Update JULY 11, 2018: The current language of the hemp amendment also bans people with felony drug convictions from participating in the hemp industry.
An amendment to the Senate version of the 2018 Farm Bill would fully legalize industrial hemp in the United States.
“This is a big day for hemp,” said Brian Furnish, a hemp grower from Kentucky and president of the U.S. Hemp Roundtable.
The amendment legalizing hemp began as a bill proposed by Mitch McConnell, the Republican majority leader in the Senate. The “Hemp Farming Act of 2018” fully legalizes industrial hemp and all products made from it including CBD oil. Under the new law, the Drug Enforcement Administration and other government agencies would no longer be able to interfere with hemp.
Due to political uncertainty over other parts of the massive Farm Bill, and the lack of hemp related language in the House version of the bill, there are still hurdles ahead before legalization.
2014 vs. 2018: New farm bill builds on partial legalization
The United States made industrial hemp illegal for decades until an amendment to the 2014 version of the Farm Bill allowed growing by state-run hemp research programs.
These state-based programs vary, with some allowing only university research and others allowing a limited number of everyday farmers. The U.S. grew about 25,000 acres of hempunder these state programs, mostly in more permissive states like Colorado and Kentucky.
Read more on Ministry of Hemp.
2018 Farm Bill Could Fully Legalize Industrial Hemp In USA
Update JULY 11, 2018: The current language of the hemp amendment also bans people with felony drug convictions from participating in the hemp industry. An amendment to the Senate version of the 2018 Farm Bill would fully legalize industrial hemp in the United States.
