DINNER PARTY INTEL: Solar to smoke out tobacco?
1. Burying the hatchet A petty trade dispute between neighbours Kenya and Tanzania appears to have been resolved, but the feud shows that efforts to enhance regional integration are moving at a snail’s pace. Kenya had banned cooking gas and wheat imports from Tanzania, while Tanzania blocked Kenyan milk and tyres at the border. But the bigger problems include slow customs procedures and an inability to implement directives to ease trade within the East African Community. 2. Solar to smoke out tobacco? Michigan Technological University researchers say tobacco farmers could increase profits by converting their land to solar farms. As demand for clean energy grows, so does the demand for land for solar farms. But removing arable land from food production can cause a rise in food prices. Tobacco croplands provide an interesting opportunity: tobacco use in the US is declining but it is still farmed because it can be profitable. Researcher Joshua Pearce says: "The cost of solar has droppe...
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