Buy Tobacco Leaf Online | Whole Leaf Tobacco

"Organization Membership"

Status
Not open for further replies.

Michibacy

Northern tobacco grower
Joined
May 10, 2012
Messages
1,560
Points
63
Location
Michigan
I understand the difficulty in hosting a website, so I have a suggestion!

Create a small organization for the fair trading of tobacco (hmm Fair Trade Tobacco?)

With donation you get to be "certified" as part of the group. Donations would help support this great website, and would bring together tobacco purchasers and growers alike.


Love to hear your guys' thoughts.

Michibacy
 

Chicken

redneck grower
Founding Member
Joined
Aug 28, 2011
Messages
4,631
Points
83
Location
FLORIDA
im currentlly unemployed,,,,

damn i never got's no money when i need it<
 

Michibacy

Northern tobacco grower
Joined
May 10, 2012
Messages
1,560
Points
63
Location
Michigan
Donation of time or money towards the FTT community I'm sure would be just the same. An organization that unionized (not like the UAW but more of an agreement between growers) to grow, trade and use fairly. Maybe have a decal we could put on our products we sell?
 

FmGrowit

Head Honcho
Staff member
Joined
May 17, 2011
Messages
5,281
Points
113
Location
Freedom, Ohio, United States
Good idea, but it would require a registration fee to pay for all of the legal stuff. It would be tough to start, but once it became established, it would be the only way to buy and sell Extra Premium tobacco.

You'd have to start an Association of some sort and outline in infinite detail what "Fair Trade Tobacco" is. This definition would become the standard all tobacco must meet to be recognized as "Fair Trade Tobacco". There would be a copyrighted logo that would identify (at a glance) the product bearing that logo adheres to the standards set forth by the association. Anyone wishing to use the logo would have to be a member. All members would have to agree to maintain the standards set forth by the association to be accepted into the association. All members would have to agree to random, unannounced on-site inspections of their facilities, fields, and accounting for any related activity. Member's product would have to be tested occasionally to assure the association's standards are being maintained.

I'd guess you're looking at about $100,000 to $200,000 start-up cost. Membership fee's would be recurring annually, so that would help.

The alternative would be to start an association and bully all the competition to join for $5000 just for the rights to display the logo. That would only take about $25,000 in marketing to establish the facade of a legitimate organization just by advertizing. Once the market is saturated with the "standards", the public would know not to buy from anyone who didn't display the logo...the same way the Better Business Bureau operates.
 

Michibacy

Northern tobacco grower
Joined
May 10, 2012
Messages
1,560
Points
63
Location
Michigan
....Maybe we will just stick to a forum

Add-it:

On second thought, why not make an agreement more so than organization?

It'd be basic, you'd have a registration and it'd be an honesty thing.

I think it'd bring together growers more so than just saying we grow tobacco.

Wouldn't have to be legal like the "organic" certification the FDA has, just a grouping of like-minded growers.
 

FmGrowit

Head Honcho
Staff member
Joined
May 17, 2011
Messages
5,281
Points
113
Location
Freedom, Ohio, United States
The honor system works with the existing membership here. There are surprisingly few companies engaged in tobacco distribution, so the number of clients will be quite limited.

Honestly, the are fewer than 10 companies who control all of the unmanufactured tobacco distribution in the country. Like the President of one of them told me "This is a pretty close fraternity." Once somebody sells junk tobacco, everyone knows about it. Once somebody doesn't pay their bill or bounces a check, everyone knows about it. It really is a self regulating industry. Very difficult to break into, very easy to be thrown out of.
 

BarG

Founding Member
Joined
Jun 23, 2011
Messages
4,997
Points
113
Location
Texas, Brazos Vally
Only Time will tell Where this forum leads to. I'm just grateful for exactly what it is and represents.
Truly A one of a kind!
 

CoralReefs

Suburban baccy farmer
Joined
Apr 1, 2012
Messages
235
Points
0
Location
Central California
Maybe we can have a secret FTT handshake and secret decoder ring instead! That would be pretty cool. Kind of nerdy though (so sayith the computer geek with a Math degree who grew up watching star trek and playing dungeons and dragons... oh the irony...).
 

BarG

Founding Member
Joined
Jun 23, 2011
Messages
4,997
Points
113
Location
Texas, Brazos Vally
Maybe we can have a secret FTT handshake and secret decoder ring instead! That would be pretty cool. Kind of nerdy though (so sayith the computer geek with a Math degree who grew up watching star trek and playing dungeons and dragons... oh the irony...).

I'll settle for a couple hats and a t- shirt.:cool: and all the whole leaf I can smoke.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top