Potential of adopting bamboo as an alternative crop to tobacco farming in South Nyanza region, Kenya : a paper presented at the WHO-FCTC Second Meeting of the Study Group on Economically Sustainable Alternatives to Tobacco Growing Mexico City, 17-19 June 2008

Objective: To experiment the potential of adopting bamboo as an alternative crop or source of livelihood to tobacco farming in South Nyanza region, Kenya. // Design: The study is being carried out on 120 field experimental sites where 2451 bamboo seedlings were planted between September and October 2006. The experiment comprised of 1,208 giant bamboo (Dendrocalamus giganteus) and 1,243 common bamboo (Bambusa vulgaris). Each seedling was planted in a cubical hole measuring 0.5m x 0.5m x 0.5m. The seedlings were planted under the same natural tobacco growing conditions in five different zones (i.e. zone A = hillside/steep sloping farmland, B = hillside/gentle sloping farmland, C = flat farmland/not wetland/ river bank, D = flat farmland/wetland and E = homestead) based on each farmer’s preference. Half of the bamboo clumps were randomly selected and tagged for monitoring. Hence, at most, 5 plants of each species were selected from the 20 planted by each farmer. The parameters which were monitored in the twelve months were: survival rates, number of culms, culm heights and culm diameter. Literature review was conducted to have a detailed understanding of activities in the bamboo and tobacco industries in Kenya and other parts of the world. Data analyses were done using SPSS and Excel computer packages. Frequency tabulation and bar graphs were used to present the data. // Results: The study revealed that the two species of bamboo perform well in gentle slopes and flat farmlands but not on wetlands. A part from the wetlands, survival rates of Bambusa vulgaris and giant species was ranging between 69% and 94%. It also emerged that Bambusa vulgaris bamboo establishes faster than giant species and withstands water logging than giant species. The findings show that the two species of bamboo can do well in soil and agro-climatic conditions similar to those of tobacco. The study has further revealed that most of the bamboo products sold in the formal retail market in Kenya are imported, a scenario that results in high market prices and low demand for the products. It also emerged that besides numerous economic advantages of bamboo, social and environmental problems associated with tobacco farming can be reduced through bamboo production. Furthermore, skills and structures used by tobacco farmers in the tobacco industry can effectively be used in bamboo processing. // Conclusions and Recommendations: Giant and Bambusa vulgaris species of bamboo require similar natural conditions of production as tobacco. From the production point of view, the two species of bamboo can do better in soil and agro-climatic conditions favourable to tobacco growing. Tobacco processing skills and structures can also be used in the bamboo industry with minimal shifting capital investment. It is recommended that for the shifting from tobacco to bamboo in this region, the farmers must be well trained on bamboo processing at the community level, market should be well structured and more bamboo species introduced in the region because of their diversified uses. There is also need to encourage domestic production of the high quality bamboo products to save foreign exchange. To replace tobacco with bamboo in Kenya, the current experiment needs to be replicated in the other 10 remaining tobacco growing areas in the country. Capacity building will be very important through training and farmers empowerment in bamboo production and processing