This publication has been compiled to fill a 

 need for a general summary of the various phases 

 of tobacco production and marketing in the 

 United States and Puerto Rico. 



The material has been taken from a variety of 



publications and updated as required. Additional 

 comments have been included, based on first- 

 hand observations and experience by USDA 

 marketing specialists and contributions from 

 tobacco industry sources. 



PREFACE 



Tobacco is a commodity that is of major 

 importance to United States agriculture and 

 business. It usually ranks fifth among field crops 

 in cash receipts to farmers, and is fifth in value 

 among agricultural export classifications. It is a 



major source of revenue for Federal, State, and 

 local governments. (Receipts totaled over 6.2 

 billion dollars for the fiscal year 1977-78). 

 Consumer expenditures for tobacco products in 

 Calendar year 1977 were 17.1 billion dollars. 



CONTENTS 



Page 



Historical Sketch 1 



Classification 2 



Culture 6 



Harvesting and Curing 7 



Preparation for Market 12 



Marketing 13 



Storage and Aging 18 



Manufacturing 20 



International Production and Trade 24 



Reference Guide for Tobacco Information 26 



Information Sources 27 



Revised February 1979 



This publication first appeared in 1962 through the efforts of Albert Doub, Jr.. and Alice Wolfe, now retired from USDA 



