Phillipines: Alternative Livelihood For Tobacco Farmers

Source from:  Manila Bulletin 01/29/2013

With the Sin Tax Law (Republic Act No. 10351) in force, the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) is helping the sector of small tobacco farmers adversely affected by the measure to find new and alternative livelihood.
 
DOST's National Academy of Science and Technology (NAST) conducted a forum recently at a hotel in Pasay City to address this concern.
 
DOST-NAST led the roundtable discussion, the focus of which was the theme "Are We Ready for Sweet Sorghum Bioethanol?"
 
Participants from government, academe, non-government organization (NGOs), and private sector discussed the potential of sorghum as a source of livelihood.
 
NAST's focal person for energy, Academician Alvin B. Culaba, conceded though that sweet sorghum's acceptance as a product by the public is still the subject of a painstaking study.

Culaba, who is with NAST's Engineering Sciences and Technology Division, is a part of a research team on alternative and renewable energy source including biodiesel and bioethanol. Enditem