Producers will be allowed to import hemp seeds after a procedural correction from the Department of Agriculture corrected a state of limbo for the industry. As reported in last week’s Agri-Pulse, hemp producers were concerned about implementation of the 2018 farm bill pulling some authorizations — such as hemp seed imports — in the 2014 farm bill in the interim. The 2018 law allowed states to decide if hemp should be produced within their borders, so long as USDA approved a production plan. Last week, USDA announced it would provide “an alternative way for the safe importation of hemp seeds into the United States,” rolling out separate rules for imports from Canada and countries other than Canada. Sen. Jon Tester, the Montana Democrat who used a recent hearing to press Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue on the issue, said the “welcome news” ensures “producers can purchase and clean their seeds in time to get them in the ground this spring.”
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