The Agroforestry Company of the province of Las Tuna has considerably decreased the export of charcoal, one of its main lines of production, as the consequences of the crisis generated by the COVID-19 disease.

Las Tunas.- According to Isidro Herrera Figueredo, director of the commercial-based business unit, during 2020, the plan could not be fulfilled because there were problems with raw materials and the lack of bags, a resource that was already hired in Villa Clara.

The manager stated that, in the current calendar, there were also difficulties from the implementation of the Ordering Task, specifically with the prices of container transportation and other problems with customers; so, in the first quarter, they only sold abroad 85 tons of the 741 planned.

In April, 266 tons were already exported; and the collective intention of the company is to comply with the monthly plan and gradually recover the arrears until producing about 3,138 tons of the product in the year.

In Las Tunas, charcoal is produced mainly with marabou, an alien invasive species due to the severe damage it causes to productive areas; on the other hand, after its processing, it has been very well received by customers.

Experts say that marabou charcoal has been imposed on the international market because has properties that differentiate it from the rest of the woods; for example, it does not spark, its metallic sound, smell, and durability, which gives a lot of calories when combustion.

In the territory of Las Tunas, besides the Agroforestry Company, the farmers associated with different productive forms, entities linked to the National Company for the Conservation of Flora and Fauna, and agricultural companies also manufacture charcoal.