BUSINESS & AG LIFE
2B — THE OBSERVER & BAKER CITY HERALD
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 2019
Executives: ‘Hot’ hemp more likely under WSDA rule
By Don Jenkins
Capital Press
A high percentage of hemp will
test “hot” and have to be destroyed
under testing procedures adopted
this month by the Washington
State Department of Agriculture,
the chief operating offi cer of a Spo-
kane laboratory said Monday.
The state’s procedures are pat-
terned after a USDA rule adopted
in October intended to catch hemp
too high in THC. In one change,
the state agriculture department
will stop testing whole plants
and instead take a cutting just
underneath the fl owers at the top
one-third of the plant.
Trace Analytics COO Jason
Zitzer said the protocol will zero in
on the part of the plant with the
most THC, excluding other useful
parts such as the stalk. “I’m not sure
anybody is going to pass,” he said.
The Spokane business was the
only private laboratory used this
year by Washington to test hemp.
Only one sample failed, and that
sample was retested at a state lab
and passed.
The USDA’s interim hemp rules
took effect Oct. 31 and will be en-
Richard A. Howard/ USDA
Hemp grows in a fi eld. The Washington Department of Agriculture
plans to destroy hemp too high in THC, the main psychoactive com-
pound in marijuana.
force until at least Nov. 1, 2021. The
agency will take public comments
until Dec. 30 on whether to revise
the regulations.
“If the USDA changes its rules,
we’ll change our policies accord-
ingly,” state agriculture department
spokesman Chris McGann said.
“Our intent is to have something
compatible with USDA rules.”
The 2018 Farm Bill removed a
major obstacle to growing hemp
in the U.S. by legalizing cannabis
plants low in THC, the main psy-
choactive compound in marijuana.
The USDA, however, will require
states to continue to license hemp
growers and test plants before they
are harvested.
Washington will test one plant
or less per acre. If the THC level is
above 0.3%, the entire fi eld must be
burned, plowed under or composted.
Marijuana generally has THC
levels of 3-15%, according to the
USDA. The Alcohol and Drug
Abuse Institute at the University of
Washington reported this year that
some retail marijuana products are
labeled as having THC content of
more than 30%, though the labels
are not reliable and results vary
from laboratory to laboratory, ac-
cording to the institute.
Zitzer said he doubts anyone in
Washington, where marijuana is
legal, would bother to intention-
ally cultivate hemp high in THC.
Farmers, however, could unwit-
tingly plant varieties that exceed
the limit.
“Some of these farmers are not
going to know about the genetics.
They’re only going to know what
they’re being told,” he said.
The USDA’s new rules also will
change when hemp is tested in
Washington. Plants must be tested
within 15 days of harvest. Previ-
ously, Washington required testing
within 30 days. The shorter time
frame will cause problems, Zitzer
predicts.
Several days can pass before a
state inspector delivers plants to
the laboratory, he said. Plants have
to be dried before testing and that
can take up to 10 days, he said.
“Some of it is coming in sopping
wet,” he said. “I think the 15 days,
especially as wet as the Northwest
is, is not great for our region.”
The USDA says 15 days will allow
for delays caused by weather or
equipment breakdowns, but still give
accurate results. The longer hemp
stays in the ground, the higher its
THC, according to the USDA.
WSDA says it may contract with
more laboratories next year. It also
may hire more seasonal inspectors.
The state agriculture depart-
ment projects hemp oversight will
cost $205,000 a year. To support the
program, the department will raise
fees that farmers pay.
A seasonal license to grow hemp
will increase to $1,200 from $750
beginning June 1. Farmers also must
pay inspection and testing fees.
The department will take ap-
plications from growers between
Jan. 1 and March 31. Applications
submitted after that will have a
$200 “late fee.”
All licenses will expire April 1.
Currently, licenses are valid for one
year from the date it was issued.
Oregon senators weigh in on USDA interim hemp rule
By George Plaven
Capital Press
WASHINGTON, D.C. —
Oregon’s two U.S. senators
are probing the USDA
over what they describe
as “unintended and poten-
tially harmful effects” of the
agency’s interim hemp rule,
which was released last
month.
In a letter sent Nov. 20 to
Secretary of Agriculture Son-
ny Perdue, Sens. Ron Wyden
and Jeff Merkley outlined
concerns raised by farmers,
researchers and regulators
that could impact industrial
hemp production in Oregon
and across the country.
Hemp was fully legalized
in the 2018 Farm Bill and de-
fi ned as an agricultural com-
modity. Lawmakers ordered
the USDA to come up with
regulations for growing and
testing the versatile crop.
By defi nition, hemp can-
not contain more than 0.3%
tetrahydrocannabinol, or
THC, the psychoactive com-
ponent in cannabis that gets
users high.
The USDA rule allows
hemp growers to access
federal programs that were
previously off limits, such
as crop insurance and farm
loans. But the program also
contains stricter require-
ments for growing hemp
than the Oregon Depart-
ment of Agriculture’s pilot
program, which has worried
local producers.
Wyden and Merkley, both
Democrats, are outspoken
advocates for hemp. They
worked across the aisle with
Senate Majority Leader
Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., to
pass the Hemp Farming
Act of 2018, removing hemp
from the list of Schedule I
drugs.
Legalization prompted an
explosion of the crop across
Oregon in 2019, with more
than 63,000 registered acres
statewide compared with
11,754 acres in 2018. The
senators are now asking
the USDA to modify several
WAGE
George Plaven/Capital Press fi le photo
Several hundred fi eld workers pick hemp fl owers on a late
September morning at Hemptown USA’s Oregon farm in
Central Point. Oregon’s senators are urging the USDA to
change testing standards in its interim hemp rules.
provisions in the interim
guidelines to avoid hamper-
ing the hemp industry.
Under the rule, growers
are required to test hemp
plants for THC levels within
15 days of anticipated har-
vest. Wyden and Merkley
wrote they are very con-
cerned that does not provide
enough time for farms, and
encouraged the USDA to
adopt Oregon’s standard for
crop testing within 28 days
of harvest.
The senators also asked
the USDA drop its require-
ment that all hemp test-
ing be done solely at labs
registered by the U.S. Drug
Enforcement Administra-
tion, which they wrote
could cause “tremendous
bottlenecks and unnecessary
delays” for producers.
A major issue for growers
centers on the specifi c meth-
ods for testing THC levels in
hemp. In Oregon, testing has
been done for “delta-9” THC
alone under the 0.3% limit.
However, the USDA wants
to change the standard to
measuring “total THC,”
taking into account another
compound known as tetra-
hydrocannabinolic acid — or
THCA — that converts into
mind-altering delta-9 THC
when applied to heat.
If the change is made, it
means some cannabis that
qualifi ed as hemp in previ-
ous years might now exceed
the 0.3% threshold and
would need to be destroyed.
According to Wyden and
Merkley, “We believe strong-
ly that this is a complete
reversal of the congressional
intent expressed in that law,
and requires testing that
Congress specifi cally did
not include.” They asked the
USDA to remove all require-
ments for “total THC,” and
allow testing for delta-9 TC
that does not involve apply-
ing heat.
Finally, the USDA interim
rule states farmers can be
found negligent if their hemp
crop exceeds 0.5% THC. This
is meant to deter producers
who would intentionally try
to grow illegal marijuana
plants under the guise of the
Hemp Production Program.
Wyden and Merkley argue
that is a far too low and ar-
bitrary number, requesting
the negligence threshold be
greater than 1% THC.
“A reasonably prudent
hemp producer could take
the necessary steps and pre-
cautions to produce hemp,
such as using certifi ed seed,
using seed that has reliably
grown compliant plants in
other parts of the country
and engaging in other best
practices, yet still produce
hemp plants that exceed this
0.5% THC concentration,”
they wrote.
In their letter, the sena-
tors thanked the USDA for
its rulemaking, and said
they look forward to careful
consideration of their recom-
mendations.
“Farmers in Oregon and
across the country are on
the precipice of an agricul-
tural boom that, with the
right regulatory framework,
stands to boost rural econo-
mies in every corner of the
country,” they wrote.
]
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Continued from Page 1B
wage increases of $2 million
two years — more than 30%
compared with the national
average of 5-6% in the same
period.
“This is assuming no ad-
ditional employees or hours.
It signifi cantly impacts our
ability to sustain, let alone
grow,” Rolfe said.
“The path we are on is
unsustainable and must be
addressed. We call on our
leaders in Washington, D.C.,
to work together to fi nd a
solution. Soon it will be too
late,” he said.
EASTERN OREGON UNIVERSITY
McKenzie Theatre • two performances
Saturday, December 7 - 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, December 8 - 3:00 p.m.
Adults $10.00 Seniors and Students $8.00
Tickets available at Red Cross Drug and The EOU
Bookstore. Advanced ticket purchase is highly recommended.
Purchase tickets online for $10 each with credit card
at eou.edu/music.
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contact Peter Wordelman at 541-962-3352