PLASTIC SEALING OF TOBACCO- 

 STORAGE WAREHOUSES 



By QUENTIN W. ROOP, marketing specialist, Tobacco Branch, Production and 

 Marketing Administration 1 



CONTENTS 



Page 



Introduction j 



Materials g 



Equipment j j 



Labor ^ 



Application ' j 6 



Costs and comparisons 30 



Safety 32 



INTRODUCTION 



Losses Caused by Insect Infestation 



One of the many problems faced by the tobacco industry is that of the infestation 

 of leaf tobacco and stored tobacco products by the tobacco moth and the cigarette 

 beede. These insects appear in varying numbers throughout the tobacco-storage 

 area. Their control has been studied by the industry and by the United States 

 Department of Agriculture. 



According to a publication by the Bureau of Entomology and Plant Quarantine, 

 the damage caused by these insects was estimated at 3V4 to 10 million dollars annu- 

 ally. 2 As the figures were obtained before 1942, the price of leaf tobacco was lower 

 and the cost of processing was considerably less than now. In April 1947 the 

 Bureau found that damage from infestation in flue-cured tobacco amounted to $5 

 per 1,000 pounds of tobacco stored in open-type warehouses. 3 The percentage 

 of damage was in direct proportion to the length of time the tobacco was in storage. 



Before World War II domestic manufacturers carried tobacco-leaf inventories 

 for periods up to 30 months. Such periods were required in order to age the 

 tobacco properly. Since the beginning of the war period, however, little tobacco 

 has been carried for more than 2 years. It is believed that the longer aging period 

 will be restored as soon as possible by the manufacturers and as a result the insect- 



^he author is indebted to Elise M. Hanscom for assistance in the preparation of the manu- 

 script. Acknowledgment also is made to Joseph N. Tenhet, Head of the Stored Tobacco Insect 

 Laboratory, Bureau of Entomology and Plant Quarantine at Richmond, Va., Carroll C. Scott. 

 Field Supervisor, Flue-Cured Tobacco Cooperative Stabilization Corporation, Raleigh, N. C, 

 C. W. Gettys, Bureau of Ordnance, Department of the Navy, and A. B. Belmore, of the R. M. 

 Hollingshead Corp., Camden, N. J., for assistance and helpful suggestions. 



2 Reed, W. D., and Vinzant, J. P. Control of Insects Attacking Stored Tobacco and Tobacco 

 Products. U. S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Administration, Bureau of 

 Entomology and Plant Quarantine Circular 635. 40 pp., illus. 1942. 



3 Tenhet, Joseph N. Pyrethrum-Oil Sprays in Open-type Tobacco Warehouses. U. S. Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Administration, Bureau of Entomology and Plant 

 Quarantine E-717. 5 pp. 1947. (Processed.) 



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