Pubdate: Thu, 07 Nov 2013
Source: Denver Post (CO)
Copyright: 2013 The Denver Post Corp
Contact:  http://www.denverpost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/122
Author: Steve Raabe

RULES UNVEILED FOR HEMP CROPS

The New State Regulations Set the Stage for Legally Growing the Close 
Relative to Cannabis.

Colorado officials unveiled regulations Wednesday for legal hemp 
growing, setting the stage for a new agricultural industry.

Hemp advocates at a public meeting in Lakewood said the crop's 
potential is great. But they said development might be slowed by the 
plant's continued illegal status under federal law.

That will create problems for farmers in procuring hemp seed to start 
their crops, speakers said.

Amendment 64, the 2012 Colorado ballot initiative that legalized 
marijuana, also provided for state licensing of industrial hemp farming.

Hemp is a marijuana look alike but contains little or no THC, the 
psychoactive substance in cannabis that makes users high. Hemp and 
its oil rich seeds have dozens of uses in foods, cosmetics, textiles 
and construction materials.

The new state regulations call for farmers to register and pay a $200 
annual fee, plus $1 per acre planted. Farms will be subject to 
inspections to make sure that the hemp plants contain no more than 
0.3 percent THC.

The rules, created by an industrial hemp advisory committee, will be 
submitted next week for approval by commissioners of the state 
Department of Agriculture.

Baca County farmer Ryan Loflin grew and harvested a 55-acre hemp crop 
this year, choosing to not wait for the state regulations. It was the 
nation's first commercial hemp crop in 56 years.

Christopher Boucher of San Diego-based US Hemp Oil said his company 
plans to build a facility to process hemp-seed oil in the San Luis 
Valley. The plant initially could employ six to eight workers and 
grow to 50 or 60 employees, depending on the acreage planted in Colorado.

But he said the facility can't start until farmers have assurance 
that they can buy starter seeds. Because of the federal ban on 
non-sterile hemp seeds, growers could in theory face criminal charges 
or have their foreign seed shipments confiscated by U.S. Customs agents.

Barbara Filippone, owner of Glenwood Springs-based EnviroTextiles, 
said she has plans for two Western Slope factories to make hemp-based 
industrial products.

"Colorado is the ideal location for market development based on 
location and logistics," she said.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom