Becoming The Muse

Zimbabwe has an agro-based economy, the green in the the country’s flag stands for agriculture.

Just like the yellow stands for mineral wealth, represented by gold. Zimbabwe’s leaf tobacco is regarded as green gold making up a substantial amount of the country’s earnings, at some point it earned $1 billion per annum, not sure of the current position.

A Wikipedia article that comes when you search “which country produces the most tobacco in Africa” might makes the claim that Zimbabwe produced the most tobacco in Africa and sixth in the world

Only 1,5 percent of locally produced tobacco is channelled towards local processing, with the rest being exported in raw form. It is used for blending in export markets because of its good quality.

Tobacco production is also tied to the growing global health concerns

80 percent of the world’s smokers live in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC), and eight million people die due to smoking-related disease every year. “The WHO estimates that one billion people will die of smoking-related diseases by 2100,” according to a report by a UK-based public health agency, Knowledge Action Change

The research proposes adopting alternative products such as pasteurised oral snus (moist power smokeless tobacco), e-cigarettes, vapours and heated tobacco products (HTPs) that present substantial tobacco harm reduction THR

For countries such as Zimbabwe, where the success and growth of the economy has made bed fellows with tobacco, exploring and investing in less risky alternative to tobacco consumption might be a lifeline for the green gold.

“People smoke for the nicotine, but it is the other components of cigarette smoke that do most of the damage. . . Cigarettes are the most dangerous form of nicotine delivery, not least because they involve the burning of plant-based material . . .

“Alternative nicotine products can present a substantial reduction in harm reduction,” said neuropsychopharmacologist Prof David Nutt, the chair of Drug Science, a non-profit organisation that provides evidence-based information on drugs.

Tobacco-rette Pvt Ltd is the sole distributor of Swedish Snus in Zimbabwe. Currently they import three flavours. These are Rapé, Menthol and Original.

Snus is an alternate form of nicotine intake and is healthier than cigarettes to the body and to the environment. Swedish Snus has been making in-roads in the nicotine market and research from the country shows how Sweden currently has the least number of smoking related lung cancer instances.

Snus comes in different grades and strengths and the Strong Snus Guide gives a tutorial on some of the different grades of snus

It should be noted that nicotine is an addictive stimulant and should not be introduced to persons under the age of 18.

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