Idaho Begins Accepting Hemp Industry Applications

Idaho, the last state to enact a hemp cultivation and industry law, is now accepting applications for its hemp program, the Post-Register reports. Federal officials approved the state’s hemp industry plan on November 1 and the applications are for the 2022 growing season.

For farmers, the total application and program costs will run about $1,000 per year, including $100 for the application, $500 for a license, and $250 per lot for pre-harvest inspections. Lot sizes can run from two to 25 acres. It’s up to the farmer to determine how big each lot is.

Braden Jensen, deputy director of governmental affairs for Idaho Farm Bureau Federation (IFBF), told the Post-Register the organization is “happy the program has been approved and growers or processors who are interested in hemp production can begin exploring those opportunities now.”

The IFBF has had a policy supporting the legalization of hemp for more than 20 years.

Chanel Tewalt, deputy director of the Idaho State Department of Agriculture (ISDA), which is responsible for overseeing the hemp program, said that the agency received input on the program rules from about 40 stakeholders, including farmers and would-be processors.

“We’ve appreciated the incredible collaboration we’ve had,” Tewalt told the Post-Register. “We didn’t do this in a vacuum. We had a lot of feedback on this program.”

The Idaho plan does exclude anyone convicted of a felony drug violation in any state or federal court in the last 10 years from participating in the program.