This flue curing barn uses less fuel

MANILA, Philippines - This is a hot idea that sparked this summer.

PMFTC Inc. has successfully tested a prototype tobacco curing barn that traps the sun’s rays to cure tobacco leaf, reducing the company’s carbon footprint.

PMFTC leaf and agronomy director Jonathan Stalley said a special treated plastic was used to replace the traditional sheet metal wall and roof commonly used for traditional curing barns. This design allows natural sunlight to permeate the barn.

While tests already show promising results, Stalley said that his team is studying ways to enhance the design to further reduce fuel wood consumption.

Stalley says “initial results indicate that a lot more can be done to reduce fuel consumption when curing. It is an indication that tobacco farmers can earn more by cost savings in fuel. It also means that fewer trees will be cut.”

Flue-curing is a method of drying tobacco leaf using heat that comes from flues, or pipes. The heat is generated by burning wood.

In the solar barn, the heat from the sun is trapped inside to help speed up the drying process. It is done during the summer months, when this natural and renewable source of heat is at a maximum.

The prototype barn was constructed within the compound of PMFTC’s buying station in Sta Cruz, Ilocos Sur.

PMFTC president Chris Nelson says the experimental barn is in line with the company’s advocacy of reducing the environmental footprint of its operations.

“We have evaluated our environmental impact – from buying tobacco leaf to manufacturing tobacco products to running our offices – and we are taking steps to reduce it. We have defined environmental objectives that are aggressive yet realistic and, by implementing a series of concrete programs, we are achieving them,” Nelson said.

Nelson said that over the past 10 years more than two million trees have been planted by PMFTC in Northern Luzon to sustain the environment. The project was conducted in cooperation with Cordillera Green Network and the Jaime V. Ongpin Foundation Inc.