Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell introduced “Hemp Farming Act of 2018” on Thursday that would remove federal barriers to hemp.
The Hemp Farming Act of 2018 aims to establish hemp as an agricultural commodity, protect state regimes, add crop insurance, and bolster research. And right off the bat, the bill puts to rest any questions about whether those hemp-derived CBD-rich extracts are indeed legal:
“The term ‘hemp’ means the plant Cannabis sativa L. and any part of that plant, including the seeds thereof and all derivatives, extracts, cannabinoids, isomers, acids, salts and salts of isomers, whether growing or not, with a delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol concentration of not more than 0.3 percent on a dry weight basis.”
The bill, if successful, would end the debate that has picked apart the hemp plant in piecemeal and end interpretations that hemp-derived extracts rich in cannabinol and other cannabinoids are illicit substances. This would permanently legalize hemp removing it from the purviews of the Controlled Substances Act.
The bill is also backed by Sens. Rand Paul (R-KY), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), and Ron Wyden (D-OR). A companion bill has been introduced in the House.
On Thursday the House Agriculture Committee Chairman Mike Conway released details on H.R. 2, the Agriculture & Nutrition Act of 2018 (Farm Bill). It is Virginia Farm Bureau’s understanding that the bill will be marked up next Wednesday, April 18th at 10:00 a.m.
American farmers are already facing low commodity prices and the uncertainty of a ‘trade war’ drives prices even lower hurting farmers and ranchers and rural communities. Commodity prices will fall as both sides ratchet the trade dispute upward.
Farmers are well-aware markets ebb and flow, but the tariff tit-for-tat between the U.S. and China is testing both the patience and optimism of families who are facing the worst agricultural economy in 16 years, cautioned American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall.
Governor Northam has appointed Dr. Jewel H. Bronaugh Commissioner of the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.
Effective immediately through June 18, 2018, the 
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue is encouraging dairy producers to consider enrolling in the new and improved 
The House passed H.R. 1625, the fiscal year 2018 omnibus spending bill by a vote of 256-167. The Senate passed the bill by a vote of 65-32. The president signed the bill into law after threatening to veto the bill earlier in the day.
Since 2015, David Hula of Charles City County has held the world record for the highest corn yield in the National Corn Growers Association National Corn Yield Contest. He’s also the contestant every farmer wants to beat in season two of RFD-TV’s Corn Wars.
