An Oklahoma hemp company is suing a federal agricultural official for allegedly trying to coerce farmers away from participating in the state’s industrial hemp pilot program through false and unlawful statements. The lawsuit by Equitable Organic Ventures (EOV) claims that Scott Biggs, executive director of the Oklahoma division of... Read more
Several new bills that support cannabis policy reform have been introduced in recent weeks. Last month, NCIA saw two bills reintroduced from last year, The Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act and the Marijuana Data Collection Act, both of which received bipartisan support in the House of Representatives. In last... Read more
NCIA is pleased to announce that Andrew Kline has joined NCIA as Director of Public Policy. In this new role for NCIA, Andrew will lead our substantive public policy efforts, striving to prepare and protect the state-legal cannabis industry. He will also lead NCIA’s Policy Council, a group of... Read more
Canadian marijuana giant Aurora Cannabis is getting deeper into the hemp space, announcing Tuesday that it plans to acquire the rest of a hemp company it partially purchased last year. Aurora said it will buy the remaining outstanding shares of Hempco Food and Fiber, which makes hemp foods and nutritional... Read more
Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried believes state legislators are ready to embrace hemp. Florida’s farmers are hopeful that hemp will become legal in the state in time to plant this year. The idea also is gaining popularity among lawmakers, with hemp legislation making its way through the Florida state... Read more
Colorado-based PHM Brands, which specializes in agricultural-based ingredients and blended products, is venturing into industrial hemp, starting with a CBD factory in Indiana. PHM purchased a Prinova wheat germ plant in Michigan City, Indiana, but found that demand and sales for that product were short. The company opted to instead convert... Read more
The stability that the 2018 Farm Bill was supposed to bring to the hemp industry remains elusive, particularly on the banking front, where a risk-averse industry has been pulling its previously dipped toes out of the water. U.S. Bank’s payments processing subsidiary Elavon recently opted to pull out of... Read more
A global agricultural research firm called hemp farming a risky business based on inconsistent pricing and production data and an unstable market. RaboResearch Food & Agribusiness said that while the U.S. hemp industry is poised for growth, there are serious financial, regulatory and agronomic risks that farmers and investors must... Read more
Kansas is taking steps toward allowing more farmers to grow hemp for commercial use under a measure Gov. Laura Kelly signed into law Monday. The law takes effect later this month and replaces a state program for researching hemp with a program that allows commercial production. Lawmakers authorized the... Read more
Loveland, Colorado-based Mile High Labs – a manufacturer of CBD crude oil, distillate and isolate – is borrowing $65 million to buy “millions of pounds” of pelletized hemp for CBD extraction. The company closed on the debt facility with investment firm MGG Capital. The term loan comes less than six... Read more
