Tobacco Growers Urged to Keep on Producing

Source from:  Tobacco Reporter 11/29/2011

The Tanzanian government has urged tobacco growers to distance themselves from unfounded claims about the crop, but, at the same time, to work tirelessly towards growing it more responsibly, according to a story in The Guardian. The Minister for Agriculture and Food Security, Professor Jumanne Maghembe, in a speech read out at the opening of the annual general meeting of the International Tobacco Growers' Association by the permanent secretary, Mohammed Muya, advised tobacco growers in developing countries to transform their farming methods to match those of their counterparts in developed countries. "It is time you emulated your colleagues in developed nations who grow tobacco in a modern manner by doing away with inferior farm implements, particularly the hand hoe," Maghembe said. "The use of tractors and oxen ploughs to facilitate the farming is still small; hence farmers' average acreage is between 0.8 and 1.0 ha per family." The annual general meeting, the first to be held in Tanzania, attracted participants from more than 20 countries. Enditem