Professional Tobacco Curing
By Eric Hammer
Yes, tobacco curing is something which is considered to be
less than "PC" today. However, it is still a legitimate
way to make money. In fact, if you happen to be a smoker, you
can also engage in tobacco curing to save money (although your
tobacco can only be used for personal consumption - home grown
and cured tobacco is not legal for sale) as well as make some
money.
As a tobacco curer, you'll spend your time ensuring that the
ovens are prepared properly for curing the tobacco and that the
leaves are properly dried. It is a rather long and complicated
process which involves a number of steps before you can consider
the job done completely. It does require a great deal of skill
to engage in tobacco curing and it will require you to spend
the time to learn the job properly before you can be considered
an expert.
How Much Can You Make?
Tobacco curing generally pays in the range of $30,000-$50,000
per year depending largely on experience. Jobs are however somewhat
hard to find as tobacco products are considered less and less
popular in the United States. This means that salaries could
fall as the demand for jobs outstrips supply.
Ways to Make More | Related Opportunities
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While tobacco curing is a unique profession unto itself, it
does overlap with other professions which may also be of interest,
including growing tobacco from scratch, drying the leaves and
rolling cigars. In fact, hand rolled cigars are still considered
to be a sign of wealth and privilege and as such may be a way
to gain extra work in tobacco curing.
Keep in mind that tobacco curing can potentially be hazardous
to your health since you will be around the fumes from the tobacco
as it is being dried and prepared for cigarettes and cigars.
Exposure to the fumes could cause lung cancer or other health
problems including emphysema and asthma. Proper precautions should
be taken when engaging in tobacco curing to ensure that your
lungs are protected - this means that you wear a mask while handling
the leaves and that if you do it at home, you keep the area well
ventilated.
Qualifications / Requirements
Tobacco curers mostly learn their jobs while working rather
than going to school to learn tobacco curing. Therefore, the
main requirement is that you must be over legal age and able
to handle the workload of a tobacco curer.
First Steps
Start by contacting tobacco farms and cigarette manufacturers
who still manufacture their products in the United States (or
elsewhere if you happen to live in another country). Ask about
tobacco curing jobs and what their requirements are to get a
job.
Resources
Check out these helpful resources to learn more about tobacco
curing as a profession:
My Majors: Tobacco Curer - A nice introduction
to the world of tobacco curing and what's involved in doing the
job.
Southeast Farm Press: Tobacco Curing Goes High Tech
- While not specifically about getting a job in tobacco curing,
this article is quite useful for those interested in the profession
since it details some of the latest advances in the field of
tobacco curing.
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