Above: A tornado ravaged the processing facilities of the Burley Stabilization Corporation in Springfield, Tn., on December 8.  LAST IMPRESSION OF 2023 TOBACCO: ALL MAJOR TYPES CAME UP SHORT The quality of 2023 flue-cured was very good. "Every pile offered for sale was sound usable tobacco, very desirable leaf," says Rick Smith, president of Independent Leaf Tobacco, a leaf dealer in Wilson, N.C. “Unfortunately, there is not enough of it. We are 50 million pounds short of the anticipated volume.” As a result, the price was strong. “There were a lot of dollars chasing not enough volume.”   The secondary market price was especially good, says Smith, who buys at the N.C. auctions. “The average was only a little short of the contract price,” says Smith. “I am not sure what the average ended up being, but it held pretty well up till the end: The last pile I saw sold went for $2.25.” The quality of the N.C. flue-cured crop seems to have appeqaled to buyers. "We had plenty of orange leaf," says Matthew Vann, N.C. Extension tobacco specialist. "But there wasn't a lot of bright leaf, so manufactures loooking for that may have been disappointed." A good bit of the burley crop has been delivered to its buyers, says Joe Cain, the executive director of the new Kentucky Burley & Dark Tobacco Producers Association. "The quality is decent, though we don’t have the color we really wanted. But the curing situation of a few weeks ago has improved thanks to weather conditions. We have had some rain. A few farmers are leaving their tobacco in the  barn longer than usual to help get the color. The dark types of the Black Patch had a production shortfall too.  There was a lot of angular leafspot (ALS). Some of the dark fire-cured crop here never got harvested due to ALS damage. “Some that did get harvested shouldn't have,” says Extension tobacco specialist Andy Bailey “I would estimate fields that were a complete loss and not harvested amounted to at least 30%. There was maybe another 25% that was obviously damaged but still harvested.” Dark fire-cured is much more vulnerable to ALS than darkair0cured. Burley and Connecticut broadleaf are rarely affected by it. Variety choice doesn’t help much with ALS, says Bailey. “Some varieties do better than others, but none are resistant. And some of the more tolerant varieties are highly vulnerable to black shank.”But there is one situation where a variety might help with ALS. “If you want to plant dark in a field with none or very low black shank, PD7309 might be a good strategic choice against ALS. It fares reasonably well in the presence of ALS. But it has no resistance to Race One black shank, although it is resistant to Race zero.” Don’t take a chance with a field with any history of black shank. You may not see ALS every year but if you have black shank, you are going to see it almost every year.” The quality of N.C. flue-cured seems to have appealed to buyers. "We had plenty of orange leaf," says Matthew Vann, N.C. Extension tobacco specialist. "But there wasn't a lot of bright leaf, so manufactures looking for that may have been slightly disappointed." There is one new flue-cured variety for 2024, he says. It’s PVH 1940, and it’s early and fast ripening. A tight burley supply situation became tighter when a thunderous tornado struck the Burley Stabilization Corporation's central facility in Springfield, Tn. The offices and receiving warehouse were largely destroyed leaving much of the tobacco in the warehouse subject to the elements. But the farmers got one small bit of good fortune: This tornado was not accompanied by torrential rains as one normally expects and in fact there was no rain for several days thereafter. So the cooperative was able to save some of the leaf, although a report is yet to come.  Hats off to BSC: Within three days, they had rerouted deliveries aimed for the Springfield receiving station to the station in Glasgow, Ky., so farmers would not experience long delays in selling their leaf. That is not an unalloyed blessing since some of the Springfield farmers are quite some distance from Glasgow. BSC leaders hope to have Springfield functioning again in time for next season’s market opening. Meet new specialists at winter county meetings: In the Virginia meetings, a new molecular assay will be introduced, which will, when it’s fully functional, be able to identify high and low black shank pathogen levels in soil. Virginia’s still-new Extension tobacco pathologist, Zeng Yuan , will make the presentation. She has been part of the staff for 15 months. In North Carolina, the new Extension tobacco pathologist, Daisy Ahumada (will tell about the new formulation of Orondis that may help in black shank control. She joined the NCSU staff in June. DATES TO REMEMBER 51st Tobacco Workers' Conference, January 15 – 18, at the Convention Center in Knoxville, Tennessee. For more information, go to the official website at www.twconference.com. Southern Farm Show, January 31 through February 2, N.C. State Fairgrounds in Raleigh, starting at 9 a.m. each day. Admission is free.  Annual Meeting, Tobacco Growers Association of North Carolina, 10 a.m., Friday, February 2, at the N.C. State Fairgrounds in Raleigh.

COULD BURLEY LOSE SOME OF ITS LUSTER DUE TO LOW HUMIDITY?

 

Dry weather is interfering with taking down and stripping the burley that remains hanging in the barns, like this one in the Kentucky Bluegrass. USDA reported that 76% of the Kentucky crop had been stripped by November 24. In Tennessee, USDA’s recent production estimate of 4.6 million pounds of burley seems credible, says Mitchell Richmond, Tennessee Extension tobacco specialist. “That would be in the general range of what we have had the last few years,” he says. Farmers had a very good crop in the field, but some may have been delayed in stripping because of very dry conditions that made it difficult to get the leaf in case. “But we have gotten some rains that last couple of weeks.” Kentuckians are having the same problem. “We had a good crop coming out of the fields but now there is a fear that it might cure up light,” says Joe Cain, the executive director of the new Kentucky Burley & Dark Tobacco Producers Association (KBDTPA). “We have had some dry weather with no fogs or rain.” Most of the crop is in the barn now. Disappearance of burley has left East Tennessee looking a lot different. It used to be that if you drove through the countryside in the eastern part of Tennessee in the growing season, you would frequently come across burley patches. No more, says Richmond. “We have maybe five counties that are significant in burley, but usually there are just four or five growers in each.” In 1982, there were 4,100 growers in Greene County, which borders North Carolina. This year, there might have been eight. Letters from Readers Two Opinions on Why H2A Wage Rates are Unsustainable The biggest cost on the farm is labor, which appears to be on an upward trend [via H2A program rates]. It is unsustainable. N.C. is approaching $16 for differential wage rates. It seems very interesting that we all have rallied for change, and now when we get change, it includes not one good thing for the farmer. Every aspect of this change has a negative impact for the family farm. How did they change the rules? And why are North Carolinians paying over a dollar an hour more than bordering states South Carolina, Georgia and Florida? Rodney Jackson, Autryville, N.C. I feel that the H2A labor cost is the main threat to the future of American tobacco production. I could easily grow many more acres if I brought in migrant labor, but I don’t see how I could generate enough income to make it worth it. We use all local labor now. The H2A program is a problem, financially as well as culturally.  Anthony McGary, Breckinridge County, Ky.  Editor's Note: If you have a thought you would like to share, please feel free to email it to me at chrisbickers@gmail.com. DATES TO REMEMBER 51st Tobacco Workers' Conference, January 15 – 18, at the Convention Center in Knoxville, Tennessee. For more information, go to the official website at www.twconference.com.  Southern Farm Show, January 31 through February 2, N.C. State Fairgrounds in Raleigh, starting at 9 a.m. each day. Admission is free. Annual Meeting, Tobacco Growers Association of North Carolina, 10 a.m., Friday, February 2, at the N.C. State Fairgrounds in Raleigh. Tobacco farmer leads Kentucky agriculture: A former burley grower has been elected Agriculture Commissioner in Kentucky. Jonathan Shell (photo) of Lancaster in Garrard County grew up on a burley farm that at its peak produced 200 acres of tobacco. Shell, a Republican, will take office January 2. He succeeds Ryan Quarles, who completed his term limit of eight years after being elected twice.

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