If you are interested in tobacco farming – or if you are a tobacco grower yourself –, you have probably heard a lot about tobacco growers' associations in your country or region. Some of them are really well-structured and have been around for decades.

Theoretically, they should always support tobacco farmers. But do they actually represent tobacco growers' interests? Or is this just another myth?

Our guest:

Dr. Vera Luiza da Costa e Silva – executive secretary of Brazil’s National Commission for the Implementation of the WHO FCTC (Conicq), former head of the Convention Secretariat, and member of the WHO FCTC Knowledge Hub for Articles 17 and 18.

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Unlocking the Tobacco Supply Chain is a podcast produced by the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Knowledge Hub for Articles 17 and 18, which is based in Brazil, in the Center for Studies on Tobacco and Health from the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation.

The information and views set out on this podcast are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Parties to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC), the Parties to the Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products (the Protocol), or the Secretariat of the WHO FCTC and its Protocols.

China, India, and Brazil are the three largest tobacco producers worldwide. What do you think would happen to their economies if tobacco crops suddenly disappeared from their territories?

Today, we are discussing this topic with Dr. Jeffrey Drope, who has studied the economics of tobacco farming in many tobacco-growing countries.

Our guest:

Dr. Jeffrey Drope, a research professor in the health policy and administration division of the School of Public Health at University of Illinois Chicago.

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Follow us on socials:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/FCTC_KH_FIOCRUZ

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fctc.tobacco.environment/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FCTC.tobacco.environment

Visit our website: https://extranet.who.int/fctcapps/fctcapps/fctc/kh/alternativelivelihoods

***

Unlocking the Tobacco Supply Chain is a podcast produced by the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Knowledge Hub for Articles 17 and 18, which is based in Brazil, in the Center for Studies on Tobacco and Health from the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation.

The information and views set out on this podcast are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Parties to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC), the Parties to the Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products (the Protocol), or the Secretariat of the WHO FCTC and its Protocols.

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In tobacco-growing regions, farmers usually have contracts with tobacco companies. Through these contracts, they are often trapped by the industry, and even indebted to it.

But, in many ways, the system makes it easier for farmers to grow tobacco than to switch to other crops. That is because they don’t have to worry about getting the inputs or technical assistance, and, perhaps most importantly, they have a ready-market for their products.

This is why so many tobacco farmers feel like it’s impossible for them to do anything else. 

But with adequate support, tobacco-growers actually can switch to other activities. 

Our guest:

Dr. Donald Makoka – research fellow in the Centre for Agricultural Research and Development, at Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, in Malawi.

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Follow us on our socials:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/FCTC_KH_FIOCRUZ

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fctc.tobacco.environment/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FCTC.tobacco.environment

Visit our website: https://extranet.who.int/fctcapps/fctcapps/fctc/kh/alternativelivelihoods

***

Unlocking the Tobacco Supply Chain is a podcast produced by the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Knowledge Hub for Articles 17 and 18, which is based in Brazil, in the Center for Studies on Tobacco and Health from the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation.

The information and views set out on this podcast are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Parties to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC), the Parties to the Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products (the Protocol), or the Secretariat of the WHO FCTC and its Protocols.