How is tobacco processed?

How is tobacco processed? That’s a good question. After harvesting tobacco leaves, they must go through extensive processing to be turned into products like cigarettes, dip, and cigars. The first step to this is curing the tobacco leaves, which is the drying process. The curing method used can give the plant different characteristics and qualities.

Flue-curing is the most popular curing method for Virginia tobacco. Flue-curing involves hanging the tobacco leaves in curing barns and using hot air to dry out the leaves. As the leaves dry, they take on unique colors, flavors, and aromas. 

Air-curing is similar to flue-curing, but the leaves are left to hang in a well-ventilated curing barn and dry naturally. The air-curing process can take anywhere from four to eight weeks and is commonly used on Burley tobacco. Tobacco leaves can also be sun-cured, meaning they are left to hang in a sunny area to dry for around two weeks.

The next steps in the production process vary, depending on the tobacco product being made. For cigars, the tobacco leaves are fermented after the curing process. During this phase, the tobacco leaves become riper, and the nicotine content lessens. Many types of air-cured tobaccos are fermented to help darken their aromas and develop rich flavors. 

After tobacco is cured and fermented, it can be turned into various tobacco products, such as cigarettes, cigars, snuff, dip, and more. Different types of tobacco can be blended together to create well-balanced, flavorful products. This is a little summary on the topic: how is tobacco processed?

Types of tobacco products and how their tobacco’s are processed

There are a huge variety of different methods used to enjoy tobacco. Some involve smoking, while others involve consuming or snorting tobacco. The method you choose will depend on various factors, such as how much nicotine you want to consume, and how discrete you want your tobacco consumption to be. So really, how is tobacco processed and what are some of the ways in which it is consumed? Here are a few:

A. Bidis

Bidis are small, thin, hand-rolled cigarettes that are incredibly popular in India and other Southeast Asian countries. Bidis are typically imported to the United States. They consist of tobacco wrapped in a tendu or temburni leaf, which are plants native to Asia. Bidis are often secured with a colorful string at both ends and can be flavored or unflavored. Popular bidi flavors include chocolate, cherry, and mango.

B. Cigarettes

Cigarettes are small, cylindrical chambers containing finely cut tobacco leaves, or reconstituted tobacco, rolled up in thin paper. Cigarettes usually contain a filter at one end and are the predominant form of tobacco use worldwide. Many cigarettes contain additives or other flavoring agents. Menthol is a common example. Cigarettes are lit at one end, which causes the cigarette to smolder, and the resulting smoke is inhaled through the other end of the cigarette. Popular types of cigarettes include:

Natural American Spirit: These feature all-natural tobacco flavor. The tobacco is mellow-tasting, and the filter is dense, which produces a light yet bold flavor.

Marlboro Gold: Marlboro is the largest selling brand of cigarettes in the world. They make a variety of different kinds, one of which is Marlboro Gold, a smooth-tasting cigarette that is light, mellow, and airy, made from a blend of a few different tobaccos.Camel Blue: Camel Blues have a lighter filter and offer a spicy, full-flavored smoke, perfect for all types of smokers.

Newport Menthol 100’s: One of the most popular brands of menthol cigarette, Newport Menthol 100’s allow smokers to enjoy the full menthol flavor without completely drowning out the taste of the tobacco.

C. Cigars/cigarillos

Most cigars are made up of a single variety of air-cured or dried tobacco. Tobacco leaves intended for cigars are first aged for about a year, then fermented in a multi-step process that can take anywhere from three to five months. Fermentation causes chemical and bacterial reactions within the tobacco leaves that alter the flavors and aromas, so cigars taste different from cigarettes.

Regular cigars are larger than cigarettes and do not have filters. Cigarillos, or little cigars, are usually very similar in size and shape to cigarettes. Cigarillos usually have filters and are filled with pipe tobacco. Cigarillos are often artificially flavored, with common varieties being chocolate, cherry, apple, and mango. Cigars contain a higher level of nicotine than cigarettes. Some cigar smokers choose to inhale the smoke into their lungs, while others simply hold the smoke in their mouths. For those who inhale, the nicotine is absorbed slowly into the lungs, just like with cigarettes. For those who don’t inhale, the nicotine is absorbed more slowly through the linings of the mouth.

Popular types of cigars and cigarillos include:

Backwoods Honey Cigars, Montecristo Cigars, Cohiba Toro Tubo Cigars, and Middleton’s Black & Mild Cigars.

D. Dissolvable tobacco

This type of tobacco is finely processed and is designed to dissolve on the tongue or in the mouth. There are many different forms of dissolvable tobacco, including strips, sticks, orbs, and compressed tobacco lozenges. They are smoke-free, spit-free, and are usually held together by food-grade binders. They may look similar to breathe mints or candy.

E. Electronic cigarettes

Electronic cigarettes, also known as e-cigarettes, are battery-powered devices that contain cartridges filled with nicotine, flavoring, and other chemicals. E-cigarettes aren’t technically a tobacco product but rather a nicotine delivery system. The nicotine, however, is derived from tobacco leaves. E-cigarettes turn the concentrated nicotine and flavor into a vapor that is then inhaled by the user.

E-cigarette models may be designed to look like real cigarettes, and some even have glowing tips. Others are shaped like small bars or may resemble pens. Most e-cigarettes are reusable and can be refilled with replaceable nicotine cartridges. These cartridges used to come in various flavors such as menthol, chocolate, cherry, orange, and pineapple. However, most flavored e-cigarettes are now banned in the U.S.

Popular brands of e-cigarettes include: 

Juul, Hyppe Bar, and Blu Disposable E-cigarette.

F. Hookah

A hookah is a water pipe used to smoke Shisha, a combination of tobacco and fruit or vegetable. The tobacco is specially made and comes in various flavors, like apple, mint, cherry, chocolate, coconut, licorice, and watermelon.

Hookahs vary in size, shape, and style, but a typical modern hookah has a head, a metal body, a water bowl, and a flexible hose with a mouthpiece.

The tobacco of Shisha is heated, usually using charcoal. This creates smoke that is then filtered through the water and inhaled.

Hookah use began centuries ago in ancient Persia and India. Today, smoking hookah is also popular in the United States, Europe, Russia, and other countries worldwide.

Hookah smoking is typically done in groups, and the mouthpiece is passed from person to person. There are many specialty clubs, called hookah bars, where people can enjoy smoking in large groups.

G. Kreteks

Kreteks are often referred to as clove cigarettes. Kreteks are typically imported from Indonesia, and they contain a mixture of tobacco, cloves, and other additives. Kreteks are typically unfiltered and are shown to deliver more nicotine to the body than a typical cigarette. The quality and variety of tobacco play an important role in the productions of kreteks. One brand of kreteks can contain over 30 varieties of tobacco. The tobacco is then combined with minced, dried clove buds, which usually make up about ¼ of the final kretek.

H. Pipes

A tobacco pipe, also simply known as a pipe, is a specialty device made just for smoking tobacco. They’re usually made up of a chamber for the tobacco to be placed in, called the bowl, a thin, hollow stem, and a mouthpiece. The tobacco in the bowl is lit, then the smoke is drawn through the stem and mouthpiece and inhaled.

Pipes are typically reusable and can range from simple machine-made models to highly prized hand-made artisanal instruments made by renowned pipe makers. These bespoke pipes are often incredibly expensive collector’s items. Pipe smoking is the oldest known traditional form of tobacco consumption. 

Below, we’ll continue to talk about other ways on how tobacco is processed and consumed.

I. Smokeless tobacco

Smokeless tobaccos are non-combustible tobacco products, meaning they won’t light or create smoke. Most smokeless tobacco use involves placing the product between the gum and the cheek or the lip or snorting it up the nose.

There are two main types of smokeless tobacco: chewing tobacco and snuff.

Chewing tobacco is a cured tobacco that can come in various forms, including loose-leaf, a plug, or a twist. It is consumed by placing a portion of the tobacco between the cheek and gum or upper lip, then chewing. Unlike dipping tobacco, chewing tobacco is not pre-ground, so it must be manually crushed with the teeth to release the flavor and the nicotine. Once the tobacco is crushed, unwanted juices can then be spat out.

There are a few different varieties of snuff. The first is dry snuff, which is loose, finely cut, or powdered dry tobacco. Dry snuff is typically snorted through the nostrils, delivering a swift hit of nicotine and a lasting flavored scent.

Snuff is almost always flavored or scented, with many blends of snuff requiring months or years of special storage to reach the required maturity. 

Common snuff flavors include mint, coffee, chocolate, honey, vanilla, cherry, orange, apricot, cinnamon, and rose. Snuff comes in various textures and moistness levels, from very fine to very coarse and from toast (very dry) to very moist.

Moist snuff, also known as dipping tobacco, is finely ground or shredded tobacco, then moistened. Dipping tobacco is usually consumed by placing a pinch, or a dip, of tobacco between the gum and the lip. This act is called dipping. Some types of dipping tobacco also come in pre-portioned pouches. Since dipping tobacco is pre-crushed, chewing isn’t required to release the nicotine. This is essentially how tobacco is processed and consumed!