters and supplementing crop rotation with routine cover crops continues to be a time-proven organic farming technique, especially when you have livestock grazing throughout the season. Manure from cattle (as well as goats and sheep) has long been known for its ability to enhance soil health, increase crop yields, and encourage biodiversity. So letting that tobacco plot rest for a season or two continues to be a winning combo. 

Speaking of livestock, many tobacco growers still use oxen to plow the fields and transport tobacco leaf, as they do not have as heavy a footprint as a tractor, and instead of dropping grease on the ground, they drop rich fertilizer instead. In certain farmlands, wild horses are allowed to roam between the rows of tobacco, eating the weeds as they make their way across. Throw a slew of chickens into the mix, along with some sunflowers that attract predatory insects, and you have an organic pest and weed control army that's fertilizing while it hunts. 

Utilizing shade-growing techniques also helps benefit the whole tobacco growing process, as the soil does not dry out nearly as quickly as when it is exposed to direct sun. 

Tobacco farmers are also using earthworms (vermiculture) like never before to help boost the nutrients in their soil. By integrating these slippery little beasts into a tobacco field's drip irrigation system, a process called fertigation, or vertigation as some call it, creates a clean, nutrient-rich form of feeding a tobacco crop what it craves. By simultaneously fertilizing and irrigating crops, you can increase or reduce water and fertilizer provided to each plant, which in many cases can reduce water consumption by 50% and increase yield by about 25%.

Tobacco Nerd Note: Organic-certified since 2000, the Reserva Original from Plasencia Cigars is a 100% Nicaraguan puro premium cigar blend that to date remains the world’s only 100% organic handmade premium cigar certified by the Organic Crop Improvement Association (OCIA).

Parting Puffs

If these methodologies are proving to work well, crop after crop, what's next for quasi-organic tobacco farming? From the looks of things, mountain-grown tobacco is the next big thing, at least for Plasencia Cigars. The company's latest release is called Alma del Cielo, which translates to "Soul of the Clouds." As the first mass-produced cigar to feature tobacco grown at an altitude of over 3,500 feet above sea level, this smoke has made a lot of waves since it debuted at PCA 2025. 

But being that the mountainous regions of Condega, Nicaragua, tend to be shrouded in cloud coverage much of the time, it is highly likely that Plasencia is looking for new ways to reduce water usage. Additionally, all of that cloudiness serves as a natural sun barrier, thus making the crops somewhat shade-grown. Either way, this long-forgotten style of mountain farming is sure to improve soil quality, reduce water management needs, as the higher elevation allows a whole new breed of cover crops and no-till planting to flourish.