Characteristics of flue-cured and burley farms compared - selected characteristics of flue-cured and burley tobacco farms compared, including acreage, production and yield to promote better understanding of two main types of tobacco grown in United States; quota holding arrangements contrasted; land tenure and economic differences examined; includes references - U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Economic Research Service report

Situation and Outlook Report: Tobacco, June, 1991 by Tom Capehart

FCRS results from surveys for calendar years 1987 and 1989 show flue-cured is grown on a much larger scale than burley, and also has a slightly higher yield. Consequently, average farm production of flue-cured is much higher, over 5 times that of burley.

Different rules concerning the sale, lease and transfer, and rental of both flue-cured and burley quota have affected growers' ability and incentive to consolidate and fully use the quota available. On average, farmers did not produce 22 percent of the effective burley quota they controlled, according to survey results. This figure is much less for flue-cured at 5 percent.

Cultural practices for growing, harvesting, and curing flue-cured tobacco require much less labor than burley. An acre of flue-cured used 109 hours, while burley required 267 hours. Flue-cured labor use per acre was down 37 percent from 1979, due to increased use of bulk barns and mechanical harvesting, while burley labor use per acre was up 11 percent from 1984. Producing, marketing, and curing 100 pounds of flue-cured used 5 hours of labor, while burley used 13 hours.

Labor is a significant cost component of production, and as expected, this cost is much higher for burley than flue-cured. Consequently, total production costs are higher as well. Burley production costs (excluding land and quota charges) average 1.3 times those for flue-cured.

Flue-cured tobacco farms generally raised corn or soybeans as a companion crop to tobacco. Cattle were the most common companion enterprise found on burley farms. Corn and soybeans were the next most popular enterprise with burley growers.

Flue-cured farms had greater sales than burley; farm sales were a greater part of total family income than for burley farms. Fifty-three percent of family income for flue-cured farms came from on-farm sources, while only 14 percent did for burley producers. Net cash farm income for flue-cured farmers was almost three times that of burley.

References

[1] Clauson, Annette, "Flue-cured Tobacco Labor Use and Availability," Tobacco Situation and Outlook Report, TS-206, USDA/ERS, April 1989, pp. 31-34. [2] Clauson, Annette, "Burley Tobacco Labor Use, Characteristics, and Wages in 1989," Tobacco Situation and Outlook Report, TS-212, USDA/ERS, September 1990, pp. 34-38. [3] Clauson, Annette and Verner N. Grise, "Costs of Producing and Selling Flue-Cured Tobacco: 1988, 1989 and Preliminary 1990," Tobacco Situation and Outlook Report, TS-212, USDA/ERS, September 1990, pp. 32-33. [4] Clauson, Annette, "Costs of Producing and Selling Burley Tobacco: 1989 and Preliminary 1990," Tobacco Situation and Outlook Yearbook, TS-213, USDA/ERS, December 1990, pp. 44-47. [5] Capehart, Tom, "Financial Characteristics of Burley Tobacco Farms," Tobacco Situation and Outlook Yearbook, TS-213, USDA/ERS, December 1990, pp. 48-55. [6] Capehart, Tom, "Financial Characteristics of Flue-Cured Tobacco Farms," Tobacco Situation and Outlook Report, TS-210, USDA/ERS, April 1990, pp. 32-37.