Surviving this new tobacco marketing environment will be a challenge. Intense international competition coupled with concentration in the buying sector will likely result in limited grower price growth in the future. To survive, U.S. growers must be willing to adapt to a changing product market, produce high quality leaf with reduced health risks, and find ways to constrain the growth or ideally to reduce their cost structure. Improvements in labor efficiency and yields will be critical to remain profitable in this marketing environment. Growers will achieve these desired results by adopting many of the recommendations in the current Burley and Dark Tobacco Production Guide.

Will Snell, UK Agricultural Economist