Premier Manufacturing is the consumer products division of U.S. Tobacco Cooperative Inc. (USTC). Premier provides high-quality tobacco products to the adult consumer made with the finest flue-cured tobacco grown in the U.S. by our owner-members.

Premier is a Subsequent Participating Member (SPM) to the Master Settlement Agreement (1999 Signatory). As such we are able to develop strong relationships with distributors and retailers throughout the U.S.

We produce consumer products for the U.S. market under the brand names of Manitou, 1839, 1st Class, Shield, Traffic, Ultra Buy and Wildhorse. Our product line includes cigarettes, pipe tobacco, premium cigars, roll-your-own and tubes.

All of our brands are American owned, American grown and American manufactured – We proudly state “A Product of US Farmers®”. We believe so strongly in our brands, manufacturing process, service and tobacco blends that we back our products with a 100% guarantee.

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Us Tobacco lobby sign

Our parent company

U.S. Tobacco Cooperative Inc. (USTC) is a grower-owned marketing cooperative based in Raleigh, NC. USTC produces U.S. flue-cured tobacco grown by 700+ member growers in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia. Member-grown tobacco is processed and sold as raw materials to cigarette manufacturers worldwide. USTC processes over 35 million pounds of flue-cured tobacco.

With USTC, domestic and global customers can buy the finest, most compliant and most sustainable flue-cured tobacco in the world. As a full-service leaf supplier, USTC owns a processing and manufacturing plant in Timberlake, NC and leaf storage facility in Fuquay-Varina, NC.

USTC has more than 200 employees in 13 locations throughout the U.S.

Mission Statement

From our farmers to our customers, we proudly deliver exceptional service and products made with the finest U.S. tobacco.

Core Values

  • Grower-Focused

    We will be dedicated to our growers. We will provide results leading to prosperity and long-term benefits for our members.

  • Total Commitment to Excellence

    We will strive for excellence at all times and seek to continually improve our performance. We will strive to be the best at what we do.

    We will focus on the future, not on the past. We will learn from our past experiences.

  • Honesty & Integrity

    We will perform our job to the best of our ability with the highest level of honesty and integrity, regardless of what others are doing.

  • Execution & Results

    We will focus on achieving results through flawless execution. We will take responsibility for our actions and perform our responsibilities with the highest ethical standards.

    When we see problems, we will own them until they are resolved. We will hold ourselves and each other accountable for our actions and for accomplishing established goals and objectives.

  • Safety & Security

    We will incorporate safety into everything we do. We will provide a safe and secure workplace for all employees, supporting job satisfaction, family life balance and personal enjoyment.

  • Teamwork

    We will treat others the way we want to be treated and will work as a team to accomplish our objectives.

    We will treat each other with respect and encourage open, honest dialogue. We will exhibit kindness, support and compassion for our teammates.

  • Innovation

    We will encourage, expect and support innovation as we creatively adapt to changing strategies.

    As change agents, we will proactively identify challenges and opportunities, implementing creative solutions.

  • Celebrate Success

    We will recognize and celebrate both our professional and personal achievements.

Retail Partners

Premier Manufacturing has strong relationships with national, regional and local distributors such as Core-Mark and Eby-Brown, as well as large independent retail chains such as Cumberland Farms and Stewart’s Shops.

Premier has the ability to develop control label brand relationships with large and regional retail chains. We have been successful at entering into agreements with sophisticated retail chains, giving them brand exclusivity within a region and essentially their own private label. For example, in 2016 Premier Manufacturing signed a long-term deal with Circle K, the largest convenience store chain in the U.S. with over 7,000 locations, to be the exclusive retailer of Traffic cigarettes.

Premier has a national sales staff that is able to provide sales and service support, and create sales and merchandising programs with point-of-sale materials to maintain high retail visibility of the brands.

Manufacturing

All of our products are made at USTC’s manufacturing operations in Timberlake, NC – U.S. Flue-Cured Tobacco Growers, Inc. (USFC). The overall size of their operations is 500,000 sq. ft. and includes green leaf tobacco processing, primary processing, and cigarette manufacturing capabilities. USFC can provide customer-specific blends and unique tobacco products for domestic sale and export using the world’s best flue-cured tobacco from our contracted growers, and blended with some of the best available oriental and burley tobaccos. Experienced plant personnel coordinate the shipment of export cut filler tobacco and cigarette shipments, as well as compliance with the domestic regulatory requirements associated with manufacturing and shipping of tobacco products within the borders of the U.S.

USTC is the only tobacco company with all aspects of manufacturing under a single roof – green leaf tobacco processing/stemmery, primary blending and cigarette manufacturing.

With an annual capability to manufacture 8 billion cigarettes, our cigarette making and packing area can produce king size and 100mm crushproof box products. Utilizing industry-leading making and packing equipment, equipped with laser perforation capability, inked code dating, and the latest technological advancements, high-quality finished cigarette products can be manufactured for the domestic and international markets.

Manufacturing

Youth Smoking Prevention

We firmly believe that smoking or any use of tobacco products by minors under the age of 18 is not acceptable. We believe in young people making healthy decisions and we advocate for policy makers, organizations servicing youth, and public health administrators in supporting such decisions.

By working closely with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), tobacco manufacturers and retailers are more effective in keeping tobacco products out of a child’s hands. The FDA has the regulation authority over nearly every aspect of how tobacco products are manufactured, marketed and sold. It is with this authority and resources that the FDA is able to continue its mission with emerging issues associated with underage use.