HARARE, Jul. 2 (NewsDay Live) – Africa’s tobacco industry is intensifying calls for environmentally sustainable production, but Zimbabwean growers say limited land is making it increasingly difficult to comply with forestry regulations aimed at reducing deforestation.
Speaking at the International Tobacco Growers Association (ITGA) Africa Regional Meeting in Harare on Thursday, Tanzania Tobacco Board director general Stanley Nelson Mnozya said the future of tobacco production depended on balancing economic growth with environmental protection.
“The long-term sustainability of tobacco production can only be guaranteed if we protect our natural resources,” Mnozya told delegates.
He urged growers to embrace afforestation, reduce deforestation linked to tobacco curing, protect water resources, conserve soils and adopt climate-smart farming practices.
“Our farmers are not only producers of tobacco; they are also guardians of the land,” he said.
Mnozya said the adoption of alternative energy sources, improved curing technologies and greater collaboration across producing countries would help the sector withstand climate change-induced droughts, floods and extreme heat.
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“Many countries have made progress in sustainable forest management and tree planting. Tobacco production and environmental stewardship can coexist,” he said.
However, Zimbabwean growers say achieving those goals has become increasingly difficult because of land constraints.
Tobacco Exporters Association of Zimbabwe (TLEAZ) president Rob Holmes said growers were caught between complying with environmental regulations and limited land availability.
Under Statutory Instrument 116 of 2012, growers are required to establish 0.3 hectares of woodlots for every hectare of tobacco grown for curing fuel unless they use sustainable wood sources or coal.
“It is a complex issue as many growers do not have enough land for tobacco, food production, other cash crops and livestock grazing,” Holmes said.
With about 135,000 tobacco farmers and more than two million people employed across the value chain, Holmes warned that many growers risked failing to meet the legal requirement unless practical alternatives were adopted.
He said TLEAZ had invested about US$100 million through the Sustainable Afforestation Association, resulting in the establishment of approximately 35,000 hectares of eucalyptus plantations.
“However, this will not meet the needs of the total crop. This requires action from all stakeholders,” Holmes said.
He said the immediate solution lay in improving curing efficiency through energy-efficient barns and blending coal with wood to reduce fuel consumption and production costs.
“Enforcement lies with the Forestry Commission. It will not be solved overnight, but we need progress to keep key markets,” he said.
Holmes cited Brazil as an example, saying the country had spent 25 years building sustainable woodlots and now cures about 650 million kilogrammes of tobacco using sustainably produced fuelwood.
Closing the session, Mnozya said partnerships among governments, growers and industry players would be essential to securing the sector’s future.
“The future of our industry depends not only on what we produce, but also on how responsibly we produce it,” he said.
The regional meeting attracted delegates from Argentina, Switzerland, Portugal, India, Malawi, Tanzania and Zambia, alongside Zimbabwe’s tobacco industry stakeholders.