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Hemp farmers applaud MO hemp rule amendment

A couple of eastern Missouri hemp farmers are applauding the recent hemp rule amendment in the state.

The amendment increases the pre-harvest window for compliance sampling from 15 to 30 days, allows remediation options for eligible crops that initially tested above the allowed 0.3 percent THC level, and updated testing laboratory requirements to be registered with the Drug Enforcement Agency.

First generation hemp farmers Jojo and Max Snyder Operate Tall Trees Hemp. They say while the changes haven’t impacted them yet, they provide greater flexibility for producers.

Jojo Snyder tells Brownfield the changes give hemp growers a wider range of labs to work with and protections from losing crops that test over the THC threshold.

“Right around harvest you’re testing every two days and you need the results to come, and the labs get the samples quickly enough for you,” she said. “It’s a huge thing that they’ve offered, you know, a remediation option. People need that opportunity at least to be able to use the biomass material and dilute it or whatever it may be.”

Max Snyder said he expects to see more changes in the future as the hemp industry grows.

“…Making it a little bit more attractive to introduce a new crop into our economy, especially in a place like Missouri where farming and agricultural business is a large part of the state,” he said. “I think they (Missouri Department of Agriculture) want to capitalize on the monetary value that it can bring.”

The Missouri Department of Agriculture says more than 200 Producer Registrations were issued in Missouri last year with 811 acres of hemp planted in the state.