Wall Street Journal: "Since 2005, U.S. tobacco acreage has risen 20%." The harvest is still down substantially from the early years of this decade, but the trend is upward.

Ending price supports made tobacco exports competitive on price and opened the market to farmers locked out of the old system. "Today, farmers can grow as much tobacco as they want, wherever they want. Economies of scale have kicked in."

An interesting story for the N&R and/or N&O to follow.