There are loads of tobacco alternatives, but here are a few you may not have considered.

Tabaco

Well I'll be jiggered sideways. They don't even grow the dreaded weed in the Phillipine city of Tabaco. However the Phillipine government was all but hung out to dry for standing by as a series of politically motivated killings unfolded, including the murder of a guy from Tabaco City.

Tobacco settlement - not in Africa

The tobacco companies have no shame when they need to expand their customer base. One example of their cynicism is targeting teenagers in a bid to cultivate a smoker of the future. Now it looks like they are also targetting another great untapped and healthy demographic - mothers of children! Watch out if you are a woman in Africa. Tobacco is coming to a place near you to jeopardise your life in the future.

According to Mrs Tuwine, repressed African women are going to be bombarded with adverts to persuade them to partake of the evil weed. There is such a dilemma heading the way of impressionable young mothers hooked into the nicotine habit - Do I spend my Nestlé powdered milk money on cigarettes instead?

Good health effects of tobacco

And finally, there are health benefits if you mix tobacco with salsa! Seriously, the 12-piece OrquestaTabaco y Ron will lighten any mood and cast you into a cigar and rum fantasy music land without damaging your lungs in any way. It may wreck your vocal chords as you sing along with over-zealous gusto, but singing isn't cancerous the last time I checked.


Have you any insights into the tobacco industry push into Africa, or ever visited Tabaco or seen the orchestra in action?