ALBANY >> More than a year after passage of a bill legalizing “industrial hemp” research, state regulators Wednesday released proposed rules to let Cornell University and other colleges grow non-psychoactive marijuana.
The new rules permitting agricultural research were published in the State Register, the official publication of state government actions. They address everything from how the plant is grown, stored and transported, to possible marketing, advertising and retail sale. A $500 fee is the only cost to colleges wanting to conduct the research.
Hemp is another word for marijuana, and both refer to the Cannabis sativa plant. Hemp can be used as raw material in many different products, but under the standards contained in the new law, it cannot be used as a drug. Any hemp must have a THC concentration of 0.3 percent or less, otherwise it is considered illegal marijuana. THC is the main chemical compound in pot that produces the hallucinogenic high.
“Now that it is real, a number of universities will be looking at this,” Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo (R-Endwell), the law’s sponsor, said Wednesday. She said her office has been in contact with researchers from SUNY, CUNY and other colleges interested in the new law.
“Industrial hemp is an excellent candidate from a biomass standpoint, with high yield as well as multiple potential value-added uses,” Jerry Cherney, Professor of Agriculture at Cornell, said when the bill passed in June 2014. “Alternative markets allow farmers to minimize their risk and maximize profits.”
“Cornell is the only university in New York that we’re aware of right now that has expressed an interest and probably has the ability to do this kind of research,” Steve Ammerman of the NY Farm Bureau said Wednesday. “But certainly this could be readily available to more institutions, whether it’s (SUNY) Morrisville or Cobleskill or anybody else who does agricultural science and ag-related activities.”
“That’s what is going to take, research to decide if this crop can be realistically be grown in New York and whether or not it is commercially viable,” he said. “The Farm Bureau is very pleased to see that the rules are out there and that this process can move forward.”
“Diversification is important as farms look to remain successful in a global marketplace, and industrial hemp could be another profitable alternative for agriculture, which in turn, would help boost the state’s rural economy,” Dean Norton, President of New York Farm Bureau, said when the bill passed last year.
The hemp law comes as Gov. Andrew Cuomo is moving forward with legalizing medical marijuana in New York. Also, a new bill was introduced last month to decriminalize all hemp production. The legislature passed the 2014 law just months after President Obama signed a federal farm bill that allowed states to permit cultivation of industrial hemp.
Cuomo has taken a cautious approach to legalizing marijuana, giving himself veto power to shut down the medical marijuana program and taking a full six months in 2014 before deciding whether to sign the industrial hemp bill into law.
“Industrial hemp production would offer significant new economic opportunities for New York State,” the 2014 bill memo said. “Over 30 countries grow and process industrial hemp, including Canada, Germany, England and France,” but in the U.S. commercial cultivation still requires a permit from the Drug Enforcement Administration.
The bill was sponsored by Lupardo and Senator Tom O’Mara (R-Big Flats). Their districts include large portions of the economically depressed struggling Southern Tier, with much open space and farmland.
Their 2014 bill memo says “industrial hemp is bred to maximize fiber, seed and/or oil, while marijuana varieties seek to maximize TI-IC (delta 9 tetrahydrocannabinol, the primary psychoactive ingredient in marijuana), industrial hemp has a THC content of between 0.05 and 1%. Marijuana has a THC content of 3% to 20%. Industrial hemp
had numerous uses. The major market for industrial hemp is as a food or supplement as it is rich in protein and Omega fatty acids, and has a high fiber content. The clothing industry also produces apparel and accessories from industrial hemp and hemp blended fabrics. Auto manufacturers use durable, green hemp composites and fabrics when
feasible. Industrial hemp can also be used for building materials, plant based plastics, and paper products. Hemp can produce significantly hither yields than competing crops, producing twice as much fiber per acre as cotton.
Among other things, the proposed Department of Agriculture and Market rules drop the requirement for 8 foot tall fences and high security around locations where hemp is grown, since “industrial hemp contains such a low level of THC (the substance in marijuana that causes an hallucinogenic effect) that areas where it is grown or cultivated, or held, would not be ‘attractive nuisances.’”
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