"The World Health Organisation recommendations for cutting down tobacco production pose a threat to the livelihood of hundreds and thousands of families, adding it will not prevent people from smoking" say tobacco farmers from Macedonia, Bulgaria, Serbia, Greece and Turkey.

Gathered at a regional forum on oriental tobacco, organised by the International Tobacco Growers' Association (ITGA) in Skopje on Friday, they agreed that by cutting tobacco production the number of smokers would not be reduced, adding that tobacco growing didn't harm the environment.

According to ITGA CEO Antonio Abrunhosa, tobacco growing was under a great threat and WHO's recommendations to reduce tobacco production was not a smart move.

"The consumption of tobacco products is in constant rise and thus the World Health Organisation wants to introduce restrictions and to cut down consumption and tobacco production as a result. We think it is not a smart move by the WHO because it won't force smokers to quit only because the production of tobacco in their country is decreased," stated Abrunhosa.

The real threat, according to him, is that governments are urged to cut down tobacco production in their country, thus leaving hundreds and thousands of families on the street.

"The livelihood of growers of oriental tobacco in Macedonia and surrounding countries is put into question, because there is no replacement for this type of tobacco. We are not against the WHO measures, however there must be a distinctive limit between the activities of its experts and tobacco production, because these two things should go hand in hand," CEO Abrunhosa stressed.

Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management Ljupco Dimovski reiterated that tobacco production would resume and that subsidies would be still paid for it.

"While this government structure is in power, tobacco farmers can rest assured that tobacco production and subsidies will resume. Tobacco is an industrial and agriculture culture that is of great importance for Macedonia first and foremost of economic but also of social aspect. It employs a great number of farmers and the state has a substantial economic effect from tobacco growing. We remain firm with the position to resume producing oriental tobacco in Macedonia," Dimovski noted.

He added that all recommendations lacking basis and arguments were unacceptable, such as the one claiming that tobacco growing was harmful for tobacco farmers.

Recommendations stemming from WHO's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control are planned to be reviewed at a conference due to be held in November in Seoul, South Korea.