Raise Total THC limit to 1% for Type 'A' Hemp and 3% for Type 'B'
Raise Total THC limit to 1% for Type 'A' Hemp and 3% for Type 'B'
Currently, the Total THC limit for Industrial Hemp producers under the 2018 Farm Bill is .3%. The cap being this low is far too restrictive, and poses a threat to the success rate of the crop for new producers. Hemp grown for cannabinoid extraction to make legal tinctures, salves, and other consumables is processed very differently compared to Industrial Hemp. Due to the nature of Hemp & how it performs in the market, we are asking the USDA to make this helpful shift in their regulations. Not only to raise the Total THC % appropriately, but to categorize Hemp so it can be properly evaluated from the field through the supply chain.
Why are we asking for two separate percentages?
Type 'A' Hemp, i.e. Industrial Hemp (produced to maximize fiber, protein, and/or seed content), is grown to be processed into building materials, clothing, textiles, paper, and more. The Total THC content of Industrial Hemp becomes vastly unimportant as it is not consumable to the public by the time it is able to be purchased, however, raising the testing percentage cap to 1% Total THC will increase the rate of crop success for new farmers, instead of posing a greater risk for total crop destruction if they are to test over that limit.
*It is important to note, the average person will need 5% Total THC > to experience altered effects from ingesting the plant. We are asking for limits that are 1/3 lower than that.
Type 'B' Hemp, i.e. hemp for cannabinoid extraction, is grown to be processed much differently than Type 'A'. These varieties of hemp are grown to be concentrated and extracted to make tinctures, salves, and other consumables. When extracting cannabinoids, (active compounds within Hemp), the process concentrates these levels by volume in the process, which often raises the minimal amount of Total THC over the currently legal .3% present in the plant temporarily. By raising the accepted percentage to 3%, we can ensure safe and compliant extraction to processors from the first step to the last; product packaging.
Please join us in regulating the plant to increase its success from the field to consumer by signing this petition.
The North Dakota Hemp Association aims to eliminate policies that make a successful market less possible, while adhering to the government's wishes to ensure the plant does not intoxicate consumers.