Source: POLITICO'S MORNING AGRICULTURE, 10/19/20

It’s been nearly two years since the 2018 farm bill was signed into law, legalizing industrial hemp production nationwide and fueling hopes of a hemp farming boom. But that hasn’t panned out yet, with growers around the country still struggling to reap the benefits of the burgeoning crop sector, our Liz Crampton writes this a.m.

State of the hemp industry: The Agriculture Department has approved hemp programs for 29 states and is negotiating with another 12. That means a patchwork of inconsistent state regulations and unclear federal guidance for the industry.
— After millions of acres of hemp were planted in 2019, production is way down this year; many growers gave up because of a steep drop in prices and the lack of a market for their crops.

Some state agricultural officials were so unsatisfied with the regulatory framework that USDA proposed last year that they decided not to move forward with hemp initiatives. (Among the biggest complaints are the strict limits on THC that can be present in hemp crops and the stringent testing requirements to certify those levels of the psychoactive chemical.)

Another major hurdle: The FDA has yet to put forth regulations on cannabidiol, the widely popular compound derived from hemp that’s increasingly found in products from pills to pet foods. The agency’s CBD guidance has been awaiting approval from the White House since July.

Bottom line: Hemp was supposed to breathe new life into the industry, after a steady agricultural downturn since farm earnings peaked in 2013. Compared to other corners of agriculture, hemp growers held up relatively well early in the pandemic. But even then, advocates worried that the slow-going regulatory process would stifle what was promised to be a bountiful new frontier in farming — a warning that’s increasingly proving true with harvesting now underway.