VII. STORAGE AND AGING 



Tobacco as marketed by growers is not 

 immediately suitable for manufacturing pur- 

 poses. Normally it must be redryed and aged. 

 Tobacco is usually marketed with a moisture con- 

 tent that would not permit it to be stored without 

 deterioriation, and this moisture level must be 

 reduced in preparation for storage. Aging is 

 required to improve the aroma and reduce the 

 harshness and bitter taste of freshly cured leaf. 

 This involves chemical change, and in many 

 respects may be regarded as an extension of the 

 curing process. From the standpoint of handling 

 and preparation for storage, U.S. tobacco falls 

 into two groupings; auction areas (types 11-37) 

 and cigar leaf areas (types 41-62). 



Auction Market Areas 



Buyers transfer their purchases to processing 

 plants where it is redried and packed for storage. 

 The redrying process involves the almost 

 complete removal of moisture from the tobacco 

 and the application of a uniform moisture content 

 throughout the leaf. This must be done quickly in 

 the flue-cured area where sales are held during 

 the summer. Some plants in the flue-cured area 

 use refrigerated storage to hold unprocessed leaf. 



A typical redrying machine has three compart- 

 ments; #1 removes the moisture by heated air; #2 

 cools the leaf to prepare it to receive moisture; 

 and #3 adds a controlled and uniform amount of 

 moisture to the leaf. Loose leaf tobacco proceeds 

 through the machine by conveyor belt, taking 

 about 4 to 7 minutes to complete the passage. 

 Tied leaf remains on the stick and is carried 

 through the machine by a moving rack. The time 

 required for tied leaf is 15 to 30 minutes. Upon 

 leaving the redryer, the tobacco is immediately 

 placed in containers for storage or export. 



Since tobacco enters the redrying plant in small 

 lots covering a large number of grades, the most 



mm 



The traditional container for 

 storing tobacco is the 

 wooden hogshead. 



18 



Processed tobacco also is 

 packed in cardboard con- 

 tainers. Many exporting 

 firms prefer this method of 

 packing. 



The USDA inspector grades tobacco at a flue-cured process- 

 ing plant. All tobacco under price support must be rein- 

 spected before storage. 



At a tobacco processing plant, flue-cured tobacco is redried 

 and packed. 



Operations in modern tobacco processing plants are coor- 

 dinated in a central control room. 



demanding task facing the plant manager is to 

 sort and blend the different grades to meet the 

 specifications of the buyers. In addition, the 

 tobacco must be inspected for injury and foreign 

 matter must be removed. Modern redrying plants 

 have a variety of sophisticated equipment 

 specially designed for these jobs that have 

 reduced, but not completely eliminated, the need 

 for manual labor. 



The process takes time and cannot be rushed. 

 During the height of the buying season, many 

 plants will operate 24 hours a day. The rate at 

 which the tobacco can be processed for storage 

 controls the speed of the auction sales. In the flue- 

 cured area it is estimated that more than 300 



