USDA Approves First State Hemp Plans Following Crop’s Federal Legalization

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced on Friday that it has approved hemp regulatory plans for three states and three Indian tribes—with many more approvals likely on the horizon. After hemp and its derivatives were federally legalized under the 2018 Farm Bill, USDA got to work developing rules for growing and processing the crop, and in October it released interim guidelines that any state or tribe must comply with. Louisiana, New Jersey and Ohio—as well as the Flandreau Santee Sioux, Santa Rosa Cahuilla and La Jolla Band of Luiseno Indian Tribes—are the first to have their plans accepted by the federal government. This first set of approvals comes in the midst of a public comment period, which has allowed stakeholders to offer feedback on the proposed rules. The high volume of responses prompted USDA to recently extend the comment window from the end of December to January 29, 2020. “To produce hemp, growers must be licensed or authorized under a state, tribe, or USDA production program. The program a grower is licensed under depends on the location of the hemp growing facility,” the department said in a notice. “If a state or tribe has an approved plan or is…

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Source : MJ moment
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