8. Virginia tobacco planters were among the first vendors to brand their products
As the tobacco plantations in Virginia’s Tidewater region expanded, variations in the quality of the leaf they produced emerged. For some planters, their tobacco, cured and packed in hogsheads, was sent to huge warehouses which lined the waterfronts in Richmond, Alexandria, Georgetown, and Fredericksburg. Other large planters had direct access to ships using docks and wharves built on their plantation’s waterfront. Variations in the curing process, which affected the quality of the leaf, gave some planters reputations for high-quality product, while others ranked beneath them on the competitive totem pole. Some planters, including Augustus Washington, father of George, began the practice of marking their hogsheads with brands, burned into the staves of the barrel. It was one of the first instances of product branding in history.
In 1730 the Virginia House of Burgesses enacted the Tobacco Inspection Act. The act designated 40 locations where tobacco was inspected by government-employed agents. Tobacco which passed was then branded by the inspector. Tobacco which did not was destroyed. No other American produce of the land was subject to government inspection at the time. Wheat, rye, barley, corn, pork, lamb, and other items for human consumption went to market without government inspection for quality or safety. The inspection brand ensured purchasers received a product which met or exceeded the high-quality standards established by the Virginia legislature. Tobacco was thus one of the first products to be regulated by government intervention in America. Smaller planters looked for ways to evade inspection, and smuggling expanded along the Virginia coastline.