Kentucky Hemp Industry Opens
Statewide Hemp Portal Accepting Grower, Processing Licence Replies – LPC
The home of bluegrass may soon also be home to a new crop. The Kentucky hemp industry is on the verge of opening up. The Kentucky Department of Agriculture (KDA) opens its online application portal on November 16, 2020. However, KDA Agriculture Commissioner Dr. Ryan Quarles warns the Kentucky hemp industry isn’t for everyone.
“We believe there will be a long-term hemp market in Kentucky, but across America the hemp industry has been having a difficult year,” Commissioner Quarles said. “Acreage is down significantly across the nation in light of FDA regulatory burdens and overproduction concerns. There are some bright spots on the horizon, but we’ve always said we are building an industry from the ground up and that it is going to take time for the market to mature.”
Replies for growing licences are open until March 15, 2021. Those interested in processing licences can apply year-round.
There are differences between cannabis and hemp including most specifically hemp’s low THC levels. However, there are also many similarities. Ironically, although cannabis has been shown to be an exit drug instead of a gateway drug, hemp may be a gateway crop to cannabis. The US legalized hemp in 2018.
McConnell Champions Kentucky Hemp Industry
Recently re-elected Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell applauded KDA’s moves to open the Kentucky hemp industry.
“Agriculture Commissioner Ryan Quarles deserves our gratitude for his tireless leadership on behalf of Kentucky hemp growers,” McConnell said. “As we keep working with the USDA to overcome the remaining hurdles, Kentucky will continue to benefit from the stability of the hemp pilot program I established in the 2014 farm bill.”
The project will continue under the guise of “research” for at least the next year.
“With everything going on in the hemp industry nationally and the uncertainty with the pandemic, we think it is prudent to take another year under the research status provisions of the 2014 Farm Bill as we transition our program to whatever final rules are issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture,” Quarles said.
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