Lancaster Farming Industrial Hemp Podcast

Lancaster Farming newspaper editors talk to farmers and experts about industrial hemp.

Hemp Goes to GreenBuild 11/15/2024

Montana 2024, Part One: The Goodness of Hemp 11/09/2024

Montana 2024, Part One: The Goodness of Hemp This is part one of our coverage of the 2024 Montana Hemp Summit, also known as the "Goodness of Hemp" Summit, that took place in Great Falls, Montana, Oct. 15-17. First, please take action now. Help support the campaign. The episode opens with a conversation with Ken Elliott, co-founder of IND HEMP in Montana. Host Eric Hurlock and Ken talk about the recent summit, the introduction of HEMI, and why people in the hemp industry should stop what they’re doing right now and go help throw in on the "One Plant" documentary film . Then you'll hear a series of interviews that Eric conducted with attendees at the summit. By order of appearance: Eduardo Garcia and Dream Farm, Eduardo shares his enthusiasm for hemp as a superfood and sustainable material. His work focuses on educating people about the connection between food, health and environmental sustainability. Cheryl Mitchell A food scientist with in the Grains, Nuts and Seeds Ingredient Manufacturing division, Cheryl specializes in plant-based beverages. She talks about her process for creating nutrient-rich, highly digestible hemp milk and the health potential of hemp as a food source. Erica Campbell Co-founder and partner at , a food systems strategic consulting firm, Erica discusses her work in advancing regenerative agriculture. She highlights her involvement in the films "Kiss the Ground" and "Common Ground" and introduces the campaign to promote sustainable farming practices. Anjli Kumar Founder of , a sustainable textile startup in Atlanta, Georgia, Anjli explains her efforts to establish a U.S.-based farm-to-fabric hemp textile supply chain. She aims to make hemp apparel mainstream by managing each step from decortication to finished fabric. Guy Carpenter Hemp textile expert and founder of , Guy shares his work on creating the Benton shirt, a hemp-cotton blend garment produced entirely in the U.S. He emphasizes the importance of re-establishing American hemp textile production for sustainable clothing options. Steve Groff Regenerative and Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, hemp farmer, Steve reflects on the Montana Hemp Summit's networking value. He shares insights from his partnership with Larry Serbin on green decortication research and discusses hemp’s potential in reclaiming saline soils for agriculture. Larry Serbin An collaborating with Steve Groff on green decortication research, Larry appreciates the summit’s role in building connections. His work focuses on advancing hemp processing technology to support a sustainable future for the industry. Jordan Berger and Maxwell Duryea Filmmakers from Sunflower Films, Jordan and Maxwell discuss their documentary "" which highlights hemp’s many applications. They share their excitement about launching a Kickstarter campaign at the summit to fund the film’s completion and bring awareness of hemp to a broader audience. Bob Quinn Organic farmer and founder of , Bob talks about his research with IND HEMP on using hemp to mitigate saline soil in Montana. Known for his work with ancient grains like Kamut, he sees hemp as a key player in regenerative farming. Contact: Questions or comments? Reach out to Eric at Credits: This episode of the Lancaster Farming Industrial Hemp Podcast is produced by Eric Hurlock. Music by Thank you to our Sponsors: /episode/index/show/lancasterfarming/id/33861807

National Hemp Associaton Recieves $19.6 Million USDA Climate Smart Grant 10/25/2024

Exploring Hemp Opportunities in Japan 10/09/2024

Pennsylvania Ag Secretary Seeks Knowledge in Montana 10/02/2024

Pennsylvania Ag Secretary Seeks Knowledge in Montana Secretary Russell Redding made an official Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture trip to Montana this week to meet with founders of IND HEMP, one of the largest hemp fiber and seed processors in the U.S. On this week’s podcast, Lancaster Farming catches up with Redding as he visits the hemp facility in Fort Benton, Montana. The show features a joint interview with Redding and IND HEMP founder Ken Elliott from the IND HEMP office. Redding said he originally planned to attend the Montana Hemp Summit, hosted by IND HEMP, in Great Falls later this month, but had a commitment in Pennsylvania he could not cancel. Wanting to see the oil seed and fiber processing facilities with his own two eyes to better understand what is needed back home in Pennsylvania, he scheduled a last-minute trip to Big Sky Country. The fact-finding trip is part of a larger commitment from his department to develop a robust hemp industry in Pennsylvania, where, so far, the industry has struggled to find capital to build out the processing infrastructure. Redding spent the day with IND HEMP founders Morgan Tweet and Ken and Julie Elliott who answered his questions and gave him a tour of both the oil-seed facility and the fiber-processing facility, housed in separate facilities on IND HEMP’s campus in Fort Benton, a town along the Missouri River in north-central Montana with a population of around 1,400. IND HEMP has created just over 50 jobs since setting up the facility in 2019. Redding is returning home with a new perspective. “I think in Pennsylvania, having something that would look like what is happening here in Montana is exactly what everybody in the steering committee and the hemp engine is trying to do, but it’s not the final answer,” Redding said. “What I’ve learned today is that there’s a quest to just keep building out the marketplace,” he said. “And the economics of that marketplace then determine sort of what those income streams look like for both the company and the farms,” he said. Elliott is optimistic about the Keystone State’s potential in the burgeoning hemp industry, partially because of Pennsylvania’s reputation for hemp in colonial times. He was keynote speaker at the Pennsylvania Hemp Summit in Harrisburg November 2022 and has since gotten to know key players in Pennsylvania’s hemp industry. “We can help you guys take that next step,” he said. “We would love to be part of whatever the solution is for Pennsylvania’s the hemp industry.” Do Pennsylvania farmers even have an appetite for hemp, after the boom and bust of the CBD market along with recent controversies surrounding so-called hemp-derived intoxicants like Delta 8? Redding thinks Pennsylvania have an appetite for something big and boring that can be another revenue stream for producers. “The margins, whether you’re in Montana or Pennsylvania, are thin,” Redding said. “So to whatever extent we can add diversity to it — you can help de-risk the operation by adding an enterprise — that’s universal.” Thanks to our sponsors! /episode/index/show/lancasterfarming/id/33303652

National Hemp Association Goes to Africa 09/25/2024

Hemp Fiber & Grain Field Day at Cornell AgriTech 09/18/2024

Hemp Fiber & Grain Field Day at Cornell AgriTech On the latest episode of the Hemp Podcast, we take the show on the road once more — this time to Cornell University’s Hemp Fiber and Grain Field Day at the Agritech Campus in Geneva, New York. Among the many voices on this episode is Christine Smart, director of , who’s leading groundbreaking work on hemp diseases and crop resilience. Hailee Greene, a recent Cornell MBA grad and founder of , talks about her ambitious plans to establish the first full-scale hemp-processing facility in New York, despite the financial challenges that lie ahead. “We’re a couple million dollars away, which is probably the story of everybody that says they want to do processing at this point,” she said. I also spoke with Maciej Kowalski, a Polish hemp entrepreneur who just wrapped up a trip around the U.S. to learn more about hemp processing. He highlighted the disconnect he sees in the U.S. between farmers and textile manufacturers, stressing that fiber quality must start in the field. “The textile people don’t care about what’s happening in the field, and the cultivators don’t care about what happens afterward. That’s not the way to make a good product,” he said. Shelby Ellison, from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, is working to collect and preserve feral hemp genetics from across the U.S., preserving the genetic diversity of hemp, which can be used to breed more resilient and adaptive varieties. So far, she and her team have collected more than 1,500 individual plant samples across 14 different states in the U.S. Pennsylvania hempcrete builder Cameron McIntosh talks about the growing interest from federal agencies, including the Department of Energy, in addressing not only operational emissions but also the embodied carbon in construction materials. We also hear from Pennsylvania hemp farmer Steve Groff, who shares a remarkable story about seeing an albino deer on his drive to Geneva. Groff’s white deer might be a good omen for the industry, but it’s definitely a good omen for this episode of the podcast. Thanks to Our Sponsors! Music by /episode/index/show/lancasterfarming/id/33113942

Seed to Sovereignty: Voices from Lower Sioux 09/11/2024

Lancaster County Hemp Circuit, Part Two 09/04/2024

Lancaster County Hemp Circuit, Part Two This week's podcast is Part Two of our Lancaster County Hemp Circuit Coverage. Editor's note: Hey there, it's me Eric. I'm traveling this week to Minnesota for the Field Day at the Lower Sioux Indian Reservation, so in order to get the podcast out to you in a timely manner, I gave the transcript of the audio to my ChatGPT buddy and asked for a break down. And that's what the following is: AI-generated text. Thank you for your understanding! -e Here’s a breakdown of the Lancaster Farming Industrial Hemp Podcast episode titled Lancaster Hemp Circuit, Part Two: Who: Eric Hurlock: Host of the podcast and senior digital editor at Lancaster Farming Newspaper. Fred Strathmeyer: Deputy Secretary of Agriculture for Pennsylvania. Tarit Chatterjee: Director of Operations at Natural Textile Solutions and Bast Lab. Alyssa Collins: Plant pathologist from Penn State. Ron Kander: Professor from Jefferson University. Shawn House: Entrepreneur and founder of Hempzels, a hemp pretzel company. Other speakers: Local hemp experts, machinists like Joe from Joe's Machinery, and hemp advocates like Erica Stark and Cameron McIntosh. And Eric Beezer is running for office. What: The podcast features interviews from the *Lancaster County Hemp Circuit*, where participants discuss the latest developments in hemp production in Pennsylvania. Topics include advancements in industrial hemp, state support, fiber and grain hemp processing, and the potential growth of Pennsylvania as a leader in the hemp industry. Where: The event took place in various locations around Lancaster County, PA, including the Landis Valley Farm Museum and Steve Groff's farm. Participants also mention upcoming events in Minnesota, New York, and New Jersey, which include field days and workshops focused on industrial hemp. Why: The podcast aims to spotlight Pennsylvania’s growing role in the hemp industry. There is a significant push for infrastructure development, processing facilities, and innovative uses of hemp in textiles, construction, and feed. With local and state government support, the goal is to position Pennsylvania as a key player in the national and international hemp markets. This episode highlights the collaborative efforts and future potential for industrial hemp in Pennsylvania, emphasizing the importance of local partnerships, state government involvement, and educational efforts to promote sustainable growth in the hemp sector. Here’s a summary of the news nuggets, calendar items, and sponsors mentioned in the podcast episode: News Nuggets: Volkswagen is developing a biobased leather alternative made from industrial hemp, which could be used in their car interiors starting in 2028. Calendar Items: Lower Sioux Hemp Field Day (September 5, 2024): Eric Hurlock will be attending a field day at the Lower Sioux Indian Community in Morton, Minnesota. The event will feature attendees from around the country and celebrates the opening of the tribes processing facility. in Geneva, NY (September 11-13, 2024): USDA Germplasm Tour (September 11) Fiber and Grain Field Day (September 12) Cannabinoid Field Day (September 13) , NJ (September 20-22, 2024): Hosted by Right Coast Hemp, featuring a hempcrete building workshop. Sponsors: IND Hemp (Fort Benton, Montana): A family-owned, mission-driven industrial hemp feed, food, and fiber company. Forever Green, Distributors of the KP-4 Hemp Cutter, a revolutionary hemp harvesting machine designed for speed, efficiency and durability. Available at . : A Massachusetts-based organization focusing on supporting sustainable ventures. These segments provide a mix of industry updates, upcoming events, and product promotions relevant to the hemp community. The music in this podcast is courtesy of , a band or musical group whose work is featured throughout the show. The music serves as background during transitions between segments and interviews, contributing to the overall tone and feel of the podcast. It's likely used to create a relaxed, engaging atmosphere that complements the conversational and informative style of the podcast. /episode/index/show/lancasterfarming/id/32888897

Pennsylvania Hemp Shines Bright in the Spotlight 08/29/2024

Pennsylvania Hemp Shines Bright in the Spotlight This week on the Hemp Podcast we bring you Part One of our coverage of the Lancaster County Hemp Circuit, a two-day, four-farm hemp event that shone a bright light on hemp in Pennsylvania and attracted attendees from all over the U.S. and a few foreign countries. On Part One of our Hemp Circuit coverage on the podcast, we hear from a handful of out-of-state attendees. We’ll hear a few impressions of the county. “It’s beautiful farmland,” said Larry Smart, a plant breeder and head of the hemp program at Cornell University. “I’ll just say the roads here are twisty and turny. We’re used to straighter roads in the Finger Lakes, but the landscape is just spectacular.” We’ll hear how Pennsylvania fits into the national hemp industry landscape. Bert James, a North Carolina farmer and co-founder of hemp seed distributor KonopiUS, called Pennsylvania a “hemp playground, in the way that they have access to so many different varieties. There’s a good latitude. They’ve got good soil.” “So there’s a lot of potential here, but we’re going to obviously need to get some processing online to serve this opportunity,” he said. And we’ll hear why Pennsylvania might just be the perfect place for the intersection of business, innovation and opportunity. Larry Serbin, from Hemp Traders in California, is impressed with the farmers and Amish machine shops in Lancaster County. He said he is working with some folks in Pennsylvania to develop “green decorticating” techniques. “The hemp would be decorticated in the field, which would result in farmers earning a lot more money for the crop and the cost of the hemp raw materials, like the hurd and bast fiber, to be about half what they are now,” Serbin said. On this episode, we will hear from: Morris Beegle, ; Eric Singular, ; Larry Smart, ; Wendy Mosher, ; Larry Serbin, ; Laura Sullivan, ; Bert James, ; Rusty Peterson, ; David Suchoff, ; Keith Harvey, Upcoming Hemp Events: Sept. 11 Kifcure Hemp Harvest Open House Sept. 12 Cornell University Fiber & Grain Field Day Sept. 20-22 Right Coast Hemp Hempcrete Workshop Thanks to our Sponsors! /episode/index/show/lancasterfarming/id/32782207

Hemp-It: How a French Seed Propagator Meets the Demands of a Growing Industry 08/15/2024

Hemp-It: How a French Seed Propagator Meets the Demands of a Growing Industry In this week’s episode of the Industrial Hemp Podcast, Lancaster Farming talks with Jean-Eric Ponthou from Hemp-It and Robin Destiche from KonopiUS. Ponthou is the manager of sales and development at Hemp-It, a French company established in 1965 that produces certified industrial hemp seeds. “It’s the only company in France producing certified industrial seeds at international standards,” Ponthou said. Located about 180 miles southwest of Paris, the company has 30 employees at the headquarters and works with a co-op network of nearly 150 farmers to produce about 2,000 tons of hemp seed annually. “It’s a co-op company,” Ponthou said, “which means every farmer has one share in the company, so we’re all equal.” He said Hemp-It produces about 15 different varieties of industrial hemp, and each of these varieties targets some specific market segment: grain, hurd or fiber. According to a 2023 report by Textile Exchange, France is the largest producer of hemp fiber by volume in the world. Destiche is one of the founders of KonopiUS, a seed distribution and agronomy company in Virginia, and he has been working with Hemp-It for several years. Destiche explained how Europe operates from a database of approved varieties, varieties that have already been tested for morphology, stability and THC. “I think currently there’s over 100 hemp varieties that are registered,” he said. Hemp-It has also developed several varieties of hemp that contain no THC. “This way, we open the gate to the food industry, because we can guarantee to get them the lowest the rate of THC as possible,” Ponthou said. THC is the naturally occurring chemical compound in the hemp plant which at higher levels cause the psychoactive affects associated with marijuana. THC-free varieties of hemp grain might be a way forward for hemp grain producers who took issue with last week’s historic vote by the as an ingredient for feed for laying hens. Various international groups said the THC thresholds in the feed definition were too low and would be hard to reach. Maybe THC-free grain is the way to go. Learn More: Thanks to our Sponsors Music by /episode/index/show/lancasterfarming/id/32589752

Lower Sioux Host Field Day September 5, plus AAFCO Votes on Hemp Seed Meal 08/08/2024

Lower Sioux Host Field Day September 5, plus AAFCO Votes on Hemp Seed Meal Our guest this week is Danny Desjarlais, head builder for the Lower Sioux Indian Community in Morton Minnesota, where the tribe is undertaking one of the most ambitious hempcrete building projects in the country. Desjarlais said his community is has been experiencing a housing crisis. No so much homelessness, he said, but overcrowding—extended families all living together in small, poorly constructed houses on the reservation. But with hempcrete, he sees a path forward to provide respectable, comfortable, dignified housing for the people of the Lower Sioux in an efficient yet timely manner. In the past two years, Desjarlais and his crew have completed four hempcrete houses and a retro fit of an existing house. More hempcrete houses than most communities in the world, but still it’s not enough. “Our main need here in the community is housing. And so we really need to make a difference,” he said. “And even four houses, five houses a year isn't going to make a big enough impact for what we need.” A recent census of the community determined the need was closer to 200 houses, which would more than double the number of houses on the reservation. One of the issues with building in Minnesota is the weather. Desjarlais said winter starts late and ends early, so there is a limited window for on-site construction, which is why the tribe is planning to make prefab houses from hempcrete panels—4' by 8' sections of walls that can be built in a facility and then assembled on site. This is the plan the tribe is working towards. To that end, they have developed a processing facility that will be opening soon, so they can be self-sufficient. They’ll grow the hemp, process the hemp, and build houses for their people. The hemp houses and processing facility will be on display to the public on September 5, 2024, when the tribe is hosting their inaugural field day. Also, on this episode, we hear from Morgan Tweet and Andrew Bish from the Hemp Feed Coalition moments after AAFCO voted to approve hemp as a livestock feed for laying hens. Learn More: Thanks to our sponsors: Music courtesy of /episode/index/show/lancasterfarming/id/32503362

Lancaster County Hemp Circuit: Four Hemp Farms in One Event 07/31/2024

Lancaster County Hemp Circuit: Four Hemp Farms in One Event On this week’s Industrial Hemp Podcast, we talk to the organizers of the : Sarah Mitchell, Steve Groff and Alyssa Collins. The circuit, an event centered on growing and processing industrial hemp in Pennsylvania, is scheduled Aug. 20-21. “It’s called the circuit because we actually have four different sites and they’re all in a radius of Lancaster City,” said Mitchell, hemp specialist at , which is hosting the first leg of the circuit at the King’s research farm in Christiana on Tuesday, Aug. 20, at 9 a.m. “We have 28 varieties to show off from several different continents, all by breeders who are intending to either offer certified seed varieties or are breeding for certified seed varieties,” she said. From the farm in Christiana, the event moves to the for an afternoon educational session, including a welcome address from Pennsylvania Secretary of Agriculture Russell Redding and a history lesson from Pennsylvania hemp historian Les Stark. “We also have six hemp entrepreneurs from Pennsylvania,” Mitchell said, “and these are businesses that are actually generating revenue from hemp. And so these are people who are not just talking about making it happen, but they’re actually making it happen.” After the Landis Valley Museum and a dinner break, the circuit continues at in Manheim, where Collins, its director, has been overseeing Penn State’s hemp research since 2018. The evening portion of the event starts with introductions in the barn. Attendees will then head out to the field to see the variety trials and ask questions, before returning to the barn for more discussion. “This is a great opportunity to meet some of the next generation of hemp scientists, because we’re going to have some of the students there to share their work that they’ve been working on the last couple of years on, specifically hemp disease and hemp processing and insect ecology in hemp,” Collins said. For those traveling from outside the county, Mitchell said a block of rooms is available at the DoubleTree Resort by Hilton Hotel in Lancaster. The second day of the event takes place from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., entirely at Steve Groff’s in Holtwood, Lancaster County, where Groff has over 50 acres of fiber hemp in the ground. The day will be full day of expert speakers, educational opportunities and equipment demonstrations from chopping and baling to no-till planting into cover crops. There will also be a soil pit, so attendees can see the difference regenerative hemp farming has on the soil. Groff said he is excited to unveil his four bar hemp cutter, essentially four sickle mowing bars that allow for easier harvesting of tall fiber hemp. “And we’ll be able to cut 12 feet hemp into four sections, and make it manageable then to windrow and dry it out,” he said. Lunch will be served both days, but attendees are on their own for dinner. Space is limited, so please . Learn More Questions about the event? Contact: , Hemp Specialist 717-327-6188 Thanks to Our Sponsors Music courtesy of /episode/index/show/lancasterfarming/id/32368572

Special Message 07/26/2024

How Will the AAFCO Vote on Hemp Grain Affect the Industry? 07/25/2024

How Will the AAFCO Vote on Hemp Grain Affect the Industry? Members of the are scheduled to vote early next month on hemp seed meal as an ingredient for laying hens. Pretty standard stuff, according to the group’s executive director, Austin Therrell. “It’s one of the big things that our association does to promote harmonization and uniformity when it comes to defining ingredients and ingredient standards that all the state regulators across the U.S. recognize,” he said. Therrell is one of the guests on this week’s hemp podcast who weighs in on the planned vote, which has the potential to crack open the market for hemp seed meal, albeit a very small crack. Oilseed crops in general need a secondary market for the byproduct — the cake or meal — of crushing seeds for oil. Hemp seed has been used as an animal feed for thousands of years, but because it was prohibited in the U.S. when the feed control systems were put in place, it has remained illegal to feed to commercial livestock. The association’s vote in August has the potential to change all that by allowing commercial flocks of laying hens to be fed hemp seed meal. For Nebraska farmer and equipment manufacturer Andrew Bish, laying hens are a good start, but just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to opportunity. One of the reasons Bish got involved in hemp was to help create a new rotational crop opportunity for farmers. “Egg-laying chickens is 670,000 needed acres of hemp just to satisfy 5% of the egg laying chicken population,” he said. But that’s not enough to be a rotational crop. “Start to add in beef cattle and broiler chickens,” he said, “and now we’re talking about needing over 7 million acres.” “That is a true rotational crop opportunity. That’s a big deal. That’s a big deal for corn farmers. That’s a big deal for soybean farmers. That’s a big deal for wheat farmers.” Bish is the president of the , the group that is spearheading the initiative to get hemp meal approved for layers. But not everyone is happy with the proposed ingredient definition. What’s the issue? You guessed it: Cannabinoids. The proposed ingredient definition caps allowable THC at 2 parts per million and 20 parts per million for CBD. The feed control association received letters from hemp advocacy groups around the world to express their concerns, including groups from Canada, Australia, Europe and the United States. Lancaster Farming requested to see the letters and AAFCO obliged. Some letters were in support of the new definition, but others telegraphed fear that these cannabinoid limits will set a worldwide precedent and disrupt current and future markets because producers will have trouble consistently meeting the new definition. Those against the new definition would like to see the THC limit raised to 10 parts per million and the CBD limit removed altogether. Those in favor of the definition recognize the years of work it took to get hemp seed meal this close to any kind of approval, which will pave the way for approval for other livestock categories. They also say that there is a standard amendment procedure to change an ingredient definition after it’s been approved. Those against are asking AAFCO to change the definition before the vote, but that’s not how the process works. If the association votes no on hemp seed meal next month, there is no way to appeal the decision. The expensive and extensive process would have to start all over again, Therrell said. “So if (AAFCO) membership completely voted it down,” he said, “a submitter would need to start back from the beginning to hopefully resolve any issues or concerns that our membership had,” he said. “I don’t know if it gives you any kind of level of confidence, but in my time with AAFCO, I haven’t seen that happen completely. Not to say that it can’t, but I think it’s got a pretty good shot at moving forward,” Therrell said. Kentucky hemp pioneer Joe Hickey, one of the signers of the letter from a group in opposition to the new definition, is also a guest on this week’s show. Hickey said the infighting among the factions of the hemp industry is beside the point. For Hickey, the real problem is the Food and Drug Administration. “You got the FDA that allows cigarettes to be put out and you get a half a million people who’re dying from it,” he said. “And they allow that to happen, but something that doesn’t hurt anybody, that actually helps people, they’re trying to stop.” Learn more: Read the letter sent to AAFCO from hemp industry groups: (once you click the link, download the full PDF) Thanks to our Sponsors Music courtesy of /episode/index/show/lancasterfarming/id/32278362

Making Progress With Hemp at Horse Progress Days 07/10/2024

Making Progress With Hemp at Horse Progress Days This week on the hemp podcast we saddle up and gallop out to Gordonville, Lancaster County, for Horse Progress Days, a two-day celebration of all things horsepower. Nearly 40,000 people were in attendance July 5-6, mostly Amish and Mennonite farmers and families. The weather was hot, the air was thick with humidity and the sounds of horses whinnying. What does Horse Progress have to with industrial hemp? Good question. Bear with me. In one of the vendor tents there was a cluster of businesses that specialize in working with hemp. Cameron Macintosh, hempcrete builder at Americhanvre, was there representing his company as well as the Pennsylvania Industrial Hemp Council. He said the horse power farming communities know about hemp, but because of the volatile CBD market, hemp does not have the best reputation among the horsepower set. “Many farmers in this community invested heavily in growing CBD back in 2018 and ’19,” he said, “and then suffered through the subsequent crash of that market in 2020 and 2021.” So when you mention hemp in this community, that’s what they think of. “That’s why we’re here,” he said, “to show the community that the fiber industrial side of the (hemp) plant has dramatically more promise, more opportunity for their community than CBD ever did.” On this episode, we will talk to several of the hemp folks in attendance at the event, including Heidi Custer from Tuscarora Mills in Bedford, Pennsylvania, and Kelly and Jarrett Burke from KifCure, a hemp company based in Northern Illinois that’s developing regional infrastructure in the Great Plains. I also had the chance to chat briefly with Reuben Riehl from Lancaster County Marketing, who was involved in planning the event. Everyone I spoke to about hemp mentioned Reuben as the reason they were at Horse Progress in the first place. “It fits very well with our community,” Riehl said, mentioning the farming and building aspects, but he doesn’t expect it to be an overnight change. “I think it it’ll take some time for it to resonate here, but it will be okay,” Riehl said. Also on this episode, Lancaster Farming visits with Sam Connor at Free Flow Farm in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, just north of Pottstown, where he’s growing about 30 acres of industrial fiber hemp and raising grass-fed and finished beef and pastured chickens. “We have two different varieties that we planted here,” he said. “We have a Uma for variety, which is a Chinese variety, as well as Futura 83, which is a French variety.” Connor said he is growing for I-Hemp Katalyst, a company that is developing processing capacity in Pennsylvania. Connor is excited to be an early adopter of what he sees as an industry with vast potential and is proud that his crops will be used in innovative ways. “I believe some of it’s going to be used for biodegradable hemp plastics, some of it’s going to be used for hempcrete. And I think there’s even a possibility of something to do with ceiling tiles and things like that. Learn More: Horse Progress Days Americhanvre Cast-Hemp Kifcure Tuscarora Mills Lancaster County Marketing Thanks to Our Sponsors! IND HEMP National Hemp Association Music by TIN BIRD SHADOW /episode/index/show/lancasterfarming/id/32084067

Building a Hemp Hub in Northern Illinois with Kifcure 06/26/2024

American and International Hemp Producers Talk EIHA Experience in Prague 06/19/2024

American and International Hemp Producers Talk EIHA Experience in Prague On this week’s podcast, we continue our coverage of the European Industrial Hemp Association (EIHA) annual conference, this year held in Prague, Czech Republic, June 5 to 7. As Lancaster Farming’s friendly neighborhood hemp reporter, I was invited to be part of an American delegation to the conference, funded in part by a grant from the USDA Market Access Program to build overseas markets for hemp as a commodity crop. Last week, I shared a slew of interviews with Europeans in attendance at the conference. This week, I am sharing my interviews with American business leaders, entrepreneurs, policy wonks and processors — plus a handful of Canadians and one Australian who attended the event in Prague earlier this month. Zhaohui Wu is a professor of supply chain management at Oregon State University in Corvallis, where he is an affiliate faculty member of OSU’s Global Hemp Innovation Center. He said he was eager to learn from the Europeans, because he said they are further along in developing the industrial applications and supply chains. “For me, this is the first time to come to the EIHA conference and to learn from European folks on how things are done, the best practices, and also to find opportunity to collaborate,” Wu said. Tommy Copeland was part of the American delegation, representing Kentucky-based HempWood, a flooring manufacturer that uses hemp instead of hardwood. Copeland said many attendees were not familiar with HempWood, and he enjoyed watching people’s reaction to it. “You get to see the wow factor that they have,” he said. “Their mind is blown that you can do this from hemp.” Copeland described to attendees the HempWood process from whole stalk, pressed with soy-based adhesives with no VOC off-gassing. “It’s a clean building material, it’s eco-friendly to use, and I think that fits with the European mindset of building in a lot of ways,” he said. Tim McCarthy is a business owner from North Carolina where he runs United Natural Hemp Extracts, USA. “I am currently the chair of the policy committee for the NIHC, so I’m here on their behalf and the USDA trying to promote hemp from the United States to around the world,” he said. Roger Gussiaas is oilseed producer at Healthy Oil Seeds in Carrington, North Dakota, where he produces and processes hemp and flax grain for oil and protein. “We process 24 hours a day, seven days a week,” he said. “We’re expanding our business. In the next couple months, we (will) be doubling our production.” Currently exporting to over 25 countries, Gussiaas is always looking for opportunity. “This trip here,” he said, “it’s just there’s a lot of opportunity. There’s always a lot of opportunity in any new country you’re in.” He said the key to finding markets is simple for him: “Always produce good quality and you’ll have markets.” Keenan Stone, vice chair of the Canadian Hemp Trade Alliance and an owner of Uni Seeds in Ontario, was excited to attend the conference. She enjoyed connecting with people in person, a welcome change from online interactions. She said she was impressed with the research and innovation happening in Europe and, like Gussiaas, was open to opportunity. “There have definitely been some good business prospects,” she said. “There seems to be a lot of interest in trying out new varieties and things like that. Our business is seed supply, so definitely some good interest from Europe there.” Morris Beegle, founder of the annual NoCo Hemp Expo in Colorado, worked with EIHA to plan and execute the event in Prague. On the final day of the conference, Beegle told me he was happy with the overall energy, participation and programming. “It was really good last year, but I think definitely a step up this year, he said. “Great attendance. The conference has been packed the whole time. Networking has been really good. Lots of folks having great conversations. So I mean, overall I’m just very pleased with the way everything’s turned out.” 5:49 Robin Destiche, , Pure Shenandoah 21.14 Roger Gussiaas, 25:37 Morris Beegle, 29:58 Alicia Fall, 34.55 Zhaohui Wu, 39:24 Tommy Copeland, 42:01 Trey Riddle, ; Joe Hickey, ; Gregg Gnecco IND HEMP 44:01 Tim McCarthy, , 55:09 Hunter Buffington, , ASTM 58:10 Beau Whitney, 1:00:30 Peter Dushop, 1:05:35 Ted Haney, 1:14:25 Keenan Stone, CHTA, 1:16:14 Ghyslain Bouchard, Askiy, 1:18:19 Sherri Smith-Hoyer, 1:24:24 Cait Curley 1:25:27 Morris Beegle Thanks to Our Sponsors! IND Hemp Americhanvre Forever Green Music by Tin Bird Shadow /episode/index/show/lancasterfarming/id/31811832

Hemp in Europe: Voices from the EHIA Conference and Expo in Prague 06/12/2024

Hemp in Europe: Voices from the EHIA Conference and Expo in Prague On this week’s Hemp Podcast, I recap my recent visit to the Heart of Europe, the Golden City, the City of a Hundred Spires, the capital city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of the Kingdom of Bohemia — Prague. The occasion for my trip was the European Industrial Hemp Association’s 21st annual Conference, this year held in the Czech Republic. I was invited to be part of an American delegation representing the American hemp industry. The trip was funded through a grant from the USDA Market Access Program, or MAPS. The Market Access Program allows the Foreign Agricultural Service, the FAS, to partner with American trade associations, cooperatives, trade groups and small business “to share the costs of overseas marketing and promotional activities that help build commercial export markets for U.S. agricultural products and commodities,” according to the USDA website. The National Industrial Hemp Council was given official cooperator status by the USDA earlier this year, giving it access to MAP funding. At the conference, I witnessed my fellow Americans developing relationships and making business deals, and I saw the purpose of the USDA’s Market Access Program playing out in real time. During the conference, I interviewed over 30 hemp people from around the world. On this episode we’ll hear what people had to say about hemp in Europe, what the U.S. can learn from the Europeans, what the Europeans can learn from the U.S., and a whole lot more. Before the conference started June 5, Lorenza Romanese, managing director of the European Industrial Hemp Association, was hopeful for a successful event. “I hope that people will engage. I hope that people will go back home knowing more than what they knew when they arrived,” she said. “I hope that they are able to develop business opportunities.” Francesco Mirizzi is senior policy advisor at EIHA and focuses on the fiber and grain sectors. He said the fiber industry is well developed in Europe, thanks in large part to farmers and processors in France. “We kept production in Europe after the Second World War, and we have something like seven or eight big size decortication facilities that allowed us to build a market for fiber,” he said, “mostly dedicated to specific paper application composites, and especially in the automobile industry, and fibers for insulation material in construction and chives (hurd) for construction, like hempcrete.” An epicenter of hemp construction in Europe is war-torn Ukraine, less than 800 miles to the east of Prague. Sergiy Kovalenkov is a Ukranian hemp builder who has been teaching refugees displaced by Russia’s war on Ukraine how to rebuild with hemp. “We train the refugees, the people that lost their houses. And they started to build their own homes during the war using local biomass,” he said. “So when you tell me you have problems, trust me, let’s go to Ukraine. I’ll show you what problems are,” he said. Hana Gabrielová, a recent podcast guest, is from Czech Republic and was instrumental in bringing the conference to her home country. She has worked with hemp for over 20 years and is involved in many ares of hemp in Europe, including as a board member of EIHA as well as a member of the CzecHemp Cluster, an advisory board to help guide and grow the Czech hemp industry domestically and abroad. Gabrielová was very kind to me, pointing me in the right direction on Czech food, restaurants, pilsner, and what I should see while visiting this ancient city. She recommended the svíčková (pronounced sveech-covah), which she described as the national dish consisting of a root vegetable cream sauce and high quality beef sirloin, served with dumplings. It was good. As for what to see in Prague, she said I should see the astronomical clock in Old Town Square and the Charles Bridge over the River Vltava. “They are not far from each other,” she said. “Prague is not too big so you can walk it out and have a nice afternoon and see everything basically,” she said. I took her advice and wandered around the city each day after the conference ended. I cannot express to you how impressive the city was to me, with its ancient streets of cobblestone and castles and medieval fortresses. So much history in one place. But not all ancient history. I was inspired to learn more about the Velvet Revolution that took place in 1989. It started as student protests against the one party rule of the Czechoslovakian Communist Party. Within a week, the crowd grew to over 500,000 people in Wenceslas Square, shaking their house keys, telling the communists to step down and go home. It worked. By the end of the month, the party relinquished control over the people. I think we can all learn lessons from this story. We the people hold the power. IN this episode you will hear: 15:22 Hana Gabrielová 17:05 Lorenza Romanese EIHA Managing Director 21:18 Francesco Mirizzi Sr. Policy Advisor, EIHA 27:06 Laurie Blanchecotte Antoine Moussie 32:51 Sergiy Kovalenkov Ukrainian Hemp Builder 36:13 Jörg Morgner Axel Philipps 38:43 Otilia Frolu Romanian Hemp Cluster 42:45 Stephania Christodoulou Pavlos Kitsis 50:15 Daniel Kruse 53:26 Catherine Wilson 58:20 Christophe Nourissier 1:07:26 Maciej Kowalski 1:10:27 Daniel Matthews, Caroline Matthews, Tatham 1:12:47 Frederic Vallier Maren Krings Federation of International Hemp Organizations Learn More about USDA's Market Access program Learn More about the National Industrial Hemp Council News Nuggets Pa. Gov. Visits Lancaster County Hemp Farm to Announce Ag Innovation Grant 2024 NIHH Hemp Building WorkshopJune 20 – 21 • maple park, IL Register: Read Eric Hurlock's blog about his trip to Prague Lancaster Hemp Circuit, August 20-21Learn more and register: [email protected] Thanks to Our Sponsors! IND Hemp in Fort Benton, Montana Pennsylvania Hemp Industry Council Kings Agriseeds Forever Green Music by Tin Bird Shadow /episode/index/show/lancasterfarming/id/31721217

Will the Hemp Industry Survive the Miller Amendment? 05/29/2024

Will the Hemp Industry Survive the Miller Amendment? On this week’s hemp podcast we discuss a recent amendment to the House draft of the 2024 Farm Bill known as the Miller Amendment, which was introduced by Rep. Mary Miller, R-Ill. The amendment effectively bans all hemp products with any amount of tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, the naturally occurring chemical compound found in the cannabis plant. The 2018 Farm Bill defined hemp as any cannabis with less than 0.3% THC. But because of vague guidance from the Drug Enforcement Administration and Food and Drug Administration, a cottage market has developed for intoxicating products from otherwise legal hemp, such as delta-8. In March, 21 attorneys general from around the country signed a statement imploring Congress to close this perceived loophole, saying these unregulated, intoxicating products were packaged and marketed to children. In a statement on her website, Miller said delta-8 products were being sold in packaging that looks like candy. “We must stop teenagers and children from being exposed to addictive and harmful drugs,” Miller said. Miller is from a farming background and represents a rural district in southern Illinois. Many in the hemp industry think this amendment will have unintended consequences that could shut down the industry and destroy the livelihoods of people who are making legal and safe hemp products. On the show this week, Lancaster Farming talks to two lawyers serving the hemp industry to hear their perspectives. Justin Swanson, a cannabis lawyer from Bose McKinney & Evans in Indiana and the president of the Midwest Hemp Council, says the amendment is bad for the overall industry, citing harm to fiber and grain sectors and genetics. “In my opinion, it eliminates the genetic seed stock that farmers have built, over the last six years, under the broad definition of the ’18 Farm Bill,” he said. Courtney Moran of Agricultural Hemp Solutions is legislative counsel to the National Hemp Association. Moran believes this amendment will have less of an effect on the fiber and grain sector, but still finds the new language troubling for the overall industry. Moran doesn’t see it as an “industry-killing” amendment, as it’s been presented in online headlines. “I would not uses those words,” she said. “It is a major shift from the policies and language that we’ve seen in both the 2014 and 2018 Farm Bills,” and if it moves forward it will have major consequences. But she reminds listeners that this is only the House draft and there are many more procedural hoops the Farm Bill must go through before being signed into law. Both lawyers suggest that the amendment has Big Marijuana’s fingers all over it. The legally murky market for delta-8 and other hemp-derived intoxicants is cutting into the marijuana industry’s profits. Also on this episode, we check in with Morris Beegle, founder of the NoCo hemp Expo in Colorado, who tells us more about the June 5-7 European Industrial Hemp Conference and Expo in the Czech Republic. Learn More: Justin Swanson 317-684-5404 The Cannabis Practice Group at Bose McKinney & Evans Midwest Hemp Council Courtney Moran 202-656-7023 Blog: Socials: @AgHempSolutions LinkedIn: Web: Agricultural Hemp Solutions Morris Beegle We Are For Better Alternatives European Industrial Hemp Council Conference & Expo, Prague, June 5-7 News Nugs Rep. Miller Votes Yes on Farm Bill Farm Bill Amendment Would ‘Devastate’ Hemp-Derived Cannabinoid Industry, Close THCA Loophole for Seed and Flower Sales DEA Says ‘THCA Does Not Meet The Definition’ Of Legal Hemp As Congress Weighs Cannabinoid Recriminalization In Farm Bill Thanks to our Sponsors! IND HEMP Forever Green Mpactful Ventures /episode/index/show/lancasterfarming/id/31516612

Czech Your Hemp with Hana Gabrielová 05/22/2024

Czech Your Hemp with Hana Gabrielová On this week’s hemp podcast, Lancaster Farming talks to Czech hemp farmer, consultant and advocate Hana Gabrielová, who started her first hemp company, , in 2010 and has been instrumental in developing the hemp industry in the Czech Republic and Europe ever since. More recently, with several American partners she founded which distributes European hemp genetics in the U.S. and provides agronomy consulting services. Gabrielová said the regulatory process to grow hemp in the Czech Republic is relatively easy compared to the U.S., where growers need a permit, an FBI background check, and THC testing before harvest (For now. Fingers crossed for the 2024 Farm Bill and the Industrial Hemp Act). “Hemp farming is not really difficult in regards to the law,” she said. “The farmers can buy seeds, which are on EU-registered database.” While growers don’t have to get a permit, they are still required to inform the government. “You have to announce one month from sowing, how much did you sow? Where did you sow? Which variety did you sow?” she said. “And announce it to the customs office.” Gabrielová is a board member of the European Industrial Hemp Association, which is based in Brussels but is holding its annual conference in Gabrielová’s home city of Prague June 5-7. The conference will bring together hemp entrepreneurs and policymakers from around the continent and the world. This year’s event includes a trade show where hemp companies can display their products, similar to the NoCo Hemp Expo that took place last month in Colorado. There are plenty of European cannabis events, but Gabrielová said this one will be different because it will focus strictly on industrial hemp products instead of “vape pens and marijuana seeds.” Hemp was prohibited for 60 years in the Czech Republic and faces the same marijuana stigma that confuses people in the U.S. While industrial hemp and marijuana are different varieties of the cannabis plant, industrial hemp has a wide range of industrial applications, such as , textiles and bioplastics, and food ingredient applications for both human and animal consumption. The hemp industry is relatively small in the Czech Republic. Gabrielová said there are about 300 farmers growing hemp, mostly on small farms, but a handful of big farms too. Processing is a challenge because there is no decortication facility in the Czech Republic, “so we have to import all the hemp fibers,” Gabrielová said, “which is a lot, because we have a big paper mill here.” Also on this episode, Lancaster Farming talks with Patrick Atagi from the National Industrial Hemp Council, who has organized a delegation of American hemp companies, including HempWood, IND Hemp, Tuscarora Mills (and one hemp podcaster) to attend the next month. Funded by , the mission of the delegation, Atagi said, is to increase production and help U.S. farmers by finding markets for American hemp goods. “It’s to push product globally and establish a foothold in Europe and beyond,” he said. In two weeks, the Lancaster Farming Industrial Hemp Podcast will be reporting from the Czech Republic. Learn more: Hempoint KonopiUS European Industrial Hemp Association CzechHemp Cluster Cannabis Embassy Sustainable Cannabis Policy Handbook National Industrial Hemp Council News Nuggets! NIHC to receive 275K in RAPP Funding Thanks to our Sponsors! IND HEMP National Hemp Association Forever Green Music Courtesy of Special Thanks to the Beastie Boys /episode/index/show/lancasterfarming/id/31422382

Bear Fiber Weaves American Textiles with Hemp 05/15/2024

Bear Fiber Weaves American Textiles with Hemp On this week’s Hemp Podcast, we talk to Guy Carpenter, founder of Bear Fiber in North Carolina, where he is spinning a blend of hemp and cotton into yarn and making garments like hats, shirts, and socks. “The vision was to incorporate sustainability and longevity into people’s lifestyle,” he said. Bear Fiber developed proprietary methods to produce cottonized hemp fiber, and is making connections around the U.S. and the world to reestablish hemp as a primary “source of natural fibers for better products,” he said. When mixed with other fibers, such as cotton, hemp brings added strength and durability to textiles, he said. Carpenter has witness drastic changes to the American textile industry over his career. “The American textile apparel industry as it existed, doesn’t exist anymore,” he said. “Textiles have have been remaining rather strong, but apparel, of course, has gone to lowest cost producers and, primarily China.” American textile jobs are more craftsman-oriented and geared toward luxury goods, and hemp can make those products better, more durable, more sustainable, Carpenter said. While he sees hope for the industry with hemp, the industry is still contracting. He said companies in the supply chain are going out of business. “We’ve lost five spinning mills. We’re losing a dyeing and finishing operation in South Carolina that’s been a bulwark in the industry for decades,” he said. Spinning is the big issue, he said. But he is hopeful because he sees the work being down to save the industry “There are people who are working on solutions, not to build it back to the way it was, but to be able to spin better yarns and more technical yarns, and also more sustainable yarns, which are what the industry is calling for.” Bear Fiber Hempcrete events: Hempcrete Workshop in Pennsylvania, May 25 2024 NIHH Hemp Building Workshop 2-Day Intro to Hempcrete Thanks to our Sponsors! Mpactful Ventures IND HEMP Forever Green Pennsylvania Hemp Industry Council /episode/index/show/lancasterfarming/id/31312397

Industrial Hemp on the National Mall 05/08/2024

Industrial Hemp on the National Mall Apologies to Jimmy Stewart. I only went to Washington for one day. I took the train from Philadelphia May 6 to record a podcast episode at the Ag on the Mall event on the National Mall in D.C. The National Hemp Association and the Pennsylvania Hemp Industry Council invited me to spend time at their display. They had a tent set up with tables full of products made from hemp: cat litter, animal bedding, shirts, rope, bio-plastics socks, flooring and biofuels. They even had a regular old 5-gallon bucket made from hemp. Next to the tent was The FiberCut, a four-tiered, adjustable-height sickle-bar mower made by Hemp Harvest Works in Nebraska. I spent the day talking to the hemp folks at the booth and people passing by, including Erica Stark, executive director of the National Hemp Association. “We are showcasing everything hemp. We have the hemp house on wheels here. We have the BMW i3. And most exciting is we have the new Livewire by Harley-Davidson that has hemp fenders on it that were actually grown in the United States,” she said. This week’s episode is a collection of short interviews with a handful of people. Pablo Falla, a business owner with businesses in the U.S. and South and Central America, told me about the differences between growing hemp in the U.S. and elsewhere in the Western Hemisphere. “Down in South America it’s totally different,” he said. “We got a perfect 12/12 all year long. So we can do up to four harvests a year. Andrew Bish, president of the Hemp Feed Coalition, had just returned from a meeting with the undersecretary of rural development at the USDA. “A lot of the dialogue was how we can create opportunities for fiber and grain producers to be able to access some of these government programs, some of these funds that they’re not able to access right now because of the risk,” Bish said. National Hemp Association Pennsylvania Hemp Industry Council Hemp Feed Coalition Special thanks to Thanks to our Sponsors! IND HEMP Forever Green Americhanvrehttps://americhanvre.com/ SunRay Hemp /episode/index/show/lancasterfarming/id/31202382

Hempcrete Workshop Lays Foundation to Build Industry and Community 05/02/2024

Hempcrete Workshop Lays Foundation to Build Industry and Community This week’s podcast takes us to a hempcrete workshop in Barto, Pennsylvania. That’s where Cameron McIntosh of Americhanvre Cast-Hemp hosted a four-day hands-on training session to teach the basics of the spray-applied method of hempcrete installation using the Ereasy system. Training began Saturday morning at McIntosh’s shop at a farm in Berks County. With a total of 14 participants and four assistant instructors, he said, “this is our single biggest training.” Attendees traveled from around the country and the world, including Texas, North Carolina, Minnesota, California, and British Columbia. Damien Baumer, who developed the Ereasy Spray-Applied system in 2014, traveled from his village in France to help McIntosh with the training. Baumer said his system is not in wide use in France, but is used in many other European countries, and now has a strong footprint in America, thanks to McIntosh. McIntosh’s company, Americhanvre (a mash-up of America and the French word for hemp, chanvre), is the authorized North America distributor of the Ereasy system, and there are now more Ereasy systems in use in America than in the inventor’s home country. Baumer is happy to see the growth in America, and said through a translator, “Cameron’s a warrior who’s been fighting for the last three years to make this happen.” Earlier this year, Americhanvre was awarded a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant from the U.S. Army for $1.9 million. While the training isn’t directly related to the grant, McIntosh sees the connection. The purpose of the SBIR program, he said, “is to commercialize your technology and your company, not only in the private sector, but also publicly.” Attendees get more than basic instruction on how to run the spray machine. “We also teach estimating and bidding. We teach accounting, we give the participants tools that they would need not only to run the system, but also to run a successful business around it,” McIntosh said. The Ereasy system is simple in its design and function. Hemp hurds are mixed with lime and water in a hopper. That slurry is then pushed through tubes by a large air compressor while the lance operator sprays the wet hempcrete mixture at a wall or, in this case, an SIP panel, which can then be used in construction. Attendees sprayed over 30 panels during the course of the workshop. Denzel Sutherland Wilson traveled from Gitxsan Nation in north British Columbia. “I came to learn how to spray hempcrete and just see if this would be something that could help us back where I come (from),” he said. Wilson is from the community of Kispiox, which sits at the confluence of the Skeena and Kispiox rivers. It’s surrounded by mountains on one side and the Pacific Ocean on the other. “We have a lot of poorly insulated and overcrowded houses and mold issues,” he said. “And this hemp seems like it could address a lot of issues in the housing realm.” He also said he finds great inspiration from the work the Lower Sioux Indian Community in Minnesota is doing with hempcrete, where the tribe is building houses for community members in need. Danny Desjarlais is the head builder at Lower Sioux and was on hand at the workshop to assist in the training. Desjarlais and his team have built three hempcrete houses in the past year and they are gearing up to build more. He sees hemp construction as a way to rebuild rural communities around the country. “For any community that wants to give their community members jobs and even better homes or whatever product you’re going to make with it,” he said, “the potential for the jobs is there and the potential to take back your community.” On this week’s podcast, we meet the people at the workshop. Why did they sign up? What did they learn? All that, plus a tour of a hempcrete house in Pottstown. On this episode we talk to the following people: Cameron McIntosh Damien Baumer Navid Hatfield Danny Desjarlais Tim Callahan Henry Valles Dani Baker Denzel Sutherland Wilson Cliff the Gardener Tina Jones John Price Learn More about Hempcrete: US Hemp Builders Association Hemp Building Institute Americhanvre Cast-Hemp Lower Sioux Indian Community New Nuggets US poised to ease restrictions on marijuana in historic shift, but it’ll remain controlled substance 21st EIHA Conference in Prague Hempwood, the coolest thing made in Kentucky Thanks to Our Sponsors! IND HEMP King’s Agriseeds Forever Green Music courtesy of Tin Bird Shadow /episode/index/show/lancasterfarming/id/31075673

Exploring Hemp Fiber Agronomy and Genetics 04/24/2024

Exploring Hemp Fiber Agronomy and Genetics On this week’s hemp podcast, we listen to a panel discussion from the NoCo Hemp Expo that took place in Colorado earlier this month. The panelists were Rachel Berry, a farmer and founder of the Illinois Hemp Growers Association; Terry Moran, a sales rep from Kanda Hemp, an importer of Asian hemp varieties; Corbett Miteff from KonopiUS, an importer of European hemp genetics; and Larry Smart, a geneticist and plant breeder from Cornell University. The panel discussion was moderated by Eric Singular who described the topic of discussion as “the intersection of agronomy and genetics in hemp fiber production.” Smart talked about starting the breeding program at Cornell and how trying to meet the needs of the industry has been a roller coaster ride. “But certainly right now the demand is for fiber,” Smart said. “So we have been focused on breeding fiber hemp. And the main trait that we see as valuable in fiber hemp is very late flowering.” Because hemp is a photoperiodic crop, it will stop growing taller once it starts to flower. “If we can identify varieties that continue to grow and do not transition to flowering, those are going to create the greatest amount of biomass,” he said. Typically, later-flowering varieties are adapted to tropical or subtropical latitudes, he said. Moran spoke about the need for seed in the U.S. as the industry grows. “The main thing to think about is if you’re going to get to 250,000 acres,” he said, “is where’s that seed going to come from?” Asia and Europe are the likely sources based on current trends. “And I don’t see that changing in the near term. And even if there’s some great variety out there, it’s going to take several years to scale that,” Moran said. Berry, a first-generation farmer in Illinois, spoke about the importance of genetic research and how she worked with the Midwestern Hemp Research Collaborative. The group provided genetics that were tailored to Berry’s region, one of which she said provided amazing results. “Having folks like you who are doing the research on these genetics and providing them to farmers like me to eliminate all that trial and error, I’m so grateful for that,” Berry said. Miteff described his work with processing methods, various fiber lengths, and the defibrillation of cellulose. “At end of the day, we’re trying to find things where we can get some really good fiber that we can break apart that cellulose and start using it,” Miteff said. “But at the same time, how do we get the grain off of it?” he asked, a question that took the panelists into a conversation about dual cropping varieties that produce both fiber and grain. Learn more: Eric Singular Pennsylvania Flax Project Illinois Hemp Growers Association Cornell University Hemp Program KonopiUS Kanda Hemp Noco Hemp Expo News Nuggets HempWood Coolest Thing Made in Kentucky USDA's 2023 National Hemp Report Thanks to Our Sponsors! IND HEMP Mpactful Ventures Forever Green HUGE THANK YOU TO SUNRAY HEMP in ALASKA Music courtesy of Tin Bird Shadow /episode/index/show/lancasterfarming/id/30968818

420 Special: Rumble Strip – John Rodgers Weed Farmer 04/20/2024

10th Annual NoCo Hemp Expo Gathers Many Voices 04/17/2024

10th Annual NoCo Hemp Expo Gathers Many Voices This week’s hemp podcast is a recap of the 10th annual in Estes Park, Colorado, April 11-13, where industry stakeholders gathered to collaborate, commiserate and celebrate the state of hemp in 2024. The episode features voices from many attendees, including Colorado Gov. Jared Polis. “We’re really all hands on deck to make sure Colorado continues to be an ag powerhouse, and hemp is a big part of that,” Polis said. State Ag Commissioner Kate Greenberg agreed with the governor and said the “conversation is really just diversified in what hemp is capable of.” Hemp researcher Przemyslaw Baraniecki came all the way from the Institute of Natural Fibres and Medicinal Plants in Poland, where hemp was never prohibited yet still carries a stigma. “In Europe, when you when you say to someone on the street ‘hemp,’ they will smile and treat it as something, let’s say, spicy,” Baraniecki said. Karll Lecher from in South Dakota echoed those sentiments and the industry is being held back by conflicting messaging. “We just need one unifying voice to enlighten the public about hemp and maybe get rid of some of those stigmas,” he said. — Abigail and Noemy Cuevas — from Los Angeles have been hosting workshops and events back home for years to educate the public and spread the message of hemp. For Noemy, hempcrete construction is one of the bright spots in the hemp industry. “Living in Los Angeles, California, we have a lot of wildfires, so if we would have hemp building, then we will be able to save people’s homes, people’s lives,” she said. from , an equipment manufacturer from Nebraska, was showcasing a recent research-scale decorticator. “We produced this for universities around the country, as well as processors that want to work to ultimately grade their herd and fiber products,” he said. You will hear many voices from all over the world on this week’s show, plus you’ll hear about the time spent with Danny DesJarlais and the crew from the Lower Sioux from Minnesota. Thank you to the following voices featured in this week's episode: Thanks to our sponsors! IND HEMP Americhanvre Forever Green SunRay Hemp Music Courtesy of /episode/index/show/lancasterfarming/id/30873923

Experimental Hemp Micro Processing With Steve Groff 04/10/2024

Experimental Hemp Micro Processing With Steve Groff On this week’s hemp podcast, Lancaster Farming talks to Steve Groff from in Holtwood, Lancaster County, where he is getting ready to plant 70 acres of industrial hemp. “This year it’s all fiber. And we’ll probably plant about 10 varieties,” Groff said. Of those 10, about a third will be what he calls his “core varieties“ that have performed well previously on his farm or in the Mid-Atlantic region in general. “We are going to be testing several other newer varieties that might perform well, that we need to basically, I’ll say, ground-truth and see how they work,” he said. As the post-prohibition hemp industry puts itself back together, one of the many riddles to solve is what plant genetics will work where, which is why Groff is so keen on trying new varieties — he enjoys figuring stuff out, and if his work on the farm can help grow an industry, that’s even better. Groff, well known for his pioneering work and educational efforts in no-till farming and cover crops, has been growing hemp on his farm since 2019, the first season it was legal to grow commercially in Pennsylvania. His interest in hemp is full spectrum. He’s grown hemp on his farm for CBD, grain and fiber, but this year his focus is exclusively on fiber — not just growing it, but also how to process. Groff is a partner in , an aspirational hemp processing company focused on research and development. “So we’ve been experimenting with several different variations of processing. And as everybody knows, there’s a lot involved,” he said. Groff said that ultimately the varieties that farmers grow will be determined by how it’s used, and that manufacturers will provide specs for processors. But the industry is not there yet, so Groff pushes forward with “experimental micro processing.” “And so we’re trying to back up from what our customers want and figure it out so that when we do invest in larger scale machinery, we get it right the first time.” “I love doing the cover crops because it helped farmers. It helped the environment. It checked all the boxes,” Groff said. “And the nice thing about hemp is it does all those things too, but it’s enhanced because it a stronger connection to everyone.” Or, as we say on the podcast, cannabis loves community. Groff also discussed his recent work with Penn State’s College of Medicine. Groff grows CBG and CBD varieties of hemp for their medical research. From food, fiber and fuel to building materials and medicine — the list goes on and on — Groff said he can’t think of another plant that God made that benefits humanity in more ways than hemp. Learn more about Cedar Meadow Farm https://cedarmeadow.farm/ Learn more about Hemp Katalyst https://www.hempkatalyst.com/ New Nuggets IND HEMP Earns B Corp Certification Commercial Operations Begin at Panda Biotech’s Massive Wichita Falls Hemp Gin Thanks to our sponsors! IND HEMP National Hemp Association Mpactful Ventures Forever Green, distributors of the KP-4 Hemp Cutter Music Courtesy of /episode/index/show/lancasterfarming/id/30767563

Eyes on the Prize: The Somewhat Messy Process of Getting Hemp Grain into the Feed Markets 04/05/2024

The Bee’s Knees: Ken Meyer on the Buzz About Hemp in South Dakota 04/03/2024

The Bee’s Knees: Ken Meyer on the Buzz About Hemp in South Dakota In this week’s hemp podcast, Lancaster Farming speaks with Ken Meyer, beekeeper and hemp processor from South Dakota. Meyer and his family run a fourth-generation beekeeping business as well as the state’s first industrial hemp processing facility. As a young man, Meyer enjoyed beekeeping but was encouraged by his elders to get an education instead of going into the family business, which he did, and he had a fruitful career as lawyer. In 2013, his dad and brother successfully recruited him back into the family business of keeping bees, and today he oversees the beeswax rendering facility as vice president of A.H. Meyer & Sons, the business started by his great-grandfather over 90 years ago. Honeybees are known for their industriousness, efficiency and community spirit, not to mention the vital ecological services they provide, including the pollination of many of our food crops. “The number that we often talk about is that every third bite of what we eat,” Meyer said, is made possible because of bees. And beekeepers. Some of that industriousness and community spirit must have rubbed off on Meyer. In 2020, he co-founded the South Dakota Industrial Hemp Association, and has since been on a mission to bring full-scale production of industrial hemp to the state. Since 2020, he and his SDIHA colleagues have conducted nearly a hundred educational meeting for farmers to show them the benefits of including fiber hemp in their corn and soy rotations. Simultaneous to his educational efforts, Meyer has led the way in bringing processing capacity to the Mount Rushmore State. In 2023, he and his crew opened Complete Hemp Processing at a 25,000- square-foot facility, which includes a decortication system and mechanical drying area. His outreach efforts to farmers have paid off. “Last year, we contracted for 1,600 acres,” he said. “This year, we’re right at 2,000 acres.” The increase is twofold: more farmers have signed up to grow, and some of his existing farmers have increased their acreage of hemp. “It’s definitely a mix of both. So for example, one or two farmers that did 300 acres last year, this year are doing 500 each,” he said. Corn prices are also having a positive effect on hemp acres. “Last year when we signed up hemp farmers, we paid them $300 a ton for their (hemp) stalks. They were getting the same money they were getting for corn when corn was at $7 a bushel,” Meyer said. But now corn is in the $4 a bushel range, and South Dakota farmers “have that extra margin in there where hemp is better than corn, because we haven’t brought our prices down as corn prices have dropped,” Meyer said. The processing facility is in Winfred, about 60 miles northwest of Sioux City. Meyer said most of the hemp production in South Dakota takes place in the eastern half, as the western part of the state is mostly ranchland. He said the corn and soy growers he’s working with generally already have the equipment they need to plant and harvest and bale the fiber crop. “The farmers bring the bales to us, per our contract, at roughly the rate of a third of their harvest at harvest time. And then a few months out into the second quarter, they bring a second third,” he said. “And then as we’re coming into the spring, they bring the last third of their bales,” Meyer said. The hemp is processed into two main lines: bast fiber and hurd. Meyer said the majority of the processed hemp hurd goes into the hemp animal bedding market, while some goes into the hemp-lime, or hempcrete, building industry. According to USDA’s national hemp report, South Dakota led the nation in harvested acres of industrial hemp in 2022 with 2,550 acres, in no small part thanks to Ken Meyer and his crew. As hemp becomes more common in the state, the marijuana stigma has lessened, Meyer said. “The first year when we were educating people, we would hear people ask questions or make jokes about industrial hemp being marijuana,” he said,” and who was going to come and steal the crop and those kind of things.” But none of those things ever happen, Meyer said, and now just a few years later, no one is making those jokes. “So after some education, attitude is changed quite a bit,” Meyer said. Learn more about Complete Hemp Processing Learn more about A.H. Meyer & Sons Thanks to our sponsors! IND HEMP King’s Agriseeds The Pennsylvania Industrial Hemp Council Forever Green and the KP4 Hemp Cutter  Topics discussed in this interview: Industrial Hemp Processing in South Dakota Complete Hemp Processing Center Location and footprint Drying process for bales Contracting with farmers in South Dakota Increase in industrial acreage from previous year Reasons for hemp vs corn Challenges and education for new hemp growers Regulations for hemp growers in South Dakota Ken Meyer's family business Beekeeping history Origin (Switzerland) Migratory beekeeping Facilities for beekeeping services (wax rendering, honey packing) Impact of mites on beekeeping Number of hives currently managed by Ken Meyer Bee species used (European honeybee) Intersection of bees and hemp Potential of hemp protein for bees Nutritional benefits for bees Addressing seasonal pollen shortage Stimulating bee growth before almond pollination /episode/index/show/lancasterfarming/id/30668693

Lancaster Farming Industrial Hemp Podcast

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