Hemp

In December 2018, the Trump administration legalized hemp at the federal level. Hemp is a type of cannabis that contains a lower amount of psychoactive THC and more CBD. Currently, hemp with less than 0.3% THC can be grown legally. CBD helps treat various medical conditions. In June 2019, Arcview Market Research and BDS Analytics estimated that the CBD market in the US would reach $20 billion by 2024.

The decision to back away from pursuing criminal charges against people with small amounts of pot comes after state lawmakers legalized hemp last year in a way that threw marijuana prosecution into chaos.

The Austin City Council approved a resolution Thursday that will largely end arrests and fines for low-level marijuana possession.

U.S. farmers think the USDA hemp regulations are too stringent.

The goverment should triple the level of THC permitted in industrial hemp, and give farmers three times as long to harvest a field after it is tested, said national convention delegates in voting on American Farm Bureau Federation policy on Tuesday.

Both provisions are sore points with growers, who say USDA regulations, setting a 0.3 THC limit and allowing 15 days to harvest after samples are collected for testing, are so stringent that many farmers will fail them.

BUHL — Magic Valley farmer Tim Cornie took a trip to Alberta, Canada, in September. He drove more than 3,000 miles in four days with one specific goal: To learn about hemp from Canadian farmers and researchers.

And he learned a lot.

“I came back thinking (hemp) was a very viable thing for Idaho,” Cornie said.

CBD is the hemp flavor of the hour, getting the most attention because it’s where many farmers have made money on hemp today. But Marshall Custer, an attorney specializing in cannabis at Husch Blackwell Law Firm, says he sees the marketplace poised for change. Custer addressed the Agricultural Business Council of Kansas City on Thursday, Jan. 16, about the expanding hemp marketplace. 

Because so many growers joined in, businesses and farmers are now seeing demand for that hemp shrinking.

An initial rush to plant caused a boom in the Tennessee hemp industry, but because so many growers joined in, businesses and local farmers are now seeing demand for that product shrinking. 

Hemp processor and retailer Bluhen Botanicals announced Wednesday it will be facing layoffs and cutbacks due to challenges across the industry. It opened a store in downtown Knoxville last year.

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Hemp growers and entrepreneurs who were joyous a year ago after U.S. lawmakers reclassified the plant as a legal agricultural crop now are worried their businesses could be crippled if federal policymakers move ahead with draft regulations.

Licenses for hemp cultivation topped a half-million acres (200,000 hectares) last year, more than 450% above 2018 levels, so there's intense interest in the rules the U.S. government is creating. Critical comments on the draft have poured in from hemp farmers, processors, retailers and state governments.

Technology powered by artificial intelligence (AI) has quickly evolved in traditional indoor agricultural production in recent years, as companies use the vast amounts of data produced in their operations to make better production and management decisions.

Now, indoor hemp growers are jumping on the AI bandwagon.

The technology helps companies:

Michigan hemp growers are among those in 21 states in 2020 who will be eligible for a new crop insurance option through USDA’s Risk Management Agency (RMA) in selected counties.

The pilot insurance program will provide Actual Production History (APH) coverage under 508(h) Multi- Peril Crop Insurance (MPCI) for eligible producers.

Bryan Kurz fields several phone calls each day from farmers across Missouri interested in the state’s newest cash crop: hemp.

A relative of marijuana, hemp was illegal for decades under tough-on-drugs laws. This year is the first Missourians can grow the crop commercially. Kurz, a sixth-generation farmer, grew small amounts for research last year under a state pilot program, and has become something of a mentor for farmers interested in the new field.