UVV

Universal Corporation

One of the world's largest leaf tobacco suppliers, Universal Corporation buys, processes, and sells flue-cured, burley, and other tobaccos to consumer brands, and also makes specialty plant-based ingredients like juices, concentrates, and botanical extracts for food and beverage companies. It was born in 1918 in Richmond, Virginia, when Jacquelin P. Taylor merged six independent leaf merchants into the Universal Leaf Tobacco Company, with the name chosen to signal its global ambitions. Today it also counts many seasonal workers among its more than 25,000 employees, reflecting the farming rhythms of its harvest.