Maine voices concerns over new federal hemp rules
Regulations on hemp recently enacted in Washington, D.C., are creating concern in Augusta.
On Oct. 29, the U.S. Department of Agriculture released draft rules governing the production of hemp, which was legalized by Congress in 2018. The USDA is now accepting public comment on the proposed regs.
But the state’s Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry warns they may harm the growing hemp industry in Maine.
“The requirements proposed by the interim rule have the potential to be detrimental to Maine farmers who have invested in hemp production, as well as those who are planning to enter this emerging hemp industry,” said the department’s commissioner, Amanda Beal, in a news release Wednesday.
“We strongly encourage the USDA to ensure that the final rules are practical and don’t hamper the future growth of hemp production and its potential contribution to Maine’s economy.”
Maine legalized hemp in 2015, and commercial production began the next year with one grower. Today, 181 licensed hemp farmers are growing the crop on a total of 2,000 acres across all of Maine’s 16 counties.
The plant is a strain of cannabis and related to marijuana, but is used for a variety of purposes including as a food ingredient, a textile and even a building material.
Ann Gibbs, director of plant and animal health for the state’s Bureau of Agriculture, Food and Rural Resources, spelled out some concerns with the proposed rules.
The rules' limits on THC levels, sampling protocols and a requirement for hemp testing labs to be federally registered are all impractical, she said in the release. In addition, federal background checks, reporting requirements and procedures for disposing of non-compliant hemp will be burdensome for the state, according to Gibbs.
“As presented, these rules will be challenging to implement for states with existing hemp programs and could threaten the future growth of the industry overall,” Gibbs wrote in a letter to the USDA. “The years of hands-on and practical experience that Maine, along with numerous other states, has had operating its hemp program should inform the USDA on how these rules should be amended.”
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments