Sunday, June 16, 2019

OSU launches research lab focused on hemp

By Gillian Flaccus
Source: oregonlive.com

In this Thursday, June 13, 2019, photo, Jay Noller, director and lead researcher for Oregon State University's newly formed Global Hemp Innovation Center, left, inspects young hemp plants with Lloyd Nackley, a plant ecologist with the Oregon State University Extension Service, at one of the university's hemp research stations in Aurora, Ore. (AP Photo/Gillian Flaccus) AP
In this Thursday, June 13, 2019, photo, Jay Noller, director and lead researcher for Oregon State University's newly formed Global Hemp Innovation Center, left, inspects young hemp plants with Lloyd Nackley, a plant ecologist with the Oregon State University Extension Service, at one of the university's hemp research stations in Aurora, Ore. (AP Photo/Gillian Flaccus) AP


AURORA — A unit of wheat is a called a bushel, and a standard weight of potatoes is called a century. But hemp as a fully legal U.S. agricultural commodity is so new that a unit of hemp seed doesn’t yet have a universal name or an agreed-upon quantity.
That’s one example of the startling lack of uniformity — and accountability — in an industry that’s sprung up almost overnight since the U.S. late last year removed hemp from the controlled substances list.
A global hemp research lab was announced last week at Oregon State University. Coupled with a nascent national review board for hemp varieties and a handful of seed certification programs nationwide, they are the first stabs at addressing those concerns — and at creating accountability by standardizing U.S. hemp for a global market.
“If you look at a lot of financial markets, they’re all saying, ‘People are investing in this, and we have no idea what to divide it by,” said Jay Noller, head of OSU’s new Global Hemp Innovation Center. “We have hemp fiber. What is it? What’s the standard length?”
Oregon State’s research hub will be the United States’ largest and will offer a certification for hemp seed that guarantees farmers the seed they’re buying is legitimate and legal. That’s a critical need when individual hemp seeds are currently selling for between $1.20 and $1.40 per seed — and an acre of crop takes up to 2,000 seeds, Noller said.
In this Thursday, June 13, 2019, photo, a team of Oregon State University employees spreads hemp seeds in a field using a tractor at a research station in Aurora, Ore., that's part of the university's newly announced Global Hemp Innovation Center. (AP Photo/Gillian Flaccus) AP
AP
In this Thursday, June 13, 2019, photo, a team of Oregon State University employees spreads hemp seeds in a field using a tractor at a research station in Aurora, Ore., that's part of the university's newly announced Global Hemp Innovation Center. (AP Photo/Gillian Flaccus) AP
Licensed hemp acreage in Oregon, which has an ideal climate for growing the crop, has increased six-fold since last year, earning Oregon the No. 3 spot for hemp cultivation after Montana and Colorado, according to Vote Hemp, which advocates for and tracks the industry in the U.S.
Four other states — North Dakota, Colorado, Tennessee and North Carolina — also have hemp seed certification programs. Other U.S. universities, such as Cornell in Ithaca, New York, have hemp research programs, but Oregon State’s will be the largest, built on years of hemp research done in test fields in China, Bosnia and Serbia and now at 10 research stations sprinkled across the state. On Thursday, Oregon State researchers began to sow their third crop in a field in Aurora.
The new center dovetails with a greater movement to create a national infrastructure around hemp as the market explodes. Globally, the supply of hemp is less than 10% of the demand, and that’s driving states like Oregon to rush to stake a claim in the international marketplace, Noller said.
Across the U.S., the number of licensed acres of hemp jumped 204% from 2017 to 2018, according to Vote Hemp. And the market for a hemp-derived extract called cannabidiol, or CBD, is expected to grow from $618 million in 2018 to $22 billion in 2022 as its popularity as a health aide skyrockets.
The U.S. National Review Board for Hemp Varieties will start taking applications in the fall from growers who want to claim credit for specific genetic varieties of hemp. Once growers have secured a unique designation from the board, they can apply for a plant patent with the U.S. government so no other grower can produce that type of hemp.
A meeting in Harbin, China, in early July will bring members of the global hemp industry together to start to hash out critical details such as what to call a unit of hemp seed or the standard length of hemp fiber, Noller said. Other countries, such as China, have been growing hemp for years, but the industry lacks a universal standard countries can apply to trade, he said.
“This is the first time in U.S. history where we have a new crop that’s suddenly gone from prohibited to no longer prohibited,” Noller said. “We have never had something like this.”
In this Thursday, June 13, 2019, photo, Jennifer Lane, a student intern at the Oregon State University Extension Center, plants a hemp seedling in a field at one of the research stations for Oregon State's newly announced Global Hemp Innovation Center in Aurora, Ore. The center will be the largest such research hub in the U.S. (AP Photo/Gillian Flaccus) AP
AP
In this Thursday, June 13, 2019, photo, Jennifer Lane, a student intern at the Oregon State University Extension Center, plants a hemp seedling in a field at one of the research stations for Oregon State's newly announced Global Hemp Innovation Center in Aurora, Ore. The center will be the largest such research hub in the U.S. (AP Photo/Gillian Flaccus) AP
Hemp growers like Trey Willison applauded the move toward greater transparency in a booming market.
In one case last year, an Oregon seed seller marketed seeds on Craigslist as having a 3-to-1 CBD to THC ratio — but unbeknownst to farmers, the THC levels were still too high to be legal, he said. Several farms in Wisconsin, where agricultural hemp was just getting underway, bought the seeds and then went under when the resulting plants tested “hot,” Willison said.
The seeds “look identical, and you can’t tell them apart until four months into the year, when you know something’s wrong,” he said. “A bunch of farms failed, and it originated in Oregon.”
FILE - In this April 19, 2018, file photo, a man displays hemp seeds being prepared for sale to industrial hemp farmers at his facility in Monmouth, Ore. A global hemp research lab announced Thursday, June 13, 2019, in Oregon, is part of a larger movement to bring the standardization to hemp that traditional crops like corn and cotton enjoy. (AP Photos/Gillian Flaccus, File)
AP
FILE - In this April 19, 2018, file photo, a man displays hemp seeds being prepared for sale to industrial hemp farmers at his facility in Monmouth, Ore. A global hemp research lab announced Thursday, June 13, 2019, in Oregon, is part of a larger movement to bring the standardization to hemp that traditional crops like corn and cotton enjoy. (AP Photos/Gillian Flaccus, File)
Other sellers are marking up the cost of what he called “garbage seed” as much as 1,000 times, said Willison, who started Unique Botanicals in Springfield, about 100 miles (160 kilometers) south of Portland, after leaving his marijuana-growing business due to a glut of weed in the Oregon market.
“A lot of people say, ‘Is your seed certified?’ and there’s no such thing as certified seed right now. There’s no test, there’s no oversight. ... There’s no proof of where the seed is coming from right now,” he said.
“They’re trying. It’s at the very beginning, for sure, but they are trying to do something about this mess.”
Some novice farmers are falling prey to seed sellers who secretly, or even unwittingly, market seed that grows into “hot” cannabis plants, with THC levels too high to market legally as hemp, he said.
Hemp and marijuana are both cannabis plants but have different THC levels. Marijuana, still illegal under federal law, refers to plants with more than a trace of THC. Hemp has almost no THC — 0.3% or less under U.S. government standards.
States with hemp programs test for THC in the crops, but do so after the plants are grown and close to harvest. Crops that test over the THC limit for hemp must be destroyed — and farmers with bad seed might not know until it’s too late, Willison said.
 

Wednesday, June 12, 2019

Study: Hemp Could Help Declining Honeybee Population

By Lisette Voytko
Source: forbes.com

Industrial hemp could help declining bee populations.
Industrial hemp could help declining bee populations.GETTY

Topline: A recent study from Colorado State University reports that industrial hemp could help declining bee populations—a source of great ecological concern—because it’s a great source of pollen.
  • According to researchers, most hemp crops flower between July and September, coinciding with a lack of pollen production from other farm crops.
  • Over 2,000 bees (and 23 different types of bee, including the European honeybee) were collected during the study. The 23 bee types represent 80% of all types in the region.
  • This discovery points to hemp as a new pollen source for bees and could help sustain their populations.
  • Bee colonies have been declining in the U.S. due to stressors such as pests, pesticide exposure and poor nutrition from a lack of pollen, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Isn’t hemp weed? Not this kind. While hemp is a strain of cannabis, the industrial variety is used to create paper, clothing, textiles and biodegradable plastics, among other goods. It’s also important to note that industrial hemp doesn’t produce nectar, meaning bees aren’t making honey from the plants.
Key background: It’s not just bees. Birds, bats, butterflies and hummingbirds are all pollinators, and they’re essential for the lifecycle of crops and other flowering plants. The Obama administration formed a Pollinator Health Task Force in 2014 to reverse the decline in bee population, among other initiatives. And the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) reported that honeybee hives went from 6 million in the 1940s to about 2.5 million in 2017. Honeybees add $15 billion in yield to crops, according to the USDA.
The Challenge: The study’s authors note that as hemp crops become more widespread, pests will likewise become more common. Which is why the authors call for a plan that will protect pollinators, like bees, and manage pests that could damage the crops.

Sunday, June 9, 2019

After Illinois, These States Could Legalize Recreational Marijuana Next

By Sean Williams
Source: fool.com

Last year was truly memorable for the cannabis movement. After decades of operating in the shadows, Canada became the first industrialized country in the world to legalize recreational marijuana and only the second overall behind Uruguay.
We also witnessed history made in other aspects of the marijuana movement more than a dozen times. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration legalized its first-ever cannabis-derived drug, support for legalization hit an all-time high, and more states than ever have waved the green flag on weed from a medical and/or adult-use perspective, with 33 medical marijuana-legal states, 10 of which also allow adult consumption.
A cannabis processor using scissors to trim a flower.
IMAGE SOURCE: GETTY IMAGES.

Illinois is set to become the 11th state to legalize recreational weed

A little more than a week ago, the Illinois Legislature overwhelmingly voted in favor of House Bill 1438, which is a measure that will legalize recreational marijuana throughout the Land of Lincoln by Jan. 1, 2020. The bill allows adults aged 21 and over to purchase and possess up to 30 grams of cannabis, with nonresidents allowed to possess up to half the amount of state residents.
As with the other 10 states (and Washington, D.C.) to have given the green light to adult-use marijuana, an excise tax will be imposed on sales. According to the bill, an excise tax of 10% will be imposed on products containing less than 35% tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive cannabinoid that gets a user high, with a considerably higher tax of 25% on products with higher doses of THC, such as concentrates. Mind you, this doesn't include state and local/municipality taxes that are added onto retail sales in the state. Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, a Democrat, expects that this tax will generate $170 million in 2020, which will partially help the state meet its numerous underfunded obligations.
In addition, HB 1438 contains a provision to help expunge marijuana offenses for persons convicted of possessing a small amount of the drug that were not associated with violence. ABC News notes that this could lead to 770,000 Illinois residents having their convictions expunged.
Although no timeline was laid out as to when Gov. Pritzker would sign the bill into law as of midweek, he has expressed support for the legislation and does intend to sign it. This means it's a mere formality that Illinois is set to become the 11th recreationally legal state. 
In terms of multistate dispensaries, this is a potentially solid win for MedMen Enterprises(NASDAQOTH:MMNFF). MedMen, which is in the process of acquiring privately held PharmaCann for $682 million in an all-stock deal, would inherit the six medical marijuana licenses that PharmaCann was awarded in Illinois, which includes four dispensaries and two production facilities. Although it's unclear what MedMen will need to do with its medical pot licenses in order to sell recreational weed, it does place the upscale vertically integrated operator on solid ground in the Land of Lincoln.
A black silhouette of the United States, partially filled in by baggies of cannabis, rolled joints, and a scale.
IMAGE SOURCE: GETTY IMAGES.

These states may be next to legalize adult-use pot

With Illinois set for launch in a little under seven months, the big question now becomes: What states are next to say yes to recreational cannabis?
 

New Jersey and New York? Maybe in 2020

The two most logical choices would be New Jersey and New York, both of which have advanced legislation to legalize adult-use marijuana. Unfortunately, both states may have to wait until 2020 before they get their chance at redemption.
In March, New Jersey looked like a near-sure thing to legalize, with Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy and state lawmakers seemingly coming to an agreement on excise tax rates after protracted debates. However, talks abruptly fell apart after Republican lawmakers in the state failed to support the legislation, and in-party squabbling among Democrats over social aspects of the bill removed the majority support needed for it to pass
It was a similar story in New York, where social issues held up inclusion of recreational cannabis legislation in the state's budget, which was due at the beginning of April. Both states are good candidates to advance legislation in 2020 that could lead to recreational legalization.
Voting booths with attached pamphlets that are separated by small partitions.
IMAGE SOURCE: GETTY IMAGES.

Ohio ballot initiative in 2019, pending an official review

In 2019, the best chance to legalize recreational marijuana may come from Ohio. The Buckeye State aims to put the Ohio Marijuana Legalization Initiative on the November 2019 ballot, pending review by state officials. As with other legalizations, this would allow adults aged 21 and over to purchase cannabis, with an excise tax to be attached to each sale. 
The reason I'd suggest that Ohio has the best path to legalization is simply because the American public has demonstrated broader support for legalizing marijuana than lawmakers (either at the state or federal level). If a ballot initiative does make its way to the public in Ohio, I'd surmise there's a better than 50-50 shot at approval.
But I'd also caution that nothing is guaranteed, even if two out of three Americans favor legalizing pot. In 2015, Ohioans voted on Issue 3, which was the first and only all-in-one legalization measure in the country that would have approved medical and recreational weed at the same time. Despite growing support for cannabis, state residents voted 2-to-1 against the measure, primarily because it would have granted 10 grow farms a veritable oligopoly in the state. In short, the context of the bill will matter a lot when it comes to whether or not Ohioans will vote for it.
Ohio would be another feather in the cap for MedMen, which will gain exposure to the Buckeye State as well once its PharmaCann purchase has closed.
A senior man holding a rolled cannabis joint in his outstretched hand.
IMAGE SOURCE: GETTY IMAGES.

 

Arizona and Florida: Ballot initiatives expected in 2020

If no other states winding up legalizing recreational weed in 2019, then all eyes in 2020 will likely turn to Arizona and/or Florida -- and not for vacation purposes.
Arizona unsuccessfully voted to legalize adult-use weed back in 2016, with the measure narrowly failing by about 2 percentage points. However, favorability toward the drug has improved nationwide over the past couple of years, and the second time has been the charm in a number of states, including California and Oregon, where initial legalization efforts failed. The Arizona Marijuana Legalization Initiative, which will require close to 238,000 signatures of residents to get on the 2020 ballot, looks like it has a reasonably good chance of passing in November 2020, assuming everything goes to plan. 
The Florida medical marijuana industry has been such an overwhelming success that it seems only logical to see a recreational pot measure make its way to the ballot by November 2020. This is a bit more of a longshot than Arizona, but cannabis support groups have noted their intent to focus in 2020 on legalizing adult-use weed in Florida, one of the largest projected revenue-producing states.
No matter which state follows in the footsteps of Illinois, the fact remains that marijuana is a budding industry that rightly has the attention of opportunistic investors.

Saturday, June 8, 2019

Why the world's largest marijuana company is doubling its plans for US hemp

By Zack Guzman
Source: finance.yahoo.com\
Image result for canopy growth

Canadian cannabis company Canopy Growth (CGC) is doubling down on plans to invest in cultivating hemp in the United States.

Shortly after the passage of the farm bill, which legalized hemp production in the U.S., Canopy Growth launched plans in January to invest up to $150 million to cultivate hemp in New York state. In February, Canopy Growth CEO Bruce Linton told Yahoo Finance the company was prepared to invest a total of $500 million across two to three other states to replicate the hemp efforts in New York.
But now, given the rise in popularity and demand for the non-psychoactive CBD that occurs in greater concentrations in hemp than marijuana plants, Linton says Canopy is preparing to double its U.S. hemp cultivation efforts to six to seven states.
“We think this is moving faster than we expected,” Linton told Yahoo Finance about CBD during Yahoo Finance’s The Business of Cannabis special. “We're not going to be the farmer, but what we're going to do is we're gonna take the plant and we're going to process it, and then we're going to put the resulting ingredients into products that people want to buy. And we think there's a big market to do it.”
According to cannabis market research firm Brightfield Group, the U.S. CBD market is expected to grow 40-times larger by 2022 to reach $22 billion. That growth, however, hinges slightly on what regulations could be imposed on the sale or marketing of the rapidly expanding CBD-infused product set, including everything from creams and lotions to supplements.

CBD products for beauty and wellness

Zahrriya Smith with CBD Lotion at Welcome to Cannacity - 'She's Smokin' Event on April 20, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Michael Bezjian/Getty Images for The Artists Project)
Canopy acquired British cosmetics company This Works for about $54 million in May with the hope of adding CBD to the company’s line of skincare and wellness products. Boosting Canopy’s hemp cultivation efforts in multiple states would not only allow for ample supply for those line of products, but also could potentially help hedge against a crackdown on CBD sales.
“A lot of states are saying, while interstate commerce is permissible, if you want to license in our state, you need to process in our state and the product needs to come from our state,” Linton said.
Directly handling the processing of hemp would also allow the company to ensure the safety and labeling of its products with greater certainty. Linton echoed the findings raised by industry advocates heard at an U.S. Food and Drug Administration hearing on CBD last week that showed many CBD products were mislabeled or contained incorrect levels of CBD, or in some cases none at all.
That could potentially jeopardize the move by many retailers, including CVS and Walgreens, to add CBD products to store shelves in select states earlier this year.
“And so what we think the big box guys want and the large chains is actually a large capable supply chain that makes a good product through a chain of custody that doesn't result in sellouts and doesn't result in recalls,” Linton said.
Canopy’s 308,000 square-foot hemp processing facility, the so-called Hemp Industrial Park in the Southern Tier of New York, is slated to be operational in 2020, though Linton said the company plans on smaller cultivation projects in other states.
“New York's a pretty big state, right? Big population, so you don't need as large as that for most states, but you do need the ability to process product that's produced in the state,” he said.
 

Sunday, June 2, 2019

Ben & Jerry's plans a CBD-infused ice cream, pending FDA approval

By Sarah Min
Source: cbsnews.com
Image result for ben and jerry cbd
  • Ben & Jerry's said Thursday it's planning to release a CBD-infused ice cream as soon as it becomes legal to add cannabidiol to food and beverages. 
  • The ice cream maker said it submitted a comment supporting the regulation change to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. 
  • Congress legalized the sale of CBD-infused topical products, like creams and ointments, but the FDA for now prohibits ingestible products, citing health concerns. 

Forget your midnight pint of "Half Baked" ice cream. Ben & Jerry's said Thursday it plans to release a new CBD-infused ice cream flavor, joining other major consumer brands eager to add the hemp-derived compound to food and beverages as soon as it becomes legal on the federal level.
The Burlington, Vermont-based ice cream manufacturer said it submitted a comment supporting the legalization to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, ahead of the federal agency's first public hearing Friday discussing the regulation of CBD-infused edibles with industry leaders.

"We're doing this for our fans," Ben & Jerry's CEO Matthew McCarthy said in a statement.

Unlike cannabis, CBD does not get users "high" from the THC chemical, and is touted to have medicinal benefits, easing symptoms of anxiety and depression, for instance. 

Congress legalized hemp production in December in the 2018 Farm Act, permitting the sale of CBD-infused topical products like creams and ointments. However, the FDA has prohibited the sale of                                                
That hasn't stopped cities and states from enacting their own conflicting regulations around CBD-infused food and beverages.

Colorado passed a law last year allowing CBD in food and beverages, opening the door for fast-food chain Carl's Jr. in April to test a CBD-infused cheeseburger.

Meanwhile, Ohio, North Carolina and New York City have all banned the hemp-derived compound in food, cracking down on restaurants serving up CBD-infused menu items.

Businesses seeking clarity on FDA regulations are hoping to enter a cannabidiol market forecast to reach $2.1 billion by 2020. The CEO of Oreo-maker Mondelez, Dirk Van de Put, told CNBC earlier this month that the company is considering adding CBD products to its line-up.