In a Polish mountain forest, Zygmunt Furdygiel spends four hours loading logs of beech wood into a large furnace, then lights up the pile and leaves the wood to burn.
"It smokes for two days then cools for another two days," the 69-year-old said. "On the fifth day, I take out the charcoal."
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Local manufacturers fear their numbers may fall further as they say anyone who produces from 1 to 100 tonnes will now have to register with the European Chemicals Agency, paying a fee as well as the cost of analysis of their product for chemical substances. For some, they say it could be a hefty sum.
"We are being hit by cheap charcoal from the east on the one hand and by EU regulations on the other," said one producer in Bieszczady who declined to be named.
"If I want to continue production, I need to invest and it does not pay back nowadays."