R&D Group Facilities
Leaf Tobacco Research Center
A research center responsible for tobacco plants genetic research, cultivar development, production technology development, disease and pest control technology development, and compound analysis technology development.
This facility covers a wide range of fields including molecular biology, plant physiology, plant pathology, and analytical chemistry.
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Cultivation trial fields
A field four times the size of Tokyo Dome that enables outdoor testing similar to actual tobacco plant cultivation environments
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Seeding beds
A facility for growing seedlings to be planted in cultivation trial fields
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Workshops
A facility for various operations adjacent to cultivation trial fields
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Pipe houses for curing tobacco leaves
A facility used during the first two weeks of the curing process, mainly for Burley tobacco leaves
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Curing house for Burley tobacco leaves
A facility used during the second two weeks of the curing process, mainly for Burley tobacco leaves
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Curing house for Flue Cured Virginia tobacco leaves
A facility used mainly for curing Flue Cured Virginia tobacco leaves
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Seed storage
A facility where seeds are stored in cold storage to prevent a decrease in the germination rate
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Green houses
A large-scale indoor cultivation facility with an area equivalent to about six tennis courts
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Cultivation room with artificial light
A facility capable of cultivating leaf tobacco using LED lights whose wavelengths can be modified
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Pests laboratory
A facility for the study of pests that occur during the storage of tobacco raw materials and products
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Chemical analytical laboratories
A lab for analyzing the compounds in tobacco raw materials
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Gene laboratories
A lab that conducts genetic research for the purpose of cultivar development
Cultivation trial fields
A field that enables outdoor testing similar to actual tobacco plant cultivation environments. The area is about four times the size of Tokyo Dome, and various cultivation tests are conducted for the purpose of developing cultivars, production technology, pest control technology, etc.
Seeding beds
A facility for growing seedlings to be planted in cultivation trial fields.
A wide variety of tobacco plants used in cultivation tests are grown under temperature and moisture control suited to each cultivar.
Workshops
A facility for various operations adjacent to cultivation trial fields.
It is mainly used to prepare harvested tobacco leaves for curing and to store them after curing.
Pipe houses for curing tobacco leaves
A facility used during the first two weeks of the curing process, mainly for Burley tobacco leaves.
The temperature and humidity are controlled manually so that the leaves can be slowly dehydrated without hindering the changes in the contained compounds.
Curing house for Burley tobacco leaves
A facility used during the second two weeks of the curing process, mainly for Burley tobacco leaves. A machine for controlling the humidity is used to facilitate smooth dehydration.
Curing house for Flue Cured Virginia tobacco leaves
A facility used mainly for curing Flue Cured Virginia tobacco leaves.
Using a machine that can change the temperature gradually via electronic control, it takes about a week to cure, from changes in the compounds to dehydration.
Seed storage
A facility where seeds are stored in cold storage to prevent a decrease in the germination rate. We store over 40,000 types of seeds, both collected from around the world and developed byLeaf Tobacco Research Center. In addition to being used in lab tests, some are also provided to external research institutions.
Green houses
A large-scale indoor cultivation facility with an area equivalent to about six tennis courts.
Various cultivation tests are carried out in a facility where environmental conditions such as temperature and humidity, solar radiation, and nourishing water are controlled.
Cultivation room with artificial light
A facility capable of cultivating tobacco plants using LED lights whose wavelengths can be modified.
It is used in tests to understand changes in tobacco plant growth and contained compounds due to differences in irradiation wavelengths.
Pests labolatory
A facility for the study of pests that occur during the storage of tobacco raw materials and products.
In order to investigate the ecology and behavioral characteristics of pests and develop control technologies, we also breed pests for research in the facility.
Chemical analytical laboratory
A lab for analyzing the compounds in tobacco raw materials.
Qualitative and quantitative analyses of various substances such as flavor compounds are performed using gas and liquid chromatography.
chromatography and flavors.
Gene laboratory
A lab that conducts genetic research for the purpose of cultivar development.
We use next-generation sequencers and other analytical instruments to read the genetic information of tobacco plants, determine disease resistance, and identify useful genes.
