In a huge victory for hemp, the 2018 Farm Bill was finally signed into law, legalizing hemp and removing the restrictions against its cultivation in the United States. The Farm Bill passed the Senate on Tuesday, December 11th with votes falling in its favor at 87-13. On Wednesday, December 12th, the House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed the Bill at 386-47. The Farm Bill was sent to the desk of President Donald J Trump who then signed it into law, officially legalizing hemp and restoring it to a valuable cash crop!
The Farm Bill Boosts Hemp
From 2007 to today hemp farmers and supporters began to feel the reigns loosen on industrial hemp farming, but up until now, the United States has still restricted industrial hemp production. Hemp production in the US has been kept to mainly pilot programs and government approved research programs. The 2018 Farm Bill has changed all of that, making this bill the largest victory for hemp since The Controlled Substance Act of 1970 classified hemp as a Schedule I controlled substance making it illegal.
Recognizing hemp as a plant separate from marijuana, although related in the cannabis family, allows United States farmers to take part in an 800 million dollar a year industry. Currently dominated by countries such as China, Europe, and Canada, the United States has a chance to get its hand in this booming industry, rather than relying on imports to fill our consumer demand for already popular hemp products.
How This Changes Hemp
The Farm Bill makes a few significant changes to how hemp is viewed and controlled in the US. The first and most important thing this bill did for hemp was to remove it from the federal list of controlled substances. In addition to releasing it from the Schedule I classification, the Farm Bill just allowed states to regulate their own hemp cultivation, enabled agricultural research groups and farmers to apply for federal grants, and made the plant eligible for crop insurance.
This means significant growth and changes are on the horizon for the entire hemp industry. With eligibility for crop insurance, hemp can once again become an agricultural commodity and investors can put funds into the hemp industry. Investor interest and buzz around hemp has already been growing since former President Barack Obama signed the Agricultural Act of 2014, his version of the Farm Bill. That interest just grew exponentially today as soon as the pen was put to paper in the oval office, and we predict that investor interest and funds will begin to show up rapidly across the industrial hemp industry.
Hemp is The Future!
With analysts projecting that hemp could be a 20 billion dollar industry by the year 2022, this Bill just returned hemp to its’ glory days of the “Hemp for Victory” campaign during WWII. There are now endless possibilities and opportunities for interstate commerce, trade, and hemp processing across the US. We recommend you study up on industrial hemp, its cultivation, harvesting and the thousands of products you can make with hemp because hemp is the new future of farming!
For more information on how to get your hemp farm started today email us at info@nbsagtech.com or give us a call at (702) 992 – 0552. We look forward to exploring the possibilities today of how we work together tomorrow.
