According to a 2008 study by the United States Department of Agriculture, Kentucky is the number one state in the nation in dark fired tobacco production and Calloway County is the number one county producer in Kentucky, producing over eight million pounds of the crop each year. Additionally, Graves County is the number two county and other regional counties contribute significantly to the production of this crop.
Dark fired tobacco commonly appears in the form of smokeless tobacco and is a major industry in western Kentucky. Many families in the Purchase and Pennyrile counties of Kentucky continue to grow this crop and many producers are alumni of Murray State University (MSU) and family members regularly enroll in MSU.
Because of the continued growth of the Hutson School of Agriculture at MSU and the quality of education these students receive, Altria Client Services, on behalf of U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Company (USSTC), has recently donated $35,000 to fund scholarships for the Hutson School of Agriculture.
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