Manitou® premium cigarettes only use flue-cured tobacco that has been selected and blended to provide an exceptional taste and aroma. 100% of the tobacco comes from US farmers.
Strictly the finest tobacco available
Virtually all other American cigarette brands are made using a blend of flue-cured, burley and oriental tobaccos. To make Manitou a uniquely premium product, we use only the finest whole leaf flue-cured tobacco, hand-picked from the upper stalk position of the plant, which offers the best flavor experience.
Your Choice of 6 Styles
Manufactured in the USA. 100% satisfaction guaranteed.
The Manitou Story
Manitou is made from 100% U.S. grown whole-leaf flue-cured tobacco and water. Yes, the secret is that simple – yet not simple to achieve.
From the very beginning, we made sure that using top-quality tobacco along with our processing technology would be Manitou’s most distinguishing features and would set us apart from the rest of the premium cigarette brands. We are convinced that our U.S. grown flue-cured tobacco delivers a pleasurable smoking experience.
The flue-cured tobacco in Manitou has a rich aroma and taste that is an essential component to any premium cigarette. All the flue-cured tobacco used to make Manitou comes from members of U.S. Tobacco Cooperative (USTC), located in the southeastern United States. The highly valued uniqueness of the leaf comes from the climate, the soil, and how the crop is grown, harvested and cured. The U.S. flue-cured crop is the most sustainable and socially responsible tobacco crop in the world.
Flue-cured tobacco was originally strung onto tobacco sticks, which were hung from tier-poles in curing barns. Those barns had flues which ran from externally fed fire boxes, thus heat-curing the tobacco without exposing it to smoke, slowly raising the temperature over the course of the curing. The modern-day process is fueled by gas systems. These smoke-free curing barns let the temperature rise slowly, releasing the excess chlorophyll and moisture while still retaining the tobacco leaf’s natural tannins to create the slightly sweet, mild taste and smell of smoked tobacco. The process generally takes about a week. This method produces tobacco that is high in sugar and has medium to high levels of nicotine.
The U.S. Tobacco Cooperative farmers who grow the flue-cured tobacco used in Manitou are privately held family farming operations located in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. This region is acknowledged as the home of the world’s finest flue-cured tobacco.
Each farmer meets strict compliance with U.S. agricultural standards and labor laws. These growers are heavily invested in conservation and are required to adhere to stringent local, state and federal environmental laws. In addition, they are required to meet all federal labor and occupational safety laws. Growers adhere to stringent record-keeping for traceability and their tobacco is cured in barns that are regularly tested.
On-farm audits are used to validate compliance with the best practices of crop rotation, seed selection, curing techniques, farm hygiene, safe use of agrochemicals, soil and water conservation, environmental footprint and strict observance of labor laws. By implementing a 100% grower audit program with an independent third party, Manitou is proud to be working with farmers setting the standard for the U.S. tobacco industry.
The U.S. flue-cured crop that Manitou comes from is produced by the most qualified, best-trained growers on privately owned family farms that meet strict government standards. Deforestation is a non-issue on our farms, since production is done under sustainable conditions. With Manitou, we know that more and more smokers will choose their products and brands based on issues important to them, such as impact on the environment, reduction of the sourcing footprint, and consideration for the planet and its people.
To make Manitou a uniquely premium product, our state-of-the-art production facility in North Carolina uses only the finest whole leaf flue-cured tobacco, picked from the upper stalk position of the plant, which offers the best flavor experience.
A product of Premier Manufacturing
Premier Manufacturing is the consumer products division of the grower-owned 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.
All of our brands are manufactured with American grown tobacco – 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.
