Proposed federal hemp rules would hurt Maine’s fledgling industry, state officials say

State agriculture officials are saying new federal rules regulating hemp production nationally would hurt Maine’s rapidly growing hemp industry.

The rules proposed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture are open for public comment, and Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry Commissioner Amanda Beal detailed the state’s concerns about them in comments released Wednesday.

Hemp, a strain of marijuana that does not contain high levels of the psychoactive chemical THC, is generally grown for its fiber or for the extraction of cannabidiol, or CBD, a key component in marijuana-based medicines and treatments.

The proposed federal rules would require lab testing of hemp to certify THC levels, but require that the labs be registered with the federal Drug Enforcement Agency. The rules also set a limit on THC in hemp at .3 percent, and require state sampling of all hemp farms, federal registration and federal background checks for those involved in the industry.

Maine has only one private lab available for hemp testing, and it is not registered with the DEA. [Read more at Portland Press Herald]