Hemp imports were cited as a main driver for Congress voting in 2014 to authorize limited experimentation with the crop after decades of head-scratching policies allowing hemp to be bought and sold in the United States — as long as it was grown somewhere else. But hemp exports have grown dramatically ever since. Hemp imports
2014 farm bill
The Senate Agriculture Committee talks to an experienced hemp regulator Tuesday when it considers the confirmation of Tom Vilsack for Secretary of Agriculture. Vilsack, an Iowan, is President Joe Biden’s nominee and served in the same role for all eight years of the Obama administration. He oversaw the USDA during passage and implementation of the
(This is the first in a series of stories from Hemp Industry Daily examining the developing hemp markets on tribal lands in the United States. For more detail about tribes growing hemp, check out Hemp Industry Daily’s Hemp & CBD Factbook, available for purchase here.) It’s been more than two years since nationwide hemp legalization offered
President-Elect Joe Biden will nominate a familiar hemp overseer, Tom Vilsack, for U.S. Secretary of Agriculture. Vilsack served in the same role for all eight years of the Obama administration and oversaw the USDA during passage and implementation of the 2014 Farm Bill, which allowed states to experiment with hemp production. Vilsack, an Iowan, was
(Editor’s note: This story is part of a recurring series of commentaries from professionals connected to the hemp industry. Shawn Hauser is an attorney who leads the Hemp and Cannabinoids Department at Vicente Sederberg law firm in Denver.) The legalization of hemp in 2018 was a historic step forward after decades of full prohibition of
U.S. farmers are planting less hemp than they did last year due to regulatory uncertainty, a surplus of hemp flower and biomass held over from 2019 and continuously falling wholesale prices. As of Thursday, licensed total hemp acreage to date has reached 465,787 acres for the 2020 production season, with 47 state departments of agriculture
A U.S. territory and four American Indian tribes have received approval from the U.S. Department of Agriculture for their 2020 hemp production plans, just as hemp planting season is about to officially begin across most of the country. The U.S. Virgin Islands is the first U.S. territory to receive USDA approval for hemp production under
Federal agriculture officials have released new loan guidance for direct and guaranteed loans for hemp producers and to ensure the new commodity is recognized as legal through the U.S. Department of Agriculture?s Farm Service Agency. ?While it?s understood that this new commodity will likely produce some servicing challenges because of state and federal regulations, it
More states have declared that they?re going to stick with their own rules for the 2020 hemp production season, rather than follow federal guidelines on the new crop. To date, 20 states have said they will follow the 2014 pilot rules this growing season, outnumbering the 12 that have so far received U.S. Department of
Hemp farmers are about to get some help protecting their crop from natural disasters, but any hope that the proposed federal production rules will change in time for the 2020 growing season should be put aside for now, officials say. Top officials from the U.S. Department of Agriculture have revealed new details for two hemp
Two more states have opted to operate their 2020 hemp production seasons under the 2014 pilot program, bringing to nine the total markets that will keep the existing rules in play for another year. Maryland and Vermont will extend the pilot program under the rules of the 2014 Farm Bill, according to the U.S. Department
Six state agriculture departments have opted to run their 2020 hemp production programs under the existing rules, and the number could grow as the spring planting season approaches and federal agriculture officials reject more state plans. Now those states want some assurances that their hemp farmers can harvest their plants under those same rules in
Federal hemp licenses promised last fall have yet to appear, a delay that federal agriculture officials are blaming on extended discussions with the White House. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) initially said that farmers in areas that have legalized hemp production but opted out of regulating it could apply for federal licenses by Nov. 30.
In agriculture, it?s rare that a new commodity presents such new opportunities for farmers and businesses in the way hemp has. And the nascent industry has experienced its share of growing pains since the 2014 Farm Bill established a pilot research program for the crop in the United States and the 2018 Farm Bill made