Michigan Indian Tribe Getting Into Cigarette Business

BARAGA, Mich. (AP) - An Indian tribe in Michigan's Upper Peninsula says it has federal approval to get into the cigarette business.

The Keweenaw Bay Indian Community Tobacco Co. says it received a permit to process tobacco. Tribal Council vice president Jennifer Misegan tells The Daily Mining Gazette that it's an "economic development opportunity."

The tribe will be working with a subsidiary of Seneca Manufacturing, which makes cigarettes on Seneca Nation land in New York.

Misegan says equipment has been installed at an industrial park and work could start in eight weeks.

The Keweenaw Bay Indian Community is based in Baraga in the western Upper Peninsula.

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