One of the requirements for implementing Good Agricultural Practice is a clear, universally adaptable means of accurately identifying the different growth stages of crops. In the case of tobacco, terms such as 'after lay-by', 'mid-growth' or 'early topping', which are commonly used to describe different stages in the life of the crop, generally lack the precision needed to pin-point critical events. This is relevant when considering crop calendars, for example the timing of cultural practices such as clipping of seedlings, planting, re-ridging and topping, operations such as scouting, monitoring and crop assessment and the application of chemicals for weed, pest, disease and sucker control. It is also relevant for obtaining consistent information when considering traceability issues and sampling programmes. In 1992, a system referred to as the extended BBCH scale (derived from Biologische Bundesanstalt, Bundessortenamt and Chemical industry) based on a widely adopted code for cereals was proposed to meet the need to uniformly, clearly and precisely identify comparable growth stages in a range of crop plants. The scale, a decimal one, divides the entire developmental cycle into ten clearly recognisable, distinguishable principal growth stages, each of which can be sub-divided into another ten (or more) secondary stages depending on the need to define events more precisely. It begins with the principal growth stage of germination and ends with that of completion of the crop. This paper proposes such a scale for tobacco, grown either for leaf or seed production, which could be used universally as an industry standard. The proposed scale takes account of operations such as seedling production, topping and harvesting, some of which are unique to the crop. It is part of the package of initiatives by the Agrochemicals Advisory Committee to support the promotion and adoption of GAP in tobacco crop production.