Luxi Sun-Cured Tobacco

Luxi Sun-Cured Tobacco

Luxi sun-cured tobacco is a geographical indication certification trademark.

　　Luxi sun-cured tobacco is soft in texture, golden in color, thin-leaved with fine veins, oily, fragrant, and mellow. It is considered a premium among sun-cured tobaccos, and those grown in the thatched sheds of Luxi are the crème de la crème—highly revered throughout history. According to *A Brief History of Zhangzhou*: “During the Ming Dynasty, the cultivation of cash crops reached an unprecedented scale... Tobacco was introduced from overseas and could intoxicate people, also ward off miasma. Its juice could poison head lice.” “Among them, tobacco from Zhangzhou’s Luxi (i.e., Luxi sun-cured tobacco) is the most renowned, esteemed across the land. Many grew it for substantial profits.”

　　Luxi sun-cured tobacco originates from Luxi Town, Pinghe County, a place with unique geography and climate. Surrounded by a web-like network of mountains and rivers of varying sizes, the area features a basin with an elevation of 420 meters. The average annual temperature is around 19°C, with annual rainfall between 1,700–1,800 millimeters, contributing to a cool climate. The history of tobacco cultivation here dates back over 400 years, introduced from Luzon Island in the Philippines during the Jiajing era of the Ming Dynasty (1522–1567). The techniques for planting and sun-curing are highly refined, having developed a complete set of region-specific methods including land preparation, seedling cultivation, field management, harvesting, drying, storage, and processing. This produces Luxi sun-cured tobacco with its distinctive sour-sweet flavor and mellow, refreshing taste.

　　Throughout its long development, Luxi sun-cured tobacco production has never ceased, unaffected by the upheavals of the world, and has always been favored by people. During the Qianlong reign of the Qing Dynasty, the grandfather of Zhuang Shidao from Xiayi Yanling Village opened a tobacco shop on Dongmen Street in Zhangzhou, producing cut tobacco and strip-cut tobacco (for water pipes), which were sold in Jiangxi, Zhejiang, and other parts of the country, yielding substantial profits. He was known as “Zhuang the Millionaire.” During the Republican era, “Fulan Tobacco Shop” was established in Luxi Market to purchase and shred tobacco, gaining fame across southern Fujian. In the 1920s, brothers Chen Sanxiang and their father from Donghuai Village in Luxi operated “Shuncheng Tobacco Shop,” creating the red and white label “Luxi Zhengdi” sun-cured tobacco. They later signed a supply contract with “Qilin Tobacco Shop” on Zhenbang Road in Xiamen, exporting “Luxi Zhengdi” tobacco leaves and cut tobacco both domestically and internationally. Between 1909 and 1926, Mitsui Bussan of Japan established “Mitsui Bussan and Shengmei Company” in Pinghe Xiaoxi, monopolizing the trade of Luxi sun-cured tobacco and exporting it to Japan and Southeast Asia. After the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, “Shuncheng Tobacco Shop” signed fixed-quantity contracts with Sino-American Tobacco Export Company, making Luxi sun-cured tobacco a primary ingredient in “Hongyun” brand cigarettes. After liberation, Pinghe County established a cut tobacco factory, with its products sold across the province. In the 1980s, major cigarette manufacturers such as Beijing Cigarette Factory (producers of “Golden Key” and “Temple” brands), Shijiazhuang Cigarette Factory in Hebei (producer of “Ganoderma” brand), Changchun Cigarette Factory in Jilin (producer of “Ginseng” brand), Ye Cheng Cigarette Factory in Anhui (producer of “Temple” brand), along with factories in Shanghai, Sichuan, Baoding, Xiamen, Longyan, and other regions, all sought Luxi sun-cured tobacco at premium prices. Cultivating and producing Luxi sun-cured tobacco became a lucrative path to prosperity for local residents.

　　Luxi sun-cured tobacco stands out among all sun-cured tobacco varieties in China and is highly sought after by many cigarette manufacturers and consumers, offering broad prospects for future development.