Tulare County wants urgency moratorium on hemp cultivation
-March 29,2019-
Making a presentation to the the Kings County Board of Supervisors this week, representatives for a start-up company City Farm Industry, Inc told the board they hope to plant and harvest some 50,000 acres of industrial hemp on Kings farmland by 2024 and set up a 300-acre processing campus that could potentially provide hundreds of jobs.
Kings County EDC president Lance Lippincott adds that the company already has a contract to plant 1600 acres near 14 & 1/2 and Laurel this spring.
”They say they figure 20 jobs for every 2000 acres.”
“There is a lot of good energy behind the project.” says the EDC official.
Chief Operating Officer for the company Mark Askey says they chose King County because of the connections they have built up with the farm community here including the Farm Bureau.
”We know we need to help educate people about hemp. It’s not marijuana.”
Despite the promised of jobs – reaction was mixed among the Supervisors. Supervisor Craig Pedersen, himself a farmer, says he has no problem with project but suggested “planting the crop while the state is still finalizing regulations is risky.”
Because of the association between hemp and cannabis, reaction in the community is an issue. The county leadership does not support planting cannabis in the county.But the City of Hanford does allow it and in fact is loosening regulations on recreational cannabis planting.
As far as moving forward with hemp plantings in the county Pedersen believes the hemp farmers “have a way to go before they rock and roll.” He is supportive of the idea of providing other crop alternatives for local farmers.
Hemp is said to be drought tolerant and uses about 1/3 the water needed for corn. Hemp can be harvested 2 times per growing season.
Mark Askey says “we definitely will plant two crops in 2019 in Kings County” acknowledging that while all the regs are not done as a result of the new Farm Bill, under the 2014 Farm Bill limited cultivation of hemp for research is allowed.”Our first crop will be harvested in July.”
”We have MOUs with several educational institutions”he says.
The processing plant will process the oil from the flowers of the plant and test it for quality.The oil will be sold once it is tested.Where the processing/lab facilities will be has not been settled but it will be in Kings County, he says.
Tulare Says No
Next door in Tulare County, the Board of Supervisors is moving toward an urgency ordinance to declare a temporary moratorium on cultivation of hemp. CDFA has yet to publish regulations after which growers are to register with the county ag commissioner.
At issue is the need to develop a protocol to test a crop to insure it is hemp and not cannabis, since it looks the same.
Tulare County says it wants to study the impact the new crop might have before it goes in the ground making it unlikely growers will be able to plant this spring in this county.
Hemp farming advocate Tom Pires the process “taking so long” between all the government agencies and “ it is frustrating farmers.”
Hemp is basically the same plant as cannabis but without the ingredient that gets you high – THC. Hemp is a separate legal agricultural product from cannabis. Now the federal government and state have loosened their grip on prohibition.
Now allowed through the 2018 Farm Bill, hemp is no longer a controlled substance and is allowed to be cultivated by registered growers throughout the state
Many think of hemp to make rope but the crop is said to be the “most versatile plant on earth” – used for food, medicine, biofuel, compostable plastics, building materials and more.
CDB Craze
One increasingly popular product made from hemp is CDB, an extract used to make creams, lotions ,oils and food products , all part of the wellness craze nationally. The substance is said to have a calming effect if ingested minus the high you get from cannabis.Some claim it relives pain. CDB can be made from of cannabis as well.
CDB sales are increasing yearly -perhaps $600 million to $2 billion, according to the investment research firm Cowen. The CBD market could represent a $16 billion opportunity by 2025, according to a report issued in February by Cowen analysts.CBD use is expected to grow 10 percent among adults, totaling around 25 million consumers by 2025, says the bank.
This week Walgreens made news announcing they will sell CBD creams, patches and sprays in nearly 1,500 stores in select states. The CVS chain has introduced CDB products this month in a number of states as well.
Besides CDB, hemp has a growing fan base as a building material with environmental and insulation benefits championed by some builders. And there are scores of other products -from auto parts, carpeting to energy bars.
Kings County’s Pedersen adds one more hurdle for hemp. The stuff throws out a stink when it is harvested. But Kings County will have a tough time crying foul over ag odors when it is home to 180,000 dairy cows.
With US demand up, farmers here sense an opportunity.Last year it’s estimated that the US imported almost a half billion dollars worth of hemp products. Most of that comes from China and Canada.