US EXPORTS / Cars, Scrap, etc : Southeast US to China

[drbubb]

US EXPORTS / Cars, Scrap, etc : Southeast US to China

Some Notes

=============================================

 

 

(this thread is to collect some rough data on the captioned exports)

 

What is being exported to China ??

 

CHINA - Secondhand Car Imports

=====

Import of used motor cars in China

LWS Consulting 13 Dec 2005 11:14

 

There have been many enquiries in this SME Forum on importing of used motor cars in China. These enquiries have centered on importing regulations, procedures, and other hard facts on the customs values, customs duties, and other associated taxes, etc.

In actual fact the imports of used motor cars are subject to used machinery and electrical goods on the prohibited list in China. It seems that this administrative rule is not that clear, as there is no enforceable law really forbidding the import of used motor car in the mainland. It is also noticeable that there are used motor cars particularly those in the classic, rare and prestigious models imported from abroad to run on roads at China's main cities, or even in the second hand cars auction market.

. . .

Moderator 31 Dec 2005 10:13

The import duty and other taxes associated with imports of motor vehicles into China could amount to 50-60% of the customs value of the goods. If you peruse the postings elsewhere in this Forum, import of used machines and electrical machinery (including used motor vehicles) is on the list of prohibited goods. Approval for such imports is granted only in special circumstances and on an individual case basis.

 

/source: http://forum.hktdc.com/topic/629/1/en/Import-of-used-motor-cars-in-China.htm

 

SUCH A HIGH TAX - may kill the idea, and it may be illegal:

 

CCC US Office 24 Jan 2006 11:10

 

Car import for personal use is highly prohibited in China. The easy way is that you are a returning Chinese student studying oversea or a diplomat, or you own a company in China with certain capital registered. Otherwise, it will be very difficult and very expensive to import the car (either new or used) into China for your personal use. If you could pay that expensive cost and do want to import the car, you may contact us at

 

Moderator 31 Jan 2006 15:54

 

Import of used motor vehicles is prohibited in the mainland. Please read more from this link and http://forum.tdctrade.com/forum/Forum7/HTML/000120.html

 

/@Search : http://www.google.com.hk/#hl=en&source=hp&q=%22secondhand+car%22+imports+china&btnG=Google+Search&gbv=2&oq=%22secondhand+car%22+imports+china&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&gs_sm=s&gs_upl=50968l68146l0l69464l38l37l3l6l0l0l550l4062l8.15.4.5-1l28l0&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.,cf.osb&fp=5bd4c6c3f5da9ff4&biw=1115&bih=752

[drbubb]

IMPORTING CARS - The Cost is High !

 

(here are the figures for a Japanese car - they may be similar for other countries):

 

Toyota Corolla LE from Japan

 

And now making the final decision as to whether your chosen car is a good price so you can proceed with importation. Let’s look at an example that you are in London and you want to import a 2 years-old used car, Toyota Corolla LE from Japan. To calculate the final price of your car up to your home or premises, let’s assume your Japanese supplier and your local clearing and forwarding agent have given you the following quotes:

 

1. FOB price of Toyota Corolla LE equals $4700.00

 

2. Freight cost to a sea port near London equals $720.00

 

3. insurance cost up to the port equals $200.00

 

Total C.I.F

 

Total c.i.f up to a sea port near London equals 4700+720+200 equals $5620.00

 

4. Custom duty rate is 20% of fob price equals $940.00

 

5. VAT rate is 15% of c.i.f equals $843.00

 

6. Handling rate is $30.00 for Toyota Corolla LE equals $30.00

 

7. Storage rate is $0.00 for the first 5 days and $120.00 per day for Toyota Corolla LE equals $0.00 for you because you have enough cash in bank and your local clearing and forwarding agent is efficient, otherwise this is where you can regret ever attempting to import your chosen car. A delay of 15 days may mean an additional $1200 + VAT in storage charges.

 

8. Export inspection company fee of 2% c.i.f equals $112.40

 

9. Anti-dumping fee of 1.5% of c.i.f equals $84.30

 

Total Taxes

 

Total custom duties, taxes and port charges equal 940+843+30+0+112.40+84.30 equals $2009.70

 

10. Your local clearing and forwarding agent’s fee equals $350.00

 

11. Transportation charges from the sea port to your premises or home equals $90.00

 

Clearing and Forwarding Agent’s Fee

 

Total fee to pay your local clearing and forwarding agent and transportation equals $440.00

 

Total Cost of Importing Your Vehicle

 

The total cost of importing your vehicle from the Japanese supplier to your home or premises is equal to 5620+2009.7+440 equals $8069.70

 

Questions to Ask Yourself

 

If therefore the cost of a 2 years old Toyota Corolla LE is $14000.00 in the local market, you have to ask yourself the following questions in order to proceed with importation of your chosen used car:

 

1. Is investing $8069.70 to get a car valued at $14000.00 worthy the risks and bother?

 

/source: http://ngureco.hubpages.com/hub/How-to-Import-a-Used-Car

[drbubb]

TRADE DATA

 

Countries Buying North Carolina Exports:

#1 : Canada

#2 : China-

 

Main Exports:

# HScode : Description-----------(amts in Mn's) : '07 '08 '09 2010

1 880000 : CIVILIAN AIRCRAFT, ENGINES, AND PARTS : 767 918 1,174 1,279 3.3 3.7 5.4 5.1 8.9

2 240120 : TOBACCO, PARTLY OR WHOLLY STEMMED : 621 628 379 608 2.7 2.5 1.7 2.4 60.5

3 470321 : CHEMICAL WOODPULP, SODA ETC. N DIS. : 458 456 393 595 2.0 1.8 1.8 2.4 51.4

4 284420 : URANIUM ENRICHED in U235 ETC PLUTO : 575 481 380 492 2.5 1.9 1.7 2.0 29.5

5 300210 : ANTISERA AND BLOOD FRACTIONS, IMMU : 370 416 497 439 1.6 1.7 2.3 1.8 -11.6

===

6 300490 : MEDICAMENTS NESOI, MEASURED DOSES : 311 543 1,802 426 1.3 2.2 8.3 1.7 -76.4

7 854140 : PHOTOSNSITVE SEMICNDCTR DVICE INC P : 129 136 204 374 0.6 0.5 0.9 1.5 83.3

8 240220 : CIGARETTES CONTAINING TOBACCO----- : 525 469 400 356 2.2 1.9 1.8 1.4 -10.8

9 520512 : COT YARN, 85% COT, NO RETAIL, OV ---- : 378 329 337 347 1.6 1.3 1.5 1.4 3.1

10 300220 : VACCINES FOR HUMAN MEDICINE ------ : 025 023 199 334 0.1 0.1 0.9 1.3 68.0

 

/source: http://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/statistics/state/data/nc.html

=== === ===

 

North Carolina is currently the 17th largest state in the nation in value of exports. •. The total value of North Carolina's goods exported in 2010 ...

 

North Carolina ag exports top $3 billion | Markets content from ...

 

18 Sep 2009 – North Carolina exported $3.1 billion worth of agricultural products in 2008, a 51 ... The state's leading export commodities were tobacco ($573.6 ...

 

North Carolina exported $3.1 billion worth of agricultural products in 2008, a 51 percent increase over the previous year, Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler has announced.

 

It is the first time North Carolina ag exports have topped the $3 billion mark.

 

“Agricultural exports are important to North Carolina’s economy,” Troxler said. “They help boost farm prices and income and support more than 24,000 jobs, both on the farm and in industries such as food processing, storage and transportation.”

 

North Carolina’s agricultural export value ranked 13th among all states during the federal fiscal year covering Oct. 1, 2007, to Sept. 30, 2008, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service. North Carolina is the nation’s top tobacco exporter, and ranks third in poultry products and fifth in cotton and peanuts sold to other countries.

 

The state’s leading export commodities were tobacco ($573.6 million), animals and meat ($553.5 million), cotton and linters ($275.5 million) and peanuts ($23.5 million).

 

North Carolina’s top international customers were Japan, China, Canada, the Netherlands and Germany.

 

Peter Thornton, assistant director for international marketing at the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, said the increase in the value of North Carolina agricultural exports can be attributed to several factors, including the increased value of farm products the past few years, and the emergence of China and other international markets that import food from the United States.

 

“As developing countries get richer, the first thing they are going to do is eat better, which offers us more export opportunities,” Thornton said.

 

@Search : http://www.google.com.hk/#hl=en&gbv=2&q=%22North+carolina%22+main+exports&oq=%22North+carolina%22+main+exports&aq=f&aqi=g1&aql=&gs_sm=e&gs_upl=5894l16011l0l16637l27l26l0l0l0l1l235l3031l7.15.2l24l0&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.,cf.osb&fp=5bd4c6c3f5da9ff4&biw=1115&bih=752

[drbubb]

North Carolina explores exports to China

 

Chris Bickers, Southeast Farm Press .. Oct. 7, 2009 11:00am

 

The boom in farm exports to China shows no signs of diminishing, and North Carolina farmers are determined to be part of it.

 

A group of them and their commodity association leaders joined an agricultural trade mission to China led by state Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler the first week of August.

 

Even though China purchased $271 million worth of North Carolina ag products in 2008, there is still “a huge amount of room for growth,” Troxler said on returning.

 

“North Carolina farmers desperately need new markets, and China is the largest potential customer in the world. I am confident we will open doors to new opportunities that will benefit North Carolina farmers — otherwise I'd have stayed at home.”

 

Soybeans, cotton and tobacco were the primary focus of this mission, which made stops in Beijing, Kunming, Guangzhou and Hong Kong. The delegates found promising prospects for all three of the basic North Carolina crops.

 

“We certainly have a good opportunity to sell more cotton in China,” said Billy Carter, executive vice-president of the North Carolina Cotton Producers Association.

 

“As a matter of fact, we could sell more soon: The ceo of a major Chinese denim mill will visit here in September, and he is looking to buy some part of this years' run.”

 

Counting all destinations, about 30 percent of North Carolina cotton production is already being exported, said Carter. “We believe exports are going to become much larger, with a significant amount going to China.”

 

China is already a major consumer of U.S. soybeans, said Charles Hall, chief executive officer of the North Carolina Soybean Producers Association. “And the demand is there to support an increase. It is the world's largest producer of pork, poultry and aquaculture.”

. . .

China is by far the largest tobacco producer in the world, so you wouldn't think it would be on the market for leaf imports. But since 2005, tobacco growers from all the American states have enjoyed increasing success in sending their tobacco to the PRC.

 

China is expected to buy 15,000 tons of flue-cured in the U.S. this year, up about a quarter from the 12,000 tons they bought in 2008, said Mike Lynch, senior vice-president of the U.S. Tobacco Cooperative in Raleigh.

 

Most of it is going into a number of regional cigarette brands the Chinese government is trying to turn into national brands. “I think that effort — to give these national brands a better taste — is where a lot of our leaf is going,” he said.

 

If Americans can get a solid place in Chinese brands, the future will be very bright. “The demand there keeps growing,” Lynch said. “Last year the rate was about 4 percent.”

 

/more: http://southeastfarmpress.com/markets/north-carolina-explores-exports-china

[drbubb]

TOBACCO INDUSTRY - Will it need to shrink ?

 

Tobacco in the form of leaf, snuff, chew, smoking tobacco, cigars, and factory-made cigarettes has often been called the United States' oldest industry. Since its introduction to Europeans by American Indians, no other agricultural crop has been more thoroughly entwined with the history of the United States than the growing, processing, and manufacturing of tobacco.

. . .

U.S. tobacco growing, manufacturing, distribution, marketing, and sales contributed $15 billion in wages to some 660,000 American workers. For many centuries tobacco has been identified with the New World, especially the United States. In the form of the mass-produced cigarette, U.S. tobacco became the virtual international symbol of American modernity. Indeed, students of the industry have argued that the advent of machine-made cigarettes in the 1880s helped inaugurate in the United States the modern era of mass consumer products, mass advertising and promotion, and the professionally managed modern corporation.

 

However, the last half of the twentieth century saw the U.S. tobacco industry come under pressure from the demonstrated health hazards of smoking and the subsequent steady decline in smoking in the United States and other highly industrialized nations. In response, the industry aggressively pursued expanding into markets in Asia, Eastern Europe, and Africa, prompting the World Health Organization to accuse tobacco manufacturers of fomenting a tobacco epidemic.

. . .

The Jamestown colony in Virginia owed its very survival to tobacco. A cash crop requiring very intensive labor from planting to harvesting to curing, its cultivation created a demand for conscripted labor, first in the form of indentured European servants on family farms and soon afterward in the form of African slave labor on large landholdings. Two types of tobacco leaf were grown, principally for pipe smoking and, later on, snuff. They were both dark varieties: the more expensive leaf grown in Virginia and the stronger, cheaper orinoco leaf grown in Maryland... Tobacco farming spread quickly to North Carolina, South Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Georgia. It also extended to two other regions in which cigar (Cuban) leaf cultivation would come to dominate in the nineteenth century: the Northeast (Pennsylvania, New York, Connecticut, and Massachusetts) and, later, the Midwest (Ohio, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Missouri).

[drbubb]

TOBACCO... continues...

 

Smoking and Health

As in the previous century, war was to prove a boon to U.S. tobacco, especially cigarettes. The rations of American soldiers and sailors included tobacco. With each world war, U.S. consumption of tobacco jumped and that of cigarettes soared, leaping 57 percent between 1916 and 1918 and 75 percent between 1940 and 1945. Per capita consumption in the United States reached almost 3,500 per year by 1945, a rate matched only by the United Kingdom and Canada. It would be twenty years before nations in continental Europe and East Asia would achieve similar rates. By 1955 in the United States, 57 percent of men and 28 percent of women smoked. A veritable culture of cigarette smoking had arisen. It was a culture of glamour, style, and modern individualism featured and promoted in fashion magazines and Hollywood films... Prior to World War II, cases of lung cancer were relatively rare in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada, the heaviest-smoking countries, but rates in men were rising fast, prompting medical researchers to initiate the first statistical studies of the disease. Results of early studies in the United States and the United Kingdom appeared in 1950 just as the Federal Trade Commission was castigating the tobacco industry for making false health claims for their products.

. . .

Under pressure from health organizations, the government published in 1964 a landmark report of the Surgeon General warning the American public of the dangers of smoking. It was the first in a long series of Surgeon General reports that reviewed existing studies on tobacco-related diseases and, beginning in the 1980s, on women and smoking, nicotine addiction, modified cigarettes, cessation, secondhand smoke, youth initiation, and smoking among racial and ethnic minority groups. The political and economic picture of the domestic market for the tobacco industry had changed... By 1990, the rates had dropped precipitously to 28 and 23, respectively, and by 1999 to 26 and 22 percent. Per capita cigarette consumption peaked in the early 1970s at around 4,000 and steadily dropped from 1980 (3,850) to 1999 (2,000). Meanwhile, tobacco-related diseases (lung cancer, emphysema, coronary heart disease, stroke) became the leading preventable causes of death—over 400,000 deaths in 1990. For women, the number of deaths due to lung cancer surpassed those due to breast cancer in 1987.

 

Although faced with a changing market, leading U.S. cigarette manufacturers remained among the nation's most profitable companies. In the 1980s and 1990s they repositioned themselves by diversifying into the beverage and food industry (Nabisco, Kraft Foods), blurring their corporate identities. In 2002 Philip Morris executives proposed renaming the parent company from Philip Morris Companies, Inc., to Altria Group, Inc... To cover the settlement's costs the industry increased prices forty-five cents per pack and Philip Morris announced a 16 percent cut in its U.S. workforce. Down from a high of 75,000 in 1955, in 1990 cigarette manufacturing in the United States directly employed 41,000 people; the number dropped to 26,000 by 1999. In 1999 through 2000, debt-ridden RJR Nabisco sold off its overseas tobacco operations to Japan Tobacco and its food products company to Philip Morris, and spun off its domestic tobacco operations as R.J. Reynolds Tobacco. Finally, at decade's end India had moved ahead of the United States in total leaf and cigarette production (behind China), and the United States fell behind Brazil and Zimbabwe in the export of tobacco leaf while remaining ahead of the United Kingdom and the Netherlands in cigarette exports. U.S. tobacco leaf production, exports, and employment are expected to continue to fall as domestic consumption declines and as productivity, competition from cheaper foreign leaf, and the growth in off-shore manufacturing by U.S. companies increase.

 

/more: http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Tobacco_Industry.aspx

[drbubb]

The Future of the Tobacco Industry... Turning away from tobacco

 

Tobacco Analyst for Euromonitor International, Don Hedley, explains recent public claims that smoking could disappear 30 years from now in some markets and gives a glimpse of the future of the industry. According to Euromonitor data on smoking prevalence, the last smoker will quit in the USA in 2063, and in Japan in 2072. However, Hedley warns that straight line calculations based on prevalence is irrelevant for a number of reasons...

 

/more: http://www.encyclopedia.com/video/FdYSWJsnxtw-future-of-industry.aspx

=== === ===

 

 

REPLACING TOBACCO - New Crops...

 

Natural Healing: Replacing Tobacco with Herbal Crops in South Carolina

 

Turning away from tobacco

By Nancy Allison .. March/April 2001

 

South Carolina tobacco farmers are turning to herbs, but not to improve their health—they’re trying to hang on to their farms. Low commodity prices and reduced crop quotas have U.S. tobacco farmers worried, and South Carolina farmers are more worried than most. Three years ago, the Department of Agriculture cut flue-cured tobacco (the kind used to make cigarettes) quotas by 45.5 percent. South Carolina farmers, who grow only flue-cured tobacco plants, have been particularly hard hit.

 

Herbal crops may be just the remedy. Medicinal and culinary herbs are now sought after in a way the nation’s farmers never expected. Domestic sales of medicinal herbs exceeded $4.2 million last year. The South Carolina Research Authority has responded to the clamor of our health-conscious nation—and the plight of the South Carolina tobacco growers—by forming the National Nutraceutical Center (NNC). The NNC, based in Charleston, is a consortium that links researchers at the Medical University of South Carolina and Clemson University with tobacco farmers and nutraceutical companies. Its goal? To replace tobacco fields with acres of herbs and make South Carolina a center of herb development and cultivation.

 

With Americans’ huge demand for herbs, many U.S. nutraceutical companies have had to resort to buying them overseas, where quality may be uncertain.

. . .

But what herbs best suit the South Carolina soil and climate? The Clemson team has been monitoring five species in their trial fields: valerian (Valeriana officinalis), echinacea (Echinacea purpurea), feverfew (Tanacetum parthenium), St. John’s wort (Hypericum perforatum), and black cohosh (Cimicifuga racemosa).

. . .

What do the farmers think?

If the Clemson team succeeds, the daisy-flowered feverfew and purple echinacea will replace thousands of acres of the familiar wrinkly tobacco leaf in South Carolina.

. . .

It’s a matter of economics for farmers to consider alternative crops, but according to Hyman, farmers as a group are resistant to change. South Carolina farmers, with centuries of tobacco farming in their blood, may be more resistant than most. The volunteer farmers taking part in the trials are those most willing to look to the future. Not surprisingly, they are leaders in the farming community.

 

“Tobacco is a tradition in the South, a link back to the beginnings of our country,” says Hyman. “Most of us have been growing tobacco all our lives, as our fathers and grandfathers did before us. We’re not ashamed of growing a product that has been legally and governmentally sanctioned for centuries. But we need to look ahead. And herbs are the way ahead for South Carolina.”

 

The fact that several of the large nutraceutical companies already have shipping or manufacturing plants in South Carolina is seen as a boon for growers.

 

Read more: http://www.herbcompanion.com/health/NATURAL-healing-Turning-away-from-tobacco.aspx#ixzz1ebFTUpJI

[drbubb]

Diversification in North Carolina Farming;

From the Decline of Tobacco to the Rise of the Wine Industry

 

Extensive litigation against tobacco companies over product liability is another critical factor because of its effect on the demand for tobacco and the increased costs consumers will face for tobacco products. With substantial losses in the industry, tobacco companies have been forced to both cut production and to seek overseas markets for markets and for raw materials.

. . .

Two institutional changes have also encouraged the switch to grape farming. First, community colleges are starting to provide training programs for tobacco farmers interested in grape growing and wine making. Surry County Community College, for example, has offered successful viticulture and enology programs throughout the 1990s. In addition, North Carolina State University has developed experimental vineyards to conduct research on grape growing in Carolina’s soil and climate.

 

By educating farmers about the specifics of grape farming, the government is attempting to decrease the risks of this new venture before they start.

. . .As of September 2004, North Carolina had about 300 vineyards and 38 wineries, half of which had been established in the last two years. Not all of these vineyards were started by former tobacco farmers. However, the number of tobacco-producing farms has declined from 17,625 in 1992 to 7,850 in 2002.

Within this context, North Carolina has grown to the 12th largest producer in the country of both grapes and wine. The economic impact of this industry is estimated at $79 million and 855 jobs.

Beyond the threat to their livelihoods, farmers have an additional incentive to switch to this particular crop. As the North Carolina Winegrowers Association points out, grapes are one of the only crops (at least in this state) that can replace tobacco dollar for dollar.

This amounts to $4,000-$5,000 per acre.

Finally, farmers can continue to grow tobacco and other crops while using empty areas of land for grapes.

 

/more: http://www.soc.duke.edu/NC_GlobalEconomy/pdfs/tobacco/TobaccoCS_WineIndustry.pdf

[drbubb]

Predictors of crop diversification: a survey of tobacco farmers in North Carolina (USA)

 

Conclusions

In this study, we found that most North Carolina tobacco farmers living in 14 counties with high tobacco production expressed interest in supplementing their tobacco income with non-tobacco commodities. Likewise, the majority have taken at least one action in the past year to learn more about supplementation. A high percentage of farmers reported growing or raising non-tobacco commodities, although a relatively smaller percentage reported profitability from these non-tobacco enterprises and very few found processing or marketing innovations that added value and profitability. The fact remains that as a whole, no other commodities can generate the profits per acre that tobacco produces.14 There are case studies of individual tobacco growers makingcomparable profits growing or raising other commodities15-19 but without huge investments in the rural infrastructure of the tobacco south, the scale of these alternatives is insufficient to entirely replace tobacco.9

 

Here, we summarise some of the key findings of this study, focusing primarily on the significant findings from the adjusted multivariate logistic and linear regression models. For interest in diversification, younger age and college education were positively associated with interest. For taking action around diversification, college education, off-farm income, and larger farm size were significant predictors of the number of actions taken. For applying for loans, younger age was the only significant predictor. For the questions about barriers to diversification, there are too many questions to summarise succinctly. However, looking across barriers, it is evident that for external barriers, younger age, use of tobacco, and lack of college education were most strongly associated with reporting barriers. For internal barriers, older age and lack of college education were most strongly associated with reporting barriers.

 

/more: http://tobaccocontrol.bmj.com/content/7/4/376.full

[drbubb]

Sweet Potato Co-op Wants To Build Ethanol Plant

 

North America’s booming ethanol business has been fuelled primarily by corn -- and now a group in the economically depressed tobacco-growing district of southern Ontario wants to use sweet potatoes as a source for the environmentally-friendly fuel.

 

The Canadian Sweet Potato Ethanol Alliance (CSEA), a group headquartered in the former tobacco-growing centre of Tillsonburg, a town with a population of about 15,000 people, located about 45 kilometres from London, Ontario, is seeking provincial loan guarantees and a firm 20-year contract from the government to kick-start the proposed $150-million project.

 

“Tobacco is on its way out and the land here is perfect for sweet potatoes,” says Larry Huszczo, a Tillsonburg area businessman who is the vice-chairman of CSEA, which has recently been formed as a co-operative.

 

“Our goal is to replace tobacco. Sweet potatoes and millet [which would also be used in the ethanol project] are not grown in Canada now, so we wouldn’t hurt existing farmers [by growing competitive crops].

. . .

The problem is it has been virtually impossible for local farmers to find crops as lucrative as tobacco was, with net earnings of $3,000 an acre at its peak. By contrast, most Canadian farming operations are fortunate to net a few hundred dollars an acre, with vegetable, fruit and other specialty crops being an exception.

 

“That’s the challenge. It’ll have to be a diversity of options,” says Bill Ingratta, director of the Crop Technology Branch in Ontario’s Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. “There isn’t going to be one single crop to replace tobacco.”

 

Agricultural experts say having tobacco farmers switch to growing corn, strawberries or tomatoes would hurt existing producers of those crops.

 

“We’re not going to start growing tomatoes because that would hurt farmers in the Leamington area,” says Huszczo, referring to the town near Windsor, Ontario, that bills itself as Canada’s tomato-growing capital.

 

Mark Bannister, a local tobacco grower and a member of the Tobacco Farmers in Crisis group, told the Toronto Star recently the farmers face a dilemma.

 

“We’re sitting on 100,000 acres of prime agricultural land. We’ve got irrigation. We can grow anything on this land. That’s not an issue,” said Bannister, who operates a farm near the small town of Vanessa.

 

“For the remaining 700 tobacco producers to start growing vegetable crops -- there’s just no future.”

. . .

Ethanol future?

 

While sweet potatoes have proven to be a crop that is more lucrative than other alternatives -- farmers can net up to $2,000 an acre, Huszczo says -- it will be impossible to replace the 200,000 acres tobacco occupied (100,000 acres a year were grown, with the rotation the following year of another 100,000 acres).

 

And that’s where industrial-grade sweet potatoes and the proposed CSEA project enter the picture.

 

“We’re hoping farmers can net $1,000 an acre for sweet potatoes and $500 an acre for millet,” he says.

 

The new ethanol plant would create a demand for industrial sweet potatoes grown on at least 100,000 acres, CSEA has calculated.

 

CSEA has already purchased a 140-acre site for the plant near Tillsonburg and the town has become one of the group’s biggest backers, he says.

 

“It’s a perfect site. There’s a railway switching yard on our property and four rail lines extend to our site.”

 

The site also is near the province’s electricity grid, which is important since a component of the project is the creation of power.

 

/more: http://www.airwaterland.ca/article.asp?id=1373

[drbubb]

US TOBACCO CROP RISES, BUT DOWN FROM A DECADE AGO

News - Business News

Sunday, 28 August 2011 08:22

 

"We had a pretty rough year last year," Denton said. "I think we'll have a better yield this year." Meanwhile, US growers of a lighter variation of the golden leaf called flue-cured tobacco in areas like North Carolina and Virginia are forecast to produce more than 465 million pounds (211 million kilograms), up about 3 percent from last year.

 

Increases in flue-cured tobacco production are due to a new purchaser, US Growers Direct, said David Reed from Virginia Tech's Southern Piedmont Agricultural Research and Extension Center. The North Carolina-based company, which contracts with farmers and exports products overseas, would not say which tobacco companies it was working with for its purchases. Reed and others said the tobacco is headed for the Asian cigarette market and exports have played a big role for US tobacco farmers.

 

However, the upcoming selling season could be crucial in determining how many farmers sign up with tobacco companies to grow another crop next year, said University of Kentucky agricultural economist Will Snell. Decrease in demand has caused some tobacco farmers not to put much or any money into rehabbing old tobacco barns used to hang and dry their crop - another example of the dwindling industry. And with grain prices high, some farmers might opt to get out of costly tobacco growing and convert that land into corn or soybean production. Others might turn tobacco plots into pastures for beef cattle.

 

Growers just can't sustain," Reed said about the costs and uncertainty of being a tobacco farmer. "You just can't keep doing that." Farmers contract with tobacco companies, which then come to local receiving stations to grade and purchase leaf. But how much they buy depends on the quality. In the US, the largest tobacco manufacturers include Richmond, Virginia-based Altria Group Inc., parent company of Marlboro maker Philip Morris USA; Reynolds American Inc., the Winston-Salem, North Carolina, producer of Camel and Pall Mall cigarettes; and Newport cigarette maker Lorillard Inc, based in Greensboro, North Carolina.

 

Witt has a production contract with Philip Morris International Inc., the maker of Marlboro and other cigarette brands for the overseas market. Last year, Witt averaged $1.62 a pound for his tobacco, enabling him to eke out a profit. The year before, he averaged $1.79 to $1.82 a pound.

 

/see: http://www.expatsinkuwait.com/news/89-business-news/2798-us-tobacco-crop-rises-but-down-from-a-decade-ago.html

[drbubb]

 

Natural Healing: Replacing Tobacco with Herbal Crops in South Carolina

more: http://www.herbcompanion.com/health/NATURAL-healing-Turning-away-from-tobacco.aspx#ixzz1ebFTUpJI

Global Herbal Market

Market Size

---- (US $ Bill.) Pct. (%)

E.U.--- : 28.0 : 45%

Rest EU : 02.4 : 04%

ASEAN- : 10.8 : 19%

Japan-- : 09.8 : 16%

N. Amer. : 06.9 : 11%

Others-- : 04.1 : 07%

========

Total--- : 62.0 : 100%

 

Products sold in the US : 1998-99

Type Sales in Millions of dollars/Year

Glucosimine : $392

-------------- : $325

Ginkgo --- : $239

-------------- : $185

Garlic ---- : $160

-------------- : $148

Co-Enz.Q10 : $129

-------------- : $121

Antioxidants : $115

-------------- : $114

Echinacea - : $109

-------------- : $ 91

Grapeseed ex: $ 72

 

/more data: http://www.dsir.gov.in/reports/ittp_tedo/ism/ISM_AS_Market.pdf

 

 

Chinese HERB TRADERS: http://trade.made-in-china.com/importers-exporters/Global-5chuntqo5/Herb-1.html

HERB LINKS --------- : http://www.agmrc.org/commodities__products/specialty_crops/herbs/culinary_herbs_profile.cfm

No.Carolina Links -- : http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/fletcher/programs/herbs/crops/culinary/

[drbubb]

Market Opportunities and Strategic Directions for Specialty Herbs

- and Essential Oil Crops in Montana .. February 27, 200

 

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The growth and rising interest in herbal, botanical, and essential oil products in the

United States over the last several years has caught the attention of the agricultural

community. Reports of high prices for specialty crops, coupled with a decrease in

prices for traditional grain crops, has caused many agricultural producers in Montana

and other states to consider whether specialty herb crops offer opportunities for

diversification and increased profits. This report, prepared for the Montana Department

of Agriculture, explores the economic feasibility of specialty herb and essential oil crops

(specialty crops) for Montana farmers.

 

This report explores production, uses, markets, and prices for several specific specialty

herb crops. It presents findings from agronomic production trials including test plot

yields. Strategic considerations for prospective growers and Montana producers in

particular are explored. Available market data is presented; and, market depth, price

volatility, and potential trends are analyzed. Risk management considerations are

highlighted, and methods of risk management for individual producers are explored

 

/Report: http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/getfile?dDocName=STELPRD3247954'>http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/getfile?dDocName=STELPRD3247954

 

Includes: HERB-- : Pg : Low-Price-High

III.C.23. Valerian.......32 : $ 0.85 - $ 15

III.C.24. Echinacea...33 : $ 7.00 - $ 58 (Echinacea augustifolia)

--------- . -------------------- : $ 4.25 - $ 27 (Echinacea purpurea)

III.C.25. Goldenseal..34 : $24.00 - $ 50

III.C.26. Ginseng.......35 : $20.00 - $500

 

 

Echinacea is grown mainly as a medicinal herb, although it is used as a nutraceutical in teas. The following marketing plan considers important aspects of producing and marketing Echinacea commercially.

 

V.A.1. Situation Analysis

As the herb industry grows, markets for some crops are maturing; and, others are just being commercialized. One herb with an established market is Echinacea, commonly known as purple coneflowers and native to the central United States. There are nine known species with three having commercial importance: E. purpurea, E. angustifolia and E. pallida. The dried root is the major product, but the leaves are sometimes also

harvested.

 

Echinacea is highly regarded as a non-specific stimulant of the immune system, as an anti-inflammatory, as a treatment for cold and flu symptoms, and as an aid in wound healing. Traditionally, it has been used as a remedy against infections and for treating poisonous snakebites. North American Indians have used Echinacea for medicinal purposes throughout history.

 

In recent years Europeans have adopted Echinacea in mainstream medicine. Over 300 different preparations are sold including ointments, lotions, creams, tinctures, liquid and dry extracts, and toothpastes. In the United States the demand for herbs such as Echinacea has been increasing. In the U.S. the production of Echinacea has occurred both by cultivation of mostly E. purpurea and by the digging of native plants (in Montana usually E. angustifolia). In recent years the cultivation of Echinacea has become an important topic for producers seeking to grow alternative crops.

=== ===

 

Strategies for Montana Specialty Herb Producers

It is unlikely that Montana producers will be able to compete with foreign providers of specialty herbs and essential oils on a cost basis. Production costs in the U.S. are higher than in developing countries because of higher land values, wage rates, and regulations, which govern environmental and labor standards. However, it may be possible for productivity, knowledge, and infrastructure advantages to offset some of

these higher costs.

 

The fragmentation and diversity of the specialty herb and essential oil industry inhibits the adoption of a differentiation strategy. It seems unreasonable to expect to be able to market such products to a broad spectrum of consumers, especially when these types of products are not generally considered to be "mainstream" other than for use in personal hygiene products.

 

Specialty herbs and essential oils are used in other products which are used in consumer-type products. However, they are ingredients and cost is clearly going to be important to pharmaceutical firms. Thus, these ingredients are likely to be sold in a high price elasticity of demand situation. But it is apparent that Montana producers will not be able to compete with foreign suppliers on a cost basis. Thus, it will be necessary to develop and market products for which quality does matter – specifically, as inputs into diet and medicinal supplements. This is a low price elasticity of demand situation.

 

Of the two generic strategies, a benefits-driven differentiation strategy has the best chance for success. That is, starting as a small, clearly defined producer of specialty herbs and essential oils will be important. This market will require a price premium. In this type of a situation, competition is going to be difficult because a great deal of marketing and promotion is needed to convince the user that the price premium is

justified by the benefits of the product.

 

/more: http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/getfile?dDocName=STELPRD3247954

[drbubb]

Four NC farmer video stories... "Very inspirational"

 

Harvest Table Farm:

http://yourlife.usatoday.com/fitness-food/story/2011-11-20/Organic-certification-gives-farmers-a-tough-row-to-hoe/51322482/1#

 

=== ===

(source: found on Dr Davis' website):

 

Jeanine Davis - Mills River, NC, United States

 

I am a researcher and extension specialist with North Carolina State University. My staff and I are located at the Mountain Horticultural Crops Research and Extension Center in western North Carolina. The objective of our program is to help farmers improve the sustainability and profitability of their farms. We do this by conducting research and providing education on new crops, such as hops, truffles, and medicinal herbs, and organic farming. I am the coauthor of the book 'Growing and Marketing Ginseng, Goldenseal and Other Woodland Medicinals" (see post #XX). We recently established an organic research unit at the Mountain Research Station in Waynesville.

/see: http://www.blogger.com/profile/04872458734869518222

 

From Her 1pg Article: Growing Herbs as a Cash Crop

 

The key to being successful with herbs is, of course, marketing. Because of the diversity of herbs and herb products, there are many opportunities for all size herb operations. Herbs are particularly well-suited to small, part-time, family operations where different family members take responsibility for growing, making value-added products, and marketing. No matter how you sell your herbs, it is important to educate the customer. Most people are fascinated with herbs, but they know little about them. The more they know how to use herbs, the more they buy. One way to handle this is to provide recipe cards with your herbs. If you are selling herb plants from your farm, display gardens will help make sales. Offer tours of the gardens. Describe the plants, how to grow them, how to landscape with them, and how to use them. Provide plans for the display gardens along with a list of plants needed, and have plenty of those plants for sale. Herb fairs and festivals have also proved to be excellent promotional tools and big sales events in North Carolina. During these events, demonstrations and talks are offered on a variety of topics such as how to make pesto, how to use Chinese herbs, and how to make a tussie mussie.

/see: http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/fletcher/programs/herbs/crops/culinary/cash_crop.html

[drbubb]

The North Carolina Consortium on Natural Medicines

is a nonprofit alliance whose volunteer members are drawn from the fields of health care, agriculture, business, and public policy.

 

The Mission of the Consortium

 

+ Educate consumers, growers, and health professionals about safety, efficacy, and appropriate use of herbal medicinal products

+ Help growers and processors to develop and and market herbal products

+ Promote the development of a sustainable market for herbal products grown and processed in North Carolina

+ Develop and support research projects on herbal products which will include standards, economic development, safety, efficacy, and use of herbal medicinal products.

 

/see: http://www.naturalmedicinesofnc.org/

 

/NC Herb List : http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/fletcher/programs/herbs/crops/culinary/

/Mkt.ing Tips : http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/chatham/ag/SustAg/marketingretailers.html

/NC Dept Agri : http://www.ncagr.gov/markets/commodit/horticul/herbs/

[drbubb]

How to Pick a High Value Crop:

Evaluating Your Resources and Personal Considerations /

 

Introduction

When people consider growing a new crop, they sometimes they have a pretty good mental image of what they want to do and other times they don’t. For example, a tobacco farmer might envision growing 50 acres of purple coneflower that he would cut with a sickle-bar, bale, dry in his tobacco barn, and load onto a tractor trailer for delivery to a raw materials buyer in New York. An administrative assistant, suddenly laid-off from her job, might dream of growing lavender in a quarteracre plot in her backyard and use it to make soaps and lotions to sell at her friend’s gift shop in town.

 

These are both great ideas, but are they realistic? Will they work? There are many questions you need to ask yourself at this stage. Write down your idea and then consider all the following questions. There are no right or wrong answers here. This is just to get you thinking in

more practical terms about your idea. You might find you have to “tweak” your plans a little to make them work!

 

/4pg. Paper: http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/fletcher/programs/herbs/prosperity/opportunities/FPP-2009-pick-high-value-crop.pdf

[drbubb]

BOOKS

 

Growing & Marketing Ginseng, Goldenseal & Other Woodland Medicinals : $25.00

 

ISBN: 978-0-914875-42-0

W. Scott Persons and Jeanine M. Davis

Bright Mountain Books

Paperback, 496 pages

Expanded from Dr. Persons’ book, American Ginseng: Green Gold, this comprehensive book covers the recommended methods of growing and marketing ginseng, goldenseal, and many other woodland medicinal plants.

 

== ==

 

The Old Herb Doctor : $15.00

 

ISBN: 978-0-914875-56-7

Joseph E. Meyer

Historical Images

Paperback, 176 pages

Herbal remedies have once again risen in popularity and widespread use. The Old Herb Doctor details the way Americans used medicinal herbs in the 1920s and ’30s and is a must for those interested in herbal medicine and natural cures.

 

[Read More...]: http://brightmountainbooks.com/titles/growing.html

[drbubb]

Welcome to the Asheville Herb Festival : Late April

 

 

The WNC Chapter of the NC Herb Association represents the incredibly wide variety of herbalists and herb businesses in North Carolina: herb growers and vendors, natural gardening and landscaping specialists, and makers of herbal ointments, balms, soaps, teas, medicines, and other products. We hope you’ll join us and more than 25,000 other herb lovers when we celebrate our 22nd annual Asheville Herb Festival April 29th April 30th, and May 1st 2011, at the WNC Farmers Market.

. . .

Why Asheville ?

 

Western North Carolina is a southeastern mecca for high-quality, often organically grown herbs, vegetables, and other produce. Conservation easements help farmers preserve existing farms and establish new ones, and many farms are dedicated to organic agriculture practices such as producing heirloom vegetables and range-fed livestock. Among the area’s many growers of herbs and other traditional plants, the Asheville Herb Festival has become an annual opportunity for old and new friends to show off their latest plants and products and share their knowledge. “The herb festival is sort of like a family reunion,” remarked Rick Morgan, who founded the festival more than 20 years ago. “When we get together in the spring, everyone has news to share. It’s a very friendly atmosphere.”

 

http://www.ashevilleherbfestival.com/

=== == ===

 

HerbFest 2012 is April 20- 29, 2012

 

Back again for the 12th or 13th CONSECUTIVE HerbFest in Wake Forest, N.C. It's probably the 20+ Herbfest we've done and looking forward to it. Put it on your calendars and get ready for spring and planting time. Vendors if you want to share good times with us click here for your application. Enjoy the winter and plan well our friends.

 

 

/see: http://www.herbfest.net/index.php

[drbubb]

North Carolina Herbal Products

 

Ginseng Supreme / American Ginseng & Eleuthero Root

This herbal proprietary blend provides potent adaptogen herbs to provide support for the body during times of stress. It helps to support normal levels of energy and stamina.

• 1 oz. bottle : $19.99

/see: http://shop.gaiaherbs.com/Ginseng-Supreme/p/GAIA-90876001&c=GaiaHerbs@G-I'>http://shop.gaiaherbs.com/Ginseng-Supreme/p/GAIA-90876001&c=GaiaHerbs@G-I

/GaiaHerbs: http://shop.gaiaherbs.com/

=== ===

 

Marketing

Herbs

North Carolina herb growers produce a wide variety of herbal products from across our state. Herb plants, medicinal herbs, seeds, roots, bulbs, culinary herbs, aromatics and many other products are available from the many growers listed in our directory. Whether you are interested in a retail, mailorder, or wholesale source, these growers can assist you with quality herbal products.

 

Follow the links below to find the products you are interested in.

Product List:

Retail Wholesale----- Mailorder

Aromatics------------- Culinary Herbs

Food Products--------- Herb Plants

Medicinal Herbs------- Medicinal Products

Miscellaneous Products Ornamentals

Skin and Body Care---- Seeds, Roots, Bulbs

 

/see: http://www.ncagr.gov/markets/commodit/horticul/herbs/index.htm