ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION 


Restructuring Tobacco Livelihoods: Burley Growers and the Federal Tobacco Program 

by VERDIE A. CRAIG 

Dissertation Director: 
Robin Leichenko 


Kentucky's leading cash crop has historically been tobacco. After the National Tobacco Settlement in 1998, quotas (the amount fanners were allowed to market each year) were cut approximately sixty percent, direct contracts with tobacco companies eclipsed government-sponsored auction sales, and legislation was passed to remove the federal tobacco program that has given the commodity and its growers unparalleled stability and profitability since the 1930s. Have these structural shifts in tobacco led to livelihood transition for tobacco growers? And, how are relationships between tobacco fanners, the government, and tobacco companies changing? These questions drive this dissertation. 

During the summer of 2002 I conducted semi-structured interviews in three Kentucky counties, which were then analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively. Several farmers had not experienced drastic economic impacts from quota cuts, since monies from the tobacco settlement and higher prices received for contracted tobacco had compensated for any lost income. The lack of a comparably profitable and stable crop and the absence of an extreme threat to livelihood may partially explain the dearth of 

livelihood change by tobacco growers. For those who had diversified their livelihoods, 

building upon assets and skills they already possessed was central to reducing 

dependence on tobacco. 

The rapid rise of contract sales of tobacco, combined with quota cuts, led to the closure of more than half of auction warehouses in two years. Growers who continued to sell tobacco at auction did so primarily because of personal relationships they had established over time, and they often followed those who had run warehouses into contracting arrangements with companies when warehouses closed or became receiving stations. Similarly, many burley growers felt like it was important to build relationships with tobacco companies by contracting, in order to ensure themselves future markets should the auction market not be available. Kentucky burley growers were positioning themselves as best they could to benefit from a buyout, and to ensure their economic well being afterward. These changes, and how tobacco growers engaged with them, have implications for Kentucky's rural landscapes as well as other commodity producers who may experience the withdrawal of government supports in the future.