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• 02 / 05 / 2009

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Smaller tobacco collector houses in height are being built in the famous tobacco plantations of Pinar del Rio, the greatest producer of that crop in the country, to reduce their vulnerability to the wind battering.

The changes also include extension of those buildings' longitude to increase their storage capacity, Pinar del Rio's provincial tobacco sector Director Enrique Cruz told Prensa Latina.

That initiative is being applied in all municipalities of Vueltabajo, as this area is also known, devoted to the cultivation of the coveted plant cultivation, the official said.

Cruz said that after the damage caused by Gustav and Ike hurricanes in August and September, they decided to improve design and infrastructure of those buildings to protect them from that kind of phenomena.

Of 7,000 collector houses damaged by tropical storms, over 3,900 have been rebuilt so far, and 1,000 others are currently in the finishing stage, he said.

Farmer and carpenter brigades from several Cuban provinces have been supporting the recovery task for months in the field of Pinar del Rio, which are regaining their usual appearance with the restoration works.

Referring to the current campaign, he asserted that despite the initial difficulties, farmers and experts are confident that the harvest will be plentiful and of top quality, because the weather conditions are favorable.

Harvest-time is approaching the highest or greatest-activity season, thus additional forces are being organized in the territory, 87 miles from Havana, to guarantee success in this task.

Pinar del Rio contributes 70 percent of the national tobacco production and almost all the leaves used as layers in the making of the cigars known as Habanos.

(PL)