TOBACCO
IN NORTH CAROLINA
Tobacco is big business in North Carolina, and
definitely has a top-ranking place in our economy.
North Carolina is the largest tobacco producing
and manufacturing state in the nation.
Tobacco produces over 50 percent of North
Carolina’s agricultural income. From 500 to 800
million pounds are produced annually, valued at
from 200 to 400 million dollars. Aside from the
agricultural workers, over 50,000 people are em
ployed in processing and manufacturing plants,
Winston-Salem, Durham and Reidsville have
the largest tobacco factories in the world; and
Wilson, Greenville and Rocky Mount are the larg
est bright-leaf tobacco markets. Over 50 percent
of all cigarettes are manufactured in this state,
with excise levies on them amounting to more
than 725 million dollars annually.
Mostly, types of tobacco are grouped according
to the three curing methods—flue-cured, air-cured
and fire-cured. Other 1 actors, however, such as
climate, soil and seed contribute to the quality
and characteristics by which the types are known.
North Carolina produces the flue-cured (bright
leaf) and the air-cured (Burley). Burley tobacco
is confined to the mountain regions and the bright
leaf is grown in the Piedmont and Coastal regions.
In the first stage of production the seed beds
are prepared and sown and the small plants are
transplanted in the field. The seeding is usually in
January or February, although the seeding for Bur
ley sometimes runs to March.
The small plants are pulled from the bed when
they are about six inches in height, and very care
ful handling is necessary to prevent bruising be
fore they can be transplanted in the field.
The tobacco in the field is cultivated three to
six times with a cultivator during the growing
season. This is supplemented by hoeing to keep
down the weeds.
As the plant matures, a seed flower develops
at the top. This flower is pinched off to leave the
desired number of leaves on the stalk, and to con
serve strength in the leaves. The plant then de
velops sprouts where the stems of the leaves grow
out of the stalk. These are pulled off for the same
reason that the tops are removed. Removing these
sprouts is called "suckering”.
The surplus supply of food stored in the leaves
replace in part the green coloring matter giving
them an appearance of a lighter shade of green,
this begins in the bottom leaves and continues up
ward. With the completion of this development,
the leaves are ripe.
Harvesting of flue-cured tobacco is generally
done in July and August, however, in the warmer
climate it may begin in June and in the northern
areas extend to September. September is usually
the time for harvesting Burley tobacco. As a rule
the tobacco plant is ready for harvesting and cur
ing after a growing season of 90 days.
The tobacco selling season begins in North Car
olina around the first of August, with the opening
of eight Border Belt markets. About three weeks
later the New Bright Belt, covering the Eastern
N. C. Tobacco Belt, opens two to four weeks later
with eight towns participating, and the Burley
Belt opens around the first week in December.
Tobacco is brought to the warehouses by all
modes of conveyance, from horse and wagon up
to large trucks. At the warehouse the tobacco is
unloaded into baskets, furnished by the warehouse,
with the grades of tobacco kept separate.
The time of tobacco sales is set by a local To
bacco Board of Trade. The number of daily sales
depends upon the size of the market, and each
warehouse takes its turn in having first, second,
third and fourth sales. Sets of buyers, consisting
of qualified persons representing tobacco com
panies, follow each sale. The number of sets of
buyers for each market is set by the Tobacco As
sociation of the United States.
A representative of the warehouse, who is quali
fied by experience, sets the starting price of each
pile of tobacco. This is the cue for the Auctioneer
to break into his chant, repeating the starting
figure rapidly until a buyer indicates that he will
increase the bid. Various signs such as winking
an eye, raising a finger, or nod of the head indi
cate that a buyer will increase the bid. Sales pro
ceed in this manner until all piles are sold. Farm
ers have the privilege of accepting or rejecting
the bid.
From the warehouse the tobacco goes to a Prize
House if it is inconvenient to deliver it immedi
ately to a processing plant. The purpose of the
Prize House is to pack the tobacco in "Hogsheads”
for shipment to redrying and stemming plants,
preparatory to its going into storage for aging
prior to manufacture of cigarettes, smoking to
bacco and other tobacco products.
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