The Schoppee Farm in Machias has been in Ben Edwards' family for 200 years. It was a dairy farm for decades, and Edwards knew someday he wanted to take over running the day-to-day operations.
When he realized restarting it as a dairy farm wouldn't be possible, he needed to find a new crop. “And then in 2018, when hemp was federally legalized, we thought that made some sense," he said.
Edwards and a few hundred Maine farmers all got into the hemp industry four years ago. “It turned out that the farm was very well suited for hemp, which was a novel thing. Everything we had looked at previously would have been a forced fit," he added. After the farm's first harvest one year later in 2019, Edwards realized keeping up maintenance around the farm is tough work. But, he later understood the labor-intensive harvest was actually the easy part of his new job.
Because so many farmers began growing hemp, the market was oversaturated. Edwards said the prices for his product at the end of the harvest season were a fraction of what they were at the beginning.
He said around 200 farmers grew hemp when it became legalized in 2018, and now there are 50 farms around Maine. His coastal farm harvests hemp during the first week or so of October, a little earlier than other inland farms might harvest. Besides the market challenges, Edwards was met with the banking, insurance, and credit card issues that come with working in the cannabis industry.
“Many farmers are moving away from growing hemp because the regulations are burdensome," State House Representative Maggie O’Neil, D-Saco, said Friday. O'Neil is the House chair of the Joint Standing Committee on Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry. She said many hemp farmers are confused with federal regulations that restrict their business growth opportunities. “We all agree the federal rules are bad, and they need to change," she added. A bill titled 'An Act To Make Changes to the State's Hemp Program' is still on the table in Augusta ahead of Monday's expected last day of the legislative session. The bill would increase that 0.3% THC threshold and prevent farmers like Edwards from destroying some of their crop that barely exceeds the limit. The legislation would also clear up licensing regulations at the state level.
To read the complete article, go to www.newscentermaine.com
US (ME): Hemp farmers are looking to remove barriers preventing industry growth
Publication date:
Receive the daily newsletter in your email for free | Click here
Other news in this sector:
- 2023-09-25 Why do we still need laboratories when sensors are everywhere?
- 2023-09-21 Prinsjesdag budget: Cabinet comes to take money from horticulture
- 2023-09-21 Climate plans calculated, CO2 tax still to come
- 2023-09-20 Virgin Islands: Government House cutting cannabis college costs
- 2023-09-19 NL: Cannabis experiment to start with delivery from two growers
- 2023-09-19 US (OK): Lawmakers discuss possible benefits of hemp production to rural areas
- 2023-09-19 US (AK): Cannabis businesses plead for tax relief, mention illicit market
- 2023-09-18 US: Federal agencies discuss cannabis research barriers, state legalization models and CBD regulations
- 2023-09-18 US (CA): Humboldt County cannabis: From prohibition prosperity to regulatory realities
- 2023-09-15 “Efficiency and capital are currently the biggest challenges”
- 2023-09-14 US (AL): MMJ commission falsely claimed bidder had a criminal history, lawsuit alleges
- 2023-09-13 US (NM): $48M in cannabis purchases in August
- 2023-09-12 Helping cannabis businesses navigate New York's licensing applications
- 2023-09-12 US (CT): Sales data show $14M of adult-use sales, and $11M MMJ sales during August
- 2023-09-12 US (MO): Company at center of recall used hemp in products
- 2023-09-11 Argentina: Government introduces La Rioja's first medicinal cannabis oil
- 2023-09-11 US (NJ): Battle over cannabis farm in Hunterdon triggers 'anonymous threats', lawsuits
- 2023-09-08 US (ME): Sales continue to break records with August alone topping $21 million
- 2023-09-07 US (MD): Retailers sell record $92M during second month of adult-use legalization
- 2023-09-06 Port of Dover is taking steps to prevent long queues