Tobacco Farmers in Crisis Protest
Tobacco troubles: Crop shift up in smoke May 07, 2010 Tom Blackwell in Tillsonburg, Ont., National Post Colin Yarmie pulls the little spout from its water-filled growing tray and gestures toward the thousands of other tobacco plants crammed into two steamy greenhouses on his family farm. By the end of May, Mr. Yarmie says, all will be planted in nearby fields, filling 90 acres (36.4 hectares) with Canada's most controversial cash crop. And yet, less than two years ago, the 23-year-old farmer's parents took a buyout from the federal government designed to close the curtains on the industry, and ease growers like them into other, more socially palatable crops. Last year, 24 acres (9.7 hectares) of tobacco was grown on Yarmie land; this year it will be almost four times as much. The story is the same throughout southwestern Ontario's tobacco belt, with almost 50 million pounds (22,680 metric tonnes) of the leaf projected to be grown this season, more than double the size a year before the $286-million "Tobacco Transition Program" was offered. The province has issued more than 260 growing licences, nearly 2½ times the number in 2009, the first post-buyout season, according to Agriculture Ministry figures. "I always wanted to do this," said Mr. Yarmie, who attended business school before recently obtaining a tobacco-growing licence and returning to the farm. "But it was never really an option before now ... Dad always said, ‘Go get an education, there is no stability in this.' " The tobacco belt's unexpected and politically awkward rebound - it has not seen a crop this big since 2006 - may ironically be a partial result of the federal government's own rules. They allow farmers who took the payments to rent their land and equipment and hire out themselves to licence holders, who often are adult children or acquaintances, dubbed "fake farmers" by some. Mr. Yarmie, who is clearly a bonafide farmer now, said he is paying his parents rent and wages under the system, while they help him with the tobacco, and try to make a go with an alternative crop - shallots. All but 18 of Ontario's 1,083 tobacco growers accepted the transition payments in August 2008, receiving on average more than $270,000. The fact that far more tobacco is being grown this year than the last three has understandably infuriated anti-smoking advocates. "What did taxpayers just pay $300-million for?" asked Neil Collishaw, research director of Physicians for a Smoke-free Canada. "The way the program was initially advertised, tobacco farming was on its way out in Canada.... If it's on its way out, how come it's on its way back in?" The answer, and the recent history of tobacco farming generally, is as hazy as a smoke-filled room. Those at the centre of the controversy insist this is not a story of opportunists taking advantage of a leaky government spending program. The money offered should have been much more, and would have been had Ontario's Liberal government agreed to contribute its own share, said John Stewart, a former tobacco farmer who accepted the payment. Quebec matched federal funding in a similar program a few years ago, and the sector was entirely extinguished there, he said. Ontario never did pitch in, and many growers took the resulting buyouts reluctantly, after being told that tobacco was dying, and that their quotas - valuable assets that used to be bought and sold - would be rendered worthless under the new licensing system, said Mr. Stewart. The money itself helped pay off some, though not all, of their debts. They still have to put food on the table, and growing tobacco is the only business many of them know, he said. Another farmer in the "sand plain" region that encompasses Tillsonburg, Delhi and Aylmer is aiming to plant 80 acres (32.4 hectares) of tobacco this year, 18 months after he pocketed the transition payments. One of the new licence holder pays him rent for his land and infrastructure, and $12-an-hour to work his own fields, "which is even more degrading," said the tall, lanky grower, who asked not to be named. "Say you had a business, they take that business away from you and somebody comes along and says ‘You can work for me for $12 an hour.' Would you be happy, would you wake up every morning with a smile on your face?" he asked. "I would just like to be able to make a living and support my family and be left under a rock. Because this is still a legal product and there is a demand for it." Rather than profit from the buyout, he said the $100,000 he got went straight to the bank, still leaving him with a sizable debt. Much of that red ink was spilled less than a decade ago, when the government and cigarette companies insisted farmers convert their tobacco-drying kilns - pronounced "kills" in these parts - to a new type of heating technology that produces a less toxic product. It cost him $250,000. The farmer is so angry at the turn of events he said he is actually trying to give back the $100,000 the government paid him so he can farm his land as an owner-operator again, even though it means assuming more debt. No one has been willing to take him up on the offer yet. Meanwhile, there is at least one clear beneficiary of the program: the cigarette manufacturers themselves. Under the old quota system, prices were essentially negotiated industry-wide by a marketing board, affording farmers some leverage. Under the new licence scheme, each grower negotiates a contract with the company or wholesaler, giving the buyer the upper hand. The price has dropped from about $2.60 a pound to about $2.20 in the last couple of years. "The companies are happy," Mr. Stewart said. "They've basically got the farmer under their thumbs." In fact, the crop is still far off the 140 million lbs. (63,503 metric tonnes) grown just a decade ago. The manufacturers have for years been importing large amounts of raw leaf from Brazil and other developing countries that keep prices cheap with low labour costs. Contraband cigarettes produced on native reserves and elsewhere have also undercut the legal market. A drive around Tillsonburg makes it clear the business is still in decline, despite this year's comeback. The old office of the Ontario Flu-cured Tobacco Growers Marketing Board - once the region's economic hub - has been sold to a local conservation authority, the former owner's name a faint shadow where its sign once hung. Cigarette company plants have closed; a condominium housing development sits half empty - finished homes side by side with bare, cement foundations - after the developer went bankrupt; the new-looking Kelsey's restaurant has been shuttered. Even tobacco farmers who see no future in the business, however, face a significant challenge: finding an alternative crop. Over and over, farmers have switched to vegetables that thrive in the area's sandy soil, only to drive down prices in what can be fragile markets. Brenda Lammens is bitterly aware of that danger. She and her husband left tobacco a decade ago, without benefit of government funding, feeling the industry's days were numbered. They built one of two operations in Ontario that grew Belgian endive and eked out a modest living at it, before a tobacco farmer who had taken a 2005 buyout planted 50 acres (20.2 hectares) of the crop, twice the Lammens' output. The price plunged, forcing the Lammens out of the business within two years - and leaving the ex-tobacco grower himself bankrupt. "It was just very, very hurtful, because someone received ... money and abused it and went bankrupt and there were no repercussions from the government," said Ms. Lammens, who had to sell one of the family farms to cover her losses. "It has destroyed my husband's desire to want to continue farming. It has been devastating to us." Another tobacco grower went into pumpkins, only to have existing growers - afraid their market would be flooded - pelt him with his own products when he delivered them to the Ontario Food Terminal. That was the end of his commercial pumpkin patch, said Mr. Stewart. Mr. Stewart himself said he considered growing corn and beans this year, but now figures it is economically inviable and might look for a job off the farm. Farmer Deb Gilvesy is hedging her bets; she and her husband opened a second tanning salon in the Tillsonburg area after taking the tobacco buyout, though it means relying on another product with dubious health effects. The deeply bronzed Ms. Gilvesy believes she has found the ideal transition crop, however, one that is seemingly tailor-made for these environmentally conscious times - and won't put vegetable growers out of business. She has already begun growing a field of native tall grasses that can be processed into ethanol and other bio-fuels, just the type of carbon-energy alternative the Ontario government has been promoting. The only problem is that it takes three years for the grasses to get thick enough to make harvesting worthwhile. So now she is arguing that the province do its bit for tobacco growers by providing the start-up funding they would need to get into biofuel grasses in a big way. "This is home-grown, invest-in-your-back-yard energy," said Ms. Gilvesy. "There is an abundance of land just sitting there waiting for something new....How often does something new come along in agriculture?" A few kilometres away, Ms. Lammens struggles to survive on her own, remaining alternative crop - asparagus - against intense competition from places such as Peru and Mexico. She said locals not growing tobacco have tried to be "polite" about the buyouts, which averaged $270,000 per farmer, given the industry's importance to the local economy. As she considers the layoffs and shutdowns at the area's automobile plants and other major employers, though, she admits she is not always sympathetic. "There are a lot of factories that have closed, those people can't find work, they're going through transition, too. But the tobacco sector at least got paid something. For the rest of us, there's no cheque," she said. "When you hear the cries for more money, you just want to shake your head and say, ‘I don't want to hear it.' " Read
Tobacco growers smoke out pests April 8, 2010 By MICHAEL-ALLAN MARION, QMI AGENCY After growing tobacco for the nation's smokers most of their lives, Robert and Margaret Huber have a licence to spice up the shredded leaf to smoke out pests. The husband and wife team are the only people in Ontario to acquire a licence from the federal government allowing them to produce and market natural tobacco mulch laced with cayenne pepper for homeowners to apply in flower gardens, lawns and on shrubs. From their farm south of Aylmer they sell it under the name Total Care of Gardens and Flowers, in bags of mulch to go directly into garden or in tea bags through which a liquid can be strained and sprayed on plants and flowers before they bloom. The nicotine drives away slugs and snails, kills ants and gets rid of aphids. The idea was conceived in a casual front-porch conversation five years ago, when the Ontario tobacco crop sector was just starting its irreversible decline. Robert Huber, the latest generation of the family to grow tobacco, recalled a friend coming to the house for a visit and listening to his frustration over the number of slugs and snails threatening the gardens. "He told me, 'if you put ground-up tobacco around your flower beds, you won't have any slugs or snails,'" Huber recalled. It was an almost folklore remedy that someone would conjure up fleetingly in conversation, but was rarely acted upon; particularly in tobacco country, where growers followed in their bones the instinct to produce, harvest, sell and account for every pound of the regulated product. But Margaret listened carefully to the man's suggestion and began researching it. There were anecdotal reports that tobacco nicotine could, indeed, be used as a remedy, in mulch or spray form. Then she started experimenting to see if the tall tales would work. The Hubers got an appointment with the Ontario Flue- Cured Tobacco Marketing Board to pursue the possibility of acquiring a licence to produce a tobacco product for other than smoking. But they soon were stopped at the Excise Tax Act. Tobacco is a heavily regulated and monitored product under the Tobacco Control Act and the Excise Tax Act. Margaret spent five years tracking down the names of different government agencies, writing and getting appointments, until she got in touch with an official in the tobacco diversification program. It was possible to get a licence to buy tobacco from a grower, if the tobacco could be rendered useless for smoking. In the meantime, the Hubers had taken a buyout package from the federal government's Tobacco Transition Program, so they wouldn't be growing it anymore. After some experimentation, the Hubers came up with a blend laced with cayenne powder, that if burned would chase away any smoker. They made up a batch and sent it to Excise officials to prove it couldn't be smoked. Once satisfied, the department issued a licence in January 2009. But Robert became very ill from an aneurism in February, so his wife and their son, Kevin, began taking orders, manufacturing the product, bagging and delivering it. The product is marketed as a natural herbal enhancer, allowing them to avoiding having it regulated under the Pesticides Act or the Fertilizer Act. The one-pound bag of mulch retails for $8.50. The dust formula in a no. 4 tea bag goes for $5.75. In the first year of this seasonal gardens industry the Hubers sold 2,000 pounds. Now that Robert is back in the saddle, the family is ready to make full foray into this year's market. It still seems passing strange that such a simple product waited to many years to come to market. "It's been commonly known for many years, but no one commercialized it," said Robert. Margaret believes the idea was simply stifled by a regime surrounding tobacco. "Because tobacco is a controlled substance, it takes a lot of research and working through government departments to be able to get approval for anything," she said. "It just happened that we took the time and effort to do it." Read
Injured parties invited to join lawsuit By Monte Sonnenberg, Simcoe Reformer August 19, 2009 Individuals and businesses that have suffered financially due to government policies on tobacco have been invited to join a lawsuit. Lawyers for the New Tobacco Alliance Committee filed a claim for $500-million against the Province of Ontario and the federal government in late June. If the matter proceeds to trial, NTAC will seek to have the claim certified as a class action lawsuit. "This lawsuit is based on what happened to us and how it happened to us," NTAC spokesperson John Van Daele, of Courtland, said yesterday. "We want the message out there that we're opening the door. How do you make your case stronger? There is strength in numbers. We know an injustice has been done and we're not prepared to let it go." McKenzie Lake Lawyers of London is representing NTAC. The firm has advised NTAC to cast its net as wide as possible. NTAC imposed a deadline to join the group last year. However, now that there is a possibility the suit will become a class action, the door has been opened to other tobacco farmers, convenience store operators, tobacco manufacturers and anyone else who has an argument for redress. In a note to its members, NTAC blames government policies for undermining the legal market for tobacco with taxation policies that have fostered a black market. "Our governments have, over the last decade, tried to tax cigarettes out of the market," NTAC says. "The predictable result is that, instead, this has created a black market which delivers cigarettes to Canadians at a third the price of legal cigarettes. "These imported, black-market produced cigarettes are available for sale on our streets and around our schools. It is estimated by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police that these illegal smokes account for more than 30% of Canadian consumption and much higher than that in Ontario and Quebec. This evidence points to the governments' complete lack of commitment to enforce and control the distribution of illegal cigarettes." NTAC says the burgeoning black market "was entirely predictable based on the previous attempt 15 years earlier when taxation was tried as a way to encourage smokers to quit. The result then, as now, was that smuggling increased out of control." The lawsuit alleges that Ontario and Ottawa: - Have encouraged higher smoking rates among young people by tolerating the proliferation of cheap, black-market cigarettes. - Have reduced government revenue, "forcing all citizens to pay health care costs for tobacco users; - Have damaged the businesses of small retailers who rely heavily on legal tobacco sales; - Have enriched organized crime, "thus allowing them to increase their influence on civil society;" - Have "decimated the livelihood of Canadian tobacco growers and destroyed the value of their businesses." None of the allegations has been proven in court. The federal and provincial governments have yet to respond to the filing. Those wishing to learn more about the lawsuit are invited to a public meeting next Tuesday, Aug. 25, at 8 p.m. at the Belgian Hall in Delhi. "Your NTAC executive is working to inform other interested groups of Canadians and companies that may have been damaged by the governments' failure to uphold the law," NTAC says. "We will be encouraging them to enjoin their claims with ours in this legal action. We believe this would help ensure our success." 519-426-3528 ext. 150, msonnenberg@bowesnet.comRead
New system could fuel illegal cigarette market February 2, 2009 By JOHN MINER The London Free Press TOBACCO FARMERS: Licensing change queried LONDON -- A new licensing system for Ontario tobacco farmers could end up increasing Ontario's thriving illegal cigarette market, a Guelph-based agricultural think tank warns. "That's the bottom line," said Larry Martin, a senior research fellow at the George Morris Centre. The new licensing system is being negotiated between the Ontario government and the Ontario Flue-Cured Tobacco Growers' Marketing Board. The federal government has stipulated such a system has to be in place before it will release $286 million this spring to help farmers leave the tobacco industry. The federal government has set two other conditions: No tobacco farmer who has received transition money under the program will be allowed to have a licence, and the province must get rid of production controls. Martin, who has released a paper on the issue, said he's concerned the licensing system may not have any limit on how much a farmer can produce. One of the few requirements might only be a ban on farmers with tobacco-related criminal convictions from growing the crop, he said. "Constructing a licensing system with few requirements increases enforcement costs, reduces the effectiveness of enforcement and reduces tax revenues," Martin said in his paper. A study two years ago on contraband cigarettes in Ontario by the Ontario Tobacco Research unit estimated 30 per cent of cigarette sales in the province were illegal, with a tax loss for the province and federal government of more than $100 million. Martin said farmers given a licence to grow tobacco should have a contract to sell their crop with a cigarette manufacturer. "It is clearly in the interest of a licensed manufacturer to reduce contraband. Hence, requiring a contract for a producer licence has a large element of self-policing in it," he said in his report. Tobacco board chairperson Linda Vandendriessche said the new licensing system being negotiated with the province has yet to be finalized. "There will be checks and balances in the system . . . There will be eligibility requirements, there will be privileges people will have," she said. Read
Thoughts on Licensing Requirements for Tobacco Production
01.19.2009
The federal government has released guidelines for the Tobacco Transition Program, under which producers will receive funding to exit the industry, beginning in March 2009. Those who wish to remain will require a license in order to continue producing tobacco. In Thoughts on Licensing Requirements for Tobacco Production, Larry Martin examines the economic and political implications of a licensing program, outlining concerns about contraband, enforcement costs and effectiveness, and tax revenues.
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The tough transition from tilling tobacco August 20, 2008 By CAROLINE ALPHONSO The sandy soil that once reaped rewards for tobacco farmers has become economic quicksand. As growers who raised the crop for generations watch their livelihood go up in smoke, they're looking to Ottawa for help to leave the crippled industry. Read
Tobacco lawsuit on hold for now Posted Aug 20, 2008 A group of tobacco farmers is putting a temporary hold on a lawsuit against federal and provincial governments. New Tobacco Alliance Committee is seeking damages from both levels of government for governments' role in the growth of the contraband tobacco industry. Growth of contraband tobacco has accelerated the decline of the Ontario tobacco industry. Malcolm Bennett of McKenzie Lake Lawyers LLB in London was retained to look into the legal options. NTAC held a meeting at the Delhi Belgian Hall Monday night, the first meeting since the federal Conservatives announced a tobacco buyout at $1.05 per pound. If the province kicked in its share using the traditional 60/40 formula typically used for agriculture programs, it would bring the buyout to $1.74 per pound. Provincial Agriculture Minister Leona Dombrowsky has been adamant the province will not be getting on board. Garry Proven, who co-chairs NTAC with John VanDaele, said the lawsuit is written and ready to be filed in court. "At this point we were quite concerned we should keep moving," he said. "We got (legal) advice we should hold up and get some details." A NTAC press release states the group is holding off for a short period dependent on three things happening: - They want to see more details and timelines of the federal buyout plan. - They want the Ontario government to stop "holding tobacco growers hostage in their spat with the federal government" and provide its share of the buyout. - They want the Ontario Flue-Cured Tobacco Growers' Marketing Board to file a claim against the cigarette companies on behalf of growers for damages resulting from smuggled tobacco. Read
'An active participant in a federally-led process' Posted: August 13,2008 Close to two years ago I received an email from a Delhi constituent requesting Ontario's position on the tobacco buyout. Following standard procedure I forwarded the email to the Minister of Agriculture Leona Dombrowsky with a covering letter requesting a response be sent to my constituent and my office. The ministry responded and in the letter of Oct. 10, 2006, Minister Dombrowsky communicated one message and one message alone, quote: "I am willing to discuss an industry solution with my federal colleague and industry representatives, and can assure you that Ontario will be an active participant in a federally-led process to address this issue." There were no qualifiers or strings attached. Based on this directive, I and many others turned our lobbying efforts to the federal level - as a number of Ottawa Cabinet Ministers can attest. Fast forward to this summer - Federal Ag Minister Gerry Ritz, Minister Diane Finley, and others have come through with $300 million which stems from a civil settlement agreement with Imperial Tobacco Canada Ltd. and Rothman, Benson & Hedges. But to the dismay of all involved Minister Dombrowsky, in spite of that promise two years ago, "has turned her back on tobacco growers," according to an editorial in The Brantford Expositor. More specifically, it now appears Minister Dombrowsky will not be "an active participant in a federally-led process" as previously promised. Following the federal announcement I wrote Minister Dombrowsky asking she honour the traditional 60:40 funding partnership, as well as her promise to farmers. Last week, during the Finance Committee review of the Ontario health tax I tabled a motion calling on the provincial government to transfer their $156.9 million share of the settlement to tobacco country. And then I followed up with yet another letter to Minister Dombrowsky. My Opposition Colleagues Tim Hudak and Ted Arnott helped me reinforce the need for immediate action. Discussion ensued between government and opposition members and in the end, the chair of the committee ruled that my recommendations be filed with the clerk and further discussion and a decision be made on Aug. 21, 2008. Aside from mentioning the civil settlement dollars, my motion stressed that the McGuinty government has raised taxes on tobacco three times since coming to office and set a precedent when they partnered 60:40 with the Federal Government under the previous TAAP program -- Ottawa paid $70 million and Queen's Park $50 million. These recently-announced settlement dollars are from two tobacco companies - these are not income tax dollars but rather punitive damages plus a return of smokers' tax dollars. Our fight for fairness is far from over and it appears that the provincial government needs some coaxing. I know farmers are tired of calling and writing, but we mustn't give up now. Pick up the phone and call MPPs Dave Levac, Steve Peters, Maria VanBommel, Ernie Hardeman and myself - as well as those in the McGuinty cabinet. The time is now. The $156.9 million from the civil settlement is 'found' money in this fiscal year, and will not be available next year. My office can provide you with the numbers. And while you're at it, dig up past correspondence from Minister Dombrowsky so you can remind her that in today's sophisticated society, it's nearly impossible to get away with saying one thing prior to an election and another after. Toby Barrett is MPP for the riding of Haldimand-Norfolk Read
The end of tobacco road -ON August 2, 2008 By HANK DANISZEWSKI Ottawa announces a $286-million buyout to get tobacco farmers out of the industry DELHI -- Ontario's once-mighty tobacco crop came a giant step closer to passing into history as the federal government announced a $286-million buyout yesterday to get farmers out of the industry. "Today's announcement signals the beginning of the end of a way of life for generations of tobacco farm families," Linda Vandendriessche, chairperson of the Ontario Flue-Cured Tobacco Growers' Marketing Board, said after the announcement. Federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz told hundreds of farmers gathered at the tobacco exchange here the money is coming directly from a $1-billion fine two major tobacco companies have agreed to pay after pleading guilty to participating in a cross-border smuggling scheme in the 1990s. "We knew this court case was in the works . . . That's why the money is here now," Ritz said to reporters after the announcement. About 1,000 farm families still produce tobacco from this sandy-soiled part of Southwestern Ontario -- once a multi-billion-dollar industry that has been increasingly crushed under the weight of health concerns, anti-smoking measures and high cigarette taxes. Ritz also announced $15 million in economic development help for communities in the tobacco belt. Hundreds of farmers and their families greeted the announcement with polite applause, but there were few smiles in the audience. The marketing board originally asked for a buyout of close to $1 billion, but scaled back demands after years of unsuccessful negotiations with the federal and provincial governments. The federal government will pay growers $1.05 for each pound of tobacco quota they own. The provincial government is expected to top up the payment to $1.76 under the traditional 60/40 split on agricultural programs. To receive the buyout, farmers must agree to stop growing tobacco permanently. Vandendriessche said the buyout is a relief to desperate growers who had almost given up hope of getting any buyout money. "As we stand here today, most of our farmers have their last crop of tobacco in the field. Our families and communities have suffered from chronic uncertainty. A big part of that uncertainty has been lifted today," she said. But many producers said the buyout was too little, too late. Ed Magda, who farms near Princeton, was critical of the deal, saying the tobacco board only got the minimum. "They went to Parliament with their hat in their hands and out of desperation they kept dropping their price," he said. Armando Lopes, who farms near Burford, said it was an "embarrassing" deal for tobacco farmers and said a lawsuit launched by a group of tobacco farmers against the federal government would likely continue. But Elgin-Middlesex-London MP Joe Preston said the buyout is a good deal for tobacco growers "I think we have a roomful of pretty satisfied people who can get on with their lives," he said. Preston is working with municipal officials in the tobacco belt on a plant to replace the economic void left by tobacco. This year's tobacco harvest is only about 20 million pounds, down 85 per cent in the last decade. Vandendriessche said she expects no more than 100 to 200 tobacco growers to stay in the business after the buyout. --- TOBACCO PRODUCTION Ontario flue-cured tobacco production sold by auction: 1957: 147.6 million pounds, 1958: 173.2 million pounds, 1959: 145.2 million pounds, 1960: 198.8 million pounds, 1961: 182.9 million pounds, 1962: 156.2 million pounds, 1963: 179 million pounds, 1964: 136.4 million pounds, 1965: 153,.9 million pounds, 1966: 214.7 million pounds, 1967: 195.8 million pounds, 1968: 200.4 million pounds, 1969: 226.3 million pounds, 1970: 199 million pounds, 1971: 201.7 million pounds, 1972: 166.7 million pounds, 1973: 232.7 million pounds, 1974: 238 million pounds, 1975: 209.5 million pounds, 1976: 159 million pounds, 1977: 204.8 million pounds, 1978: 229.5 million pounds, 1979: 149.2 million pounds, 1980: 213.6 million pounds, 1981: 219.8 million pounds, 1982: 153.5 million pounds, 1983: 214.8 million pounds, 1984: 169.8 million pounds, 1985: 169.7 million pounds, 1986: 129.4 million pounds, 1987: 110 million pounds, 1988: 133.4 million pounds, 1989: 145.8 million pounds, 1990: 123.2 million pounds, 1991: 154.1 million pounds, 1992: 131.1 million pounds, 1993: 156.4 million pounds, 1994: 129.6 million pounds, 1995: 152.1 million pounds, 1996: 142.2 million pounds, 1997: 154.9 million pounds, 1998: 150.5 million pounds, 1999: 142.3 million pounds, 2000: 106.4 million pounds, 2001: 117 million pounds, 2002: 108 million pounds, 2003: 93.9 million pounds, 2004: 87.8 million pounds, 2005: 83.9 million pounds, 2006: 55.4 million pounds, 2007: 34.3 million pounds, 2008: 20 million pounds (estimate) Source: The Ontario Flue-Cured Tobacco Growers' Marketing Board Read
Tobacco growers disappointed with buyout -ON Fri, August 1, 2008 By HANK DANISZEWSKI, SUN MEDIA DELHI — Ontario tobacco farmers got news of their long-awaited buyout this morning when a $286 million transition program was announced here this morning by federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz. The amount will buy out tobacco growers' quota at the rate of 60 per cent of a $1.74 a pound. The remaining 40 per cent is expected to be picked up by the provincial goverment. Ritz's announcment was met with polite applause but few smiles by the hundreds of tobacco growers gathered in the Delhi Tobacco Auction Exchange for the announcement. Ritz explained that the federal money was actually coming from the settlement announced yesterday with the major tobacco companies over their participation in the cigarette black market in the 1990s. Many growers said the amount was far below their expectations and would not allow them to get out and move on to other crops. Linda Vandendriessche said the buyout was the best the tobacco board could achieve under the circumstances and will allow for an orderly wind-down of the industry. She expects only about 150-200 growers to remain in business, who will likely sell directly to cigarette companies on a contract basis in the future. Read
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