National Tobacco Administration (NTA) chief Carlitos Encarnacion said Saturday tobacco can also be the source of products that could never be hazardous to anyone’s health.

Encarnacion disclosed at the weekly Balitaan sa Rembrandt that scientists have succeeded in producing ethanol from tobacco, but said more research is being undertaken to reduce the cost of production of the biofuel.

He noted that in the future, tobacco may be a viable source of clean energy to replace non-renewable fossil fuels.

In the same forum, Encarnacion explained that Italian tobacco manufacturers have also visited him to ask whether Filipino farmers can supply them with tobacco since subsidies for tobacco growers in Europe have been substantially reduced or eliminated due to the anti-smoking campaign.

He added that tobacco has also been developed as the source of organic pesticide that can replace chemical pesticides with the same efficiency.

In Sta. Catalina, Ilocos Sur, vegetable growers have already started using tobacco pesticides to ward off infestation in their cauliflower and cabbage farms.

This bit of news is heartwarming, he stressed, aside from the fact biotechnologists are also working to derive some pharmaceutical applications from tobacco.

For years, he noted, tobacco has been used as an ingredient in making cookies and other pastry and in no time, it may be developed into a viable food product.

Other representatives of the tobacco industry said in the same forum that they will oppose the imposition of higher excise taxes on tobacco, which would make the levy on locally-produced tobacco for low-grade cigarettes for the domestic market at par with that of imported brands.