Just steps from the bustling chaos of Old Havana, Esteban García stands idly in a silent cigar shop, staring blankly at empty mahogany shelves behind a heavy glass door. The store manager, who asked to use a pseudonym for fear of retaliation, says: "We haven’t received a shipment in a month." Before the COVID-19 pandemic, his shop received deliveries of premium Habanos—cigars from brands like Romeo y Julieta, Montecristo, and the flagship Cohiba—three times a month. Over recent years, shipments have slowed to just once a month, and in recent weeks, even that pace isn’t guaranteed.
The Cuban cigar industry has been dogged by years of supply-side problems, from poor harvests to hurricanes. Now, as the United States imposes a de facto oil blockade on the island, it is facing its greatest challenge yet. Since the start of the year, little oil has entered Cuba. Ordinarily, the country relies on foreign imports for nearly 60% of its total crude supply. But that changed in January, when US President Donald Trump allegedly threatened tariffs against any country supplying fossil fuel to the island and ordered Venezuela to stop shipments altogether. Only a single Russian oil tanker has been permitted to reach Cuba since, offering a brief reprieve in March, but analysts estimated its 730,000 barrels would power the country for little over a week.
The blockade, purportedly designed to weaken Cuba’s government, has had repercussions for the entire population. One of the most visible consequences has been daily power outages, including three total collapses of the electricity grid this year. The energy crisis has also complicated tobacco cultivation. According to Cuban authorities, about 50% of tobacco fields in the main growing province of Pinar del Río rely on electrified irrigation systems. Manufacturing has taken a hit too: dried tobacco leaves are driven to Havana to be hand-rolled in state-run factories, but scarce petrol makes transportation difficult, and lack of electricity to light factories complicates production.
The Cuban government has acknowledged the setback: in February, authorities in Havana announced the suspension of the city’s annual cigar festival, citing the oil blockade and the "complex economic situation facing the country." Still, tobacco remains Cuba’s top export, and in 2024, its government reported record revenue from its sale—nearly $827 million. Sheldon Lloyd Smith, president of the Cigar Association of Canada, explained that demand is linked to prestige: globally, Habanos are considered a symbol of luxury.
However, a series of shocks in recent years have lowered cigar supplies. In September 2022, Hurricane Ian ravaged Pinar del Río, damaging up to 90% of the province’s tobacco curing barns. That season saw just 5,150 hectares of tobacco planted, the lowest level since records began. Last month, Cuban authorities announced they had failed to meet the target for the 2025-2026 growing season, set at 12,152 hectares. In 2024, the island exported 50 million cigars, little more than half of the 93.9 million shipped abroad in 2018. Industry insiders say exports have slowed even further in recent months.
Experts warn the full impact of the recent oil blockade remains to be seen, as there is a gap between when premium cigars are produced and sold—some require three to five years of ageing before reaching the public. Additionally, state companies like exporter Habanos SA have allegedly tried to insulate themselves from uncertainty by hiking product prices. For example, in Spain—a main importer of Habanos—a single Cohiba Siglo VI sells for €105 today, up from €37.80 in January 2022, a roughly 178% increase. But factory workers say they have yet to see rising revenue reflected in their income.
Elena Herrera (pseudonym), a 56-year-old worker who has rolled cigars for 16 years, said her wages have not increased since the COVID-19 pandemic. She earns just 6,000 Cuban pesos monthly, roughly $12 on Havana’s informal currency market. A Cohiba Siglo VI in Havana retails for $116, nearly 10 times her monthly wage. She explained that the US oil blockade has added new strains to her daily life: her four-kilometer walk home has become routine as fuel shortages paralyze public transport.
Experts say a lack of skilled workers is also lowering the cigar industry’s productivity, with nobody to replace older employees like Herrera. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, Cuba has experienced one of its most dramatic population declines in modern history, with up to a quarter of the population fleeing the country. Brooks Whittington, a writer at cigar industry blog Halfwheel, credited the "mass exodus" with spurring labor shortages in tobacco, while Lloyd Smith said some cigar factories are operating with just a fifth of their workforce. Herrera herself is not surprised Cubans are leaving: "The young people have no hope; they don’t have any options."
With the US chokehold on Cuba’s oil supply showing little sign of easing, the island’s cigar industry is under unprecedented strain. Some cigar experts believe the strategy of state-owned Tabacuba to raise prices and offset weak production is unsustainable long-term. Whittington said: "I don’t know how much further they can push it. They can increase prices as much as they want, but at some point, people are going to start pushing back." He added that climate change, labor shortages, and chronic crises are likely to worsen the situation.
Meanwhile, regional competitors are flourishing: Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic are seeing soaring demand for their lower-priced cigars. But some speculate the US blockade could make Habanos rarer and more valuable, as the Cuban government leverages scarcity to continue hiking prices. Lloyd Smith noted: "There’s always going to be someone with the money willing to pay," pointing to "huge demand for collectors to buy up everything they possibly can." However, workers like Herrera say the blockade is only deepening their hardships. Herrera said: "I’m 56 years old. I remember the 1990s, the special period, under Fidel. This is much worse."
Source: www.aljazeera.com