[New post] Broadening Horizon: Montana's Fiber and Grain Focus

Cannabis News World posted: "Broadening Horizon: Montana's Fiber and Grain Focus Cannabtimes <![CDATA[In the early years of Montana's hemp program, most farmers had their sights set on cultivating hemp for CBD. Now, farmers' focuses are transitioning to the fiber and grai" Cannabis News World Broadening Horizon: Montana's Fiber and Grain Focus Cannabis News World Jun 2 Broadening Horizon: Montana's Fiber and Grain Focus Cannabtimes <![CDATA[In the early years of Montana's hemp program, most farmers had their sights set on cultivating hemp for CBD. Now, farmers' focuses are transitioning to the fiber and grain industries.Let's take it back to the beginning.Hemp plants first hit Montana's soil in 2017 under the state's pilot program. There were 17 licensed growers at the time, many of whom had high hopes for the crop.Montana Department of Agriculture (MDA) Director Christy Clark says hemp program officials spent "countless hours" that year building the commodity program. "Many, many hours were spent in a conference room with all hands on deck. We had marketing; we had research; we had the lab; we had everybody—even the accountants in there trying to figure out how this is going to work. [It] took a tremendous amount of manpower."Since then, the number of licensed hemp growers and total acres planted has drastically changed each year. © Courtesy of Montana State Department of AgricultureMontana hemp plantsBased on data from the MDA, in 2018, there were 42 licensed growers and 13,645 total acres planted, including acres planted on tribal reservations. (The MDA does not license hemp growers on native reservations; they are under the USDA's jurisdiction). While 11,100 acres were planted for CBD, 2,500 acres were planted for grain, and 45 acres were planted for fiber that year.In 2019, following the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, those numbers skyrocketed. There were 197 licensed growers and 48,930 total acres planted—including those on tribal reservations. Forty-thousand acres were grown for CBD, 8,500 acres were grown for grain, 30 acres were grown for fiber, and 400 acres were grown for fiber and grain. But in 2020, the number of hemp licenses dropped to 97 (a 50.8% decrease), and acres planted decreased to 10,950 (77.6%). Most notably, the total acres planted… Excerpt only ... READ MORE BELOW Source : Broadening Horizon: Montana's Fiber and Grain Focus reposted by Cannabis News World Comment Unsubscribe to no longer receive posts from Cannabis News World. Change your email settings at manage subscriptions. Trouble clicking? Copy and paste this URL into your browser: https://cannabisnewsworld.com/2022/06/02/broadening-horizon-montanas-fiber-and-grain-focus/ Powered by WordPress.com