2018 Farm Bill: Hemp improves agriculture, economy, Sonny Perdue says
Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue on the farm bill, the potential legalization of hemp on a federal level for commercial use, trade tensions with China, food stamp reform and the rising input costs for farmers.
Hemp prohibition is coming to an end.
The 2018 Farm Bill, which legalizes hemp production, has been approved by Congress and is headed to President Trump, who is expected to sign the bill on Thursday.
Industrial hemp, a part of the cannabis plant, would be removed from the federal list of controlled substances.
U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue told FOX Business that hemp is a product that will be good for the economy.
“This is an industrial-use product, medicinally as well as other products, and we look forward to developing markets for it if it’s a profitable crop,” he told Maria Bartiromo on Thursday. “Agriculture needs new products.”
Hemp can be used to make clothing, ropes, paper, building materials and many other products.
Cannabidiol oil (CBD), is one of the potential uses for hemp. Cannabinoids are the natural chemicals found in marijuana plants that are used medicinally to treat the symptoms associated with a wide variety of disorders and diseases, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
The CBD market is expected to grow to $2.1 billion by 2020, a 700 percent growth from 2016, according to Forbes.
Forty-two states currently have laws allowing cultivation of hemp for commercial or research purposes.