Kentucky is looking to get a quick start in overseeing hemp’s comeback as a legal commodity with an application submitted to federal agriculture officials.
State Agriculture Commissioner Ryan Quarles submitted Kentucky’s hemp regulation plan to the U.S. Department of Agriculture on Thursday, the same day President Donald Trump signed the new federal farm bill into law. The measure legalizes hemp by removing it from the federal list of controlled substances.
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Hemp-related provisions inserted into the bill give state agriculture departments primary authority for oversight of the crop.
Quarles says Kentucky’s hemp growers, processors and manufacturers deserve quick action so they can move ahead with plans.
He says his department received more than 1,000 applications to participate in the 2019 hemp program.
Participants in this year’s program grew more than 6,700 acres (2,710 hectares) of hemp in Kentucky.
