MARKET SLUMPS FOR U.S. BURLEY-- BUT MALAWI TROUBLES COULD HELP

Burley auctions in Malawi could be severely affected by a ban on exports to the United States because of its use of illegal labor. See below for further details. File photo courtesy Star Tobacco. It was one of the worst burley crops in recent U.S. memory. "We had too much rain early, and it was hot and dry late, including the curing season," said Daniel Green, chief operating officer of Burley Stabilization Corporation. "And volume and quality were down." There was a lot of K color in the leaf. USDA had projected a nationwide crop of 100 million pounds. "But I think there was a lot of burley that never made it to the market. I am estimating 85 million pounds."   The burley market so far has been extremely sluggish, except for those few growers who managed to avoid the bad weather and produce good tobacco. "They are com-manding good prices," said Green. FYI: The only burley state that got good weather was Pen-sylvania, he add-ed.   But there is hope for new sales opportuni-ties: tobacco that is grown in Mala-wi, the worlds leading exporter of burley, has been banned from the United States since for alleged illegal labor practices. Last year, the U.S. imported 6.8 million kilos from Malawi. If the Malawians can't overcome the ban, this year's imports may be near zero. No doubt some of those orders will now be filled in the United States.   Cuba plans to increase its small burley tobacco production and plant up to 25,000 acres in the near future, some of them this year, state media on the island stand out on Monday. The increase will take place primarily in the western province of Pinar del Río, which produces the majority of Cuba's other types. Will China buy American tobacco this year or not? China trade is still a mystery, and solving it should be a top priority. "If we cannot quickly resolve the situation of escalating tariffs, China will continue to replace Virginia imports [and those of other tobacco states] with products from other countries that can enter at a lower tariff rate," said Jewel H. Bronaugh, commissioner of the Virginia Department of Agri-culture in an interview with Virginia Business. "This will negate years of business nego-tiations and relationship build-ing with importers in China." Chinese customers are adapting to the new reality of essentially not being able to purchase from the U.S. and are forging relatio-nships with other producers.   The experiment with Connecticut broadleaf turned out reasonably well in Kentucky, says Bob Pearce, Kentucky Extension tobacco specialist. "It appears we planted 600 to 800 acres," Pearce says."Farmers seemed reasonably happy with the results. If there is a demand for this leaf next year, many of those who grew it in 2019 will seek to grow it again, and some new growers would like to get a chance." DATES TO REMEMBER The Southern Farm Show will take place February 5 to 7 at the North Carolina State Fair Ground in Raleigh. Watch for a special issue of TFN in about a week with more details about the Show, including an up-to-date exhibitor list. GAP Meetings   Feb 4, 10:30 am, Springfield, TN Feb 6,  10 am, Sutherlin, VA Feb 7, 1:30 pm, Raleigh, NC (at Southern Farm Show) Feb 10, 9 am, Calhoun, KY Feb 11, 10 am, Dixon, KY Feb 12, 10 am, Phenix, VA Feb 24, 10 am, Kingsport, TN Feb 25, 10 am, Hopkinsville, KY Feb 26, 10 am, Owensboro, KY Feb 27,  10 am, Lexington, KY Mar 2, 6 pm, Owensboro, KY  Mar 3, 6 pm, Madison IN  Mar 4, 12:30 pm, Tifton GA Mar 5, 10 am, Marion SC Mar 5, 6 pm, Greeneville TN Mar 10, 1 pm, Murray KY