Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Ted Budd (R-N.C.) and Representative David Rouzer (R-N.C.-07) led their colleagues in sending a bipartisan, bicameral letter urging President Trump to prioritize flue-cured tobacco in his trade negotiations with China ahead of his meeting with Chinese President Xi. In the letter, the legislators outline several challenges facing U.S. tobacco farmers, including the need to ensure growers qualify for any future tariff relief programs, to prevent cheap, foreign-grown tobacco from undermining domestic markets.
In the letter, the legislators said, “American flue-cured tobacco is world-renowned for its high quality, traceability, and compliant production. Foreign countries are willing to pay a premium for tobacco grown in the U.S. due to its superior quality, which is why growers have relied heavily on access to export markets since before the Revolutionary War. China serves as the single largest buyer—purchasing 60–65 million pounds of green tobacco annually.
“Farmers were recently informed that China will not purchase flue-cured tobacco from the 2025 crop, a decision made by the Chinese Communist Party to gain leverage in ongoing trade negotiations with the United States.
“…However, these farmers cannot survive without fair access to global markets and equal support from the U.S. government as other major crops receive. As you prepare to meet with President Xi Jinping, we urge you to elevate the priorities of American tobacco farmers and ensure our tobacco farm families receive fair treatment in trade negotiations, just as you did during your first term and have promised to continue to do for all of American agriculture.”
In the Senate, U.S. Senators Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C), Tim Scott (R-S.C.) joined the letter.
Additionally, in the House, Representatives Don Davis (D-N.C.-01), Chuck Edwards (R-N.C.-11), Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.-05), Pat Harrigan (R-10-N.C.), Mark Harris (R-N.C.-08), Richard Hudson (R-N.C.-09), Brad Knott (R-N.C.-13), Addison McDowell (R-N.C.-06), Tim Moore (R-N.C.-14), Greg Murphy (R-N.C.-03), Morgan Griffith (R-Va.-09), Jen Kiggans (R-Va.-02), John McGuire (R-Va.-05), Ben Cline (R-Va.-06), and Russell Fry (R-S.C.-07) joined Senator Budd and Representative Rouzer.
Read the full letter text HERE.
BACKGROUND
China is the leading international buyer of American flue-cured tobacco. U.S. farmers were recently informed that China will not purchase flue-cured tobacco from the 2025 crop, a decision made to gain leverage in ongoing trade negotiations with the U.S. This leaves approximately 65 million pounds of tobacco without a buyer, erasing $220 million in export value.
As a leading state in U.S. tobacco exports, North Carolina farmers produce 260.1 million pounds of tobacco annually—nearly 60% of all U.S. production. In 2024, North Carolina exported $5.9 billion worth of tobacco into China.
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