Farmers Seek Options to Growing Tobacco

Source from:  Post staff report news.cincypost.com 07/19/2005

Dick Boh of Walton, Ky., is growing less tobacco and more sweet corn these days. "It's time to look for alternatives to tobacco," he said. Boh has reduced his tobacco acreage from 16 to 8 and has started growing 25 acres of sweet corn. "I'm happy about the sweet corn," he said. "I was the first one in the area to have it this year. I was the only one who had it the past 15 days. Everybody just about bought me out." Alternative crops are a major question this year, the first since the tobacco support program was ended last fall. Farmers are trying a variety of tacks, from grapes, vegetables and flowers to trees and shrubs. Boh sells sweet corn to several grocery stores, roadside stands and farmer's markets. In Brown County, Ohio, Betty Jo and Jim Ratliff have augmented their 11 acres of tobacco with shrimp and sunflowers. "We decided to diversify because of the tobacco situation," said Betty Jo. "We don't know what's going to happen with tobacco." This is the third year the Ratliffs have raised shrimp in a couple of half-acre ponds, but so far the venture hasn't been profitable. "We hope it will be at some point," said Betty Jo. "We've had start-up costs with construction of the pond and stocking it. The cost of feed has also gone up." The Ratliffs raised about 300 pounds of shrimp last year and hope to do better this year. They sell shrimp by the pound to the general public. The price was $8 a pound last year, but figures to be a little bit higher this year because of the increasing cost of feed. Shrimp selling time is in September. "We put out signs when the shrimp is ready and people come with coolers," said Betty Jo. "We've completely sold out the last two years." Their sunflowers have been profitable. The Ratliffs have 70 acres and raise them for the black oil seeds that people buy to feed the birds. "We package it up and sell it ourselves," said Betty Jo. "The Cincinnati Nature Center is our biggest buyer." The Ratliffs are waiting to see how much their tobacco will bring on the first open market in decades. That will help them decide how much tobacco to grow in the future to go along with shrimp and sunflowers. "Tobacco is a lot more work, no doubt," said Betty Jo. Enditem