Jud Haward is a hemp farmer from Utah whose crop is now drying in his barn after harvesting. He has used the hanging method to dry his plants and the drying hemp is filling the air with a heavenly cannabis aroma. He is proud of the hemp yields from his 10-acres despite having sold only a part of the crop.
Haward was among the first farmers in Utah to grow industrial hemp. Thus, he relied mainly on his instinct and little guidance from an expert to nurture his crop to maturity. The most nerve-wracking thing is, he was never sure if he was doing it right or wrong.
Utah has issued 220 industrial hemp licenses since the government legalized hemp production for industrial use.
A hemp license was regarded as a golden ticket because of the popularity of cannabidiol, also known as CBD oil, which is an extract of hemp. CBD oil can be used for medicinal purposes, and it can also be used in other products such as CBD deodorant or CBD hamburgers.
Since hemp crop comes with a promise of substantial financial gains, some farmers in Utah who are financially struggling have uprooted their hay and lettuce and replaced them with hemp. Others have mortgaged their farms for capital to invest in hemp.
Haward said that some farmers lost hope mid-way when their crop failed because of a lack of expertise, and it was hard to get information on hemp growth. The crop specialists were unreliable, and the some suppliers were unscrupulous.
Ruston Peterson owns a greenhouse where he grows hydroponic lettuce for commercial purposes. He sells his greens in Salt Lake City due to a lack of market in Utah, which is tiring and expensive. Earlier this year, Peterson was among those who decided to grow hemp in Utah.
However, growing the crop was more challenging than they thought, said Peterson. Some farmers, despite missing the growing window, still planted hemp, which led to crop failure. Others adhered to every rule about hemp farming, but nature took its course and some plants withered, while for some, the plants were invaded by frost.
The other challenge for the farmers was the state’s stipulation that hemp should have a THC concentration of 0.3% or less. This year, after testing the crop, the state destroyed 16,323 plants because their THC was above the 0.3% limit. This was a loss and a setback for the affected farmers.
According to the director of the hemp and medical marijuana program in Utah, Andrew Rigby, to achieve the 0.3% THC concentration, farmers have to choose the right seed and use the proper growing techniques.
The difficulties in distinguishing hemp and marijuana since they have similar structure and smell had the police confused. And thieves stealing the crop and passing it for marijuana to unsuspecting buyers caused additional problems for farmers.
Although Haward’s and Peterson’s first hemp crop was a success, the price of CBD oils seems to have dropped from $4,500 to $800 per liter. Now, their main focus is recouping their costs by finding the right buyers.
Hemp industry experts believe that companies like Marijuana Company of America Inc. (OTCQB: MCOA) and Lexaria Bioscience Corp. (CSE: LXX) (OTCQX: LXRP) hope that things will normalize as farmers gain more experience in growing hemp.
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