Longtime hemp critic launches national attack, saying plant won’t help farmers
A South Dakota politician who opposes hemp cultivation is taking her argument national just as federal agriculture authorities are expected to release national production rules. Republican Gov. Kristi Noem wrote in a column published in The Wall Street Journal that many states have legalized hemp to as a savior... Read more
California wheat biotech firm expands hemp investment with $10 million raise
An agriculture biotech company that markets high-fiber wheat said it is expanding its hemp subsidiary with a $10 million stock offering. Arcadia Biosciences of Davis, California, plans to use the money to research hemp genetics in Imperial County, California, according to a news release. The company’s hemp subsidiary, Arcadia Specialty... Read more
Canada’s hemp industry shrank last year amid slow-moving CBD regulations, USDA says
Canada has a 20-year head start on the United States in growing and processing hemp. But Canada’s acreage shrank in 2018 as the nation lagged behind its southern neighbor in developing a market for hemp extracts such as CBD, according to a new report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture... Read more
Why hemp businesses are (mostly) shaking off transportation setback
National shipments of hemp and its byproducts will march on, even if some businesses take extra care in the wake of a surprising court ruling delaying the return of roughly 7,000 pounds of hemp in police custody in Idaho, industry members and attorneys say. The 9th Circuit Court of... Read more
Hemp acreage jumps 500% in 2019, a sign of legalization’s impact
American farmers are signing up to grow hemp in eye-popping numbers in this first growing season after the plant was federally legalized, with licensed acres up more than 554% from last year, according to advocacy group Vote Hemp. The Washington, DC-based lobbying advocacy group released its annual U.S. Hemp... Read more
Aurora Cannabis divests itself of Green Organic Dutchman, hemp subsidiary
Canadian marijuana giant Aurora Cannabis has sold its remaining stake in a Toronto company that has a hemp subsidiary in Poland. Aurora sold its shares in The Green Organic Dutchman (TGOD) for 86.5 million Canadian dollars ($64.9 million). Though the move means Aurora has divested itself of a TGOD... Read more
Hemp in California: Proposed CBD legislation put on hold until 2020
(Editor’s note: This is part of an occasional series on California’s hemp industry. To read the previous installment, click here.) (This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Cecilia Aguiar-Curry’s name.) California’s long-awaited legislation to legalize hemp-derived CBD in foods, beverages and cosmetics has been put on hold, rendering it... Read more
Federal appeals court rules against Colorado hemp firm seeking return of its plants
A federal appeals court ruled against a Colorado hemp company trying to force Idaho authorities to release hemp seized in a January traffic stop. Big Sky Scientific of Aurora, Colorado, asked the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals to overrule an Idaho court that wouldn’t return roughly 7,000 pounds of hemp biomass... Read more
Editor’s Notebook: Will smokable hemp end up burning the industry?
Kristen Nichols is the editor of Hemp Industry Daily. (This is an abridged version of a column that appears in the August issue of Marijuana Business Magazine.) Smokable hemp has taken hold with consumers. The unlikely trend has given hemp producers new market opportunities – and a new set of... Read more
USDA: Crop insurance available for some hemp growers for 2020 season
(This story has been updated with more details and reaction from hemp farmers.)  Federal crop insurance is finally coming to some hemp farmers as the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) takes more steps toward adopting new rules for hemp production. Industrial hemp farmers producing hemp for fiber, flower or... Read more
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