What problems are Western tobacco companies causing in Third World countries?
Western tobacco companies pay very low prices for the tobacco grown in the Third World. This means Third World growers have to produce and sell an awful lot of tobacco. In Malawi intensive tobacco cultivation started in the central region of the country. This area is now bare. Tobacco growing has moved into the north and this area is also becoming deforested. The Government of Malawi encourages people to grow tobacco as part of the Poverty Alleviation program. But there is no control over where it is grown. And because food crops do not fetch as high a price as tobacco only the poorest people, who cannot get loans for inputs to grow tobacco, grow any food. The result is that Malawi is completely unable to feed itself and depends on Western donor countries for handouts. But I don t think it s right to point the finger only at Western tobacco companies. What about tobacco consumers?
