Source: THE COUNTER, 9/9/21


The challenges of navigating a developing market, emerging loan practices, and startup costs can compound existing barriers, especially for newer growers.  For North Carolina farmer Patrick Brown, hemp’s appeal lies in its ability to nourish the more than 175 acres his family has farmed since his great-grandfather, Byron, acquired land after the Civil War in 1865. Brown’s father, Arthur, planted row crops—tobacco, soybeans, and corn, among others—for more than 60 years in Henderson, a town about 40 miles from Raleigh. As pesticide and herbicide use grew nationwide, the Browns and farmers like them relied more on chemical use to reap bountiful harvests.

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