A New Public Private Partnership, the Colorado Hemp Advancement & Management Plan (CHAMP), Is Set to Strengthen the State’s Leadership Position in Hemp
Originally appeared in the Let’s Talk Hemp Blog & Newsletter
By Steven Hoffman
With the passage in 2012 of marijuana legalization in Colorado, the hemp industry also got an early start in the state, and Colorado is now considered one of the country’s epicenters of hemp agriculture, manufacturing and production. To further that leadership position, Governor Jared Polis has created a unique new public-private initiative, the Colorado Hemp Advancement & Management Plan (CHAMP). His priority in establishing the CHAMP initiative is for “Colorado to remain an innovating force in the promotion of this high-value agricultural commodity,” says the CHAMP website.
Led by Betsy Markey, former Representative to U.S. Congress and current cabinet member of the Polis administration and Executive Director of the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade, along with Colorado Commissioner of Agriculture Kate Greenberg, CHAMP is a year-long statewide initiative that brings together state, local and tribal agencies, as well as industry experts in cultivation, testing, research, processing, finance, economics and marketing. The collaborative effort to help formulate a blueprint for Colorado’s hemp industry includes the Colorado Department of Agriculture, Governor’s Office, Department of Public Health and Environment, Department of Revenue, Department of Regulatory Agencies, Office of Economic Development and International Trade, Department of Public Safety, Colorado Commission of Indian Affairs, Department of Higher Education, local governments and industry experts.
“We had one of the first hemp programs in the country,” Greenberg recently told Westword Magazine. “We’ve got pretty incredible experience in Colorado; our state is set up for it, and our governor is all about hemp. It’s a fantastic time to be doing this work in Colorado, so I think by all accounts, we are ahead of the game. Our intent is to stay there,” she said. In addition to serving as Colorado Commissioner of Agriculture, Greenberg is the former Western Program Director of the National Young Farmers Coalition.
When asked about how to handle issues like “hot” hemp (hemp that exceeds the legal limit of THC), Greenberg said, “Before CHAMP, we didn’t have an avenue to figure these things out, so we took leadership in creating a structure that will allow regulatory agencies, industries, Native tribes, learning institutions and farmers to sit around a table and actually develop answers. There are still so many questions about the X, Y and Z of hemp — like interstate transport [and] how the Department of Public Safety can determine what is hemp and what is not. All of those questions finally have a table to sit at,” Greenberg said.
“CHAMP… is a huge, coordinated effort that includes anyone who has a stake in the game across Colorado, but it’s also going to be open-sourced,” Greenberg continued. “We’ve been talking to other states that don’t have programs, and are offering our expertise. We don’t see this as something we need to hold on to and keep away from everyone. We’ve got a national and international industry with this now, and we can’t keep it within closed borders in Colorado. This is going to have to include interstate commerce, and we really see our creativity and desire to bring in thought leaders as ways to continue our leadership,” she added.
“One way to establish our leadership is getting our state plan into the USDA. We’re in close communication with the USDA to make sure they see us as a partner in this, and that we are a resource. Submitting our state plan is big here, just to make sure our state’s hemp program is still a leader. Another one is the larger CHAMP report, which will show what it takes to grow our hemp industry beyond the Farm Bill. This is a big-vision process,” Greenberg said.
The CHAMP initiative is divided into eight “Stakeholder Groups,” including Research & Development and Seed; Cultivation; Transportation; Testing; Processing; Manufacturing (Food Commodities); Marketing; and Banking and Insurance. The stakeholder groups are scheduled to meet this summer and fall. In addition, leaders of the CHAMP initiative will hold several public meetings, with the first scheduled for Friday, August 16, 2019, in Hesperus, CO. To RSVP for the public meeting and for more information, visit https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/agplants/champ-initiative.
Editor’s Note: Morris Beegle, Co-founder of We Are for Better Alternatives (WAFBA), producer of the NoCo Hemp Expo, Southern Hemp Expo, Hemp on the Slope, Hawaii Hemp Expo and the Let’s Talk Hemp Podcast and Newsletter, was appointed to serve on the CHAMP Marketing Stakeholder Group. In addition, Steven Hoffman of Compass Natural, public relations agency of record for WAFBA and Editor of the Let’s Talk Hemp Newsletter, was also named to the CHAMP Marketing Stakeholder Group.
Organic Hemp Production Emphasized to Lawmakers, Farmers During “Organic Week” Policy Conference in Washington, DC
Originally appeared on www.LetsTalkHemp.com
One Organic Farmer Treats Hemp Grown for CBD Like a “Specialty Vegetable Crop”
By Steven Hoffman
The importance of certified organic in hemp agriculture cannot be overstated. Currently, nearly 80,000 acres are in hemp production in the U.S., and very few of them are certified organic. That means that the majority of hemp produced in the U.S. is being grown conventionally, using potentially toxic, synthetic pesticides and synthetic nitrogen fertilizer derived from the fracking of natural gas.
Frankly, that’s not very good for the environment or for the oncoming climate crisis, as conventional agriculture is one of the largest non-point sources of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions contributing to global warming, and fracking releases massive quantities of methane – another potent GHG – into the atmosphere. On the other hand, organically grown hemp can actually sequestercarbon out of the atmosphere and put it back in the soil where it belongs, helping to keep CO2 and other noxious GHGs out of the atmosphere.
Additionally, when given a choice, I’ll choose CBD and hemp extract products that are produced and processed organically, thus minimizing my dietary exposure to toxic pesticide residues and other chemical solvents, because who wants pesticide residues included with their concentrated botanical medicine?
Seeing the explosive growth of the hemp market in the wake of the 2018 Farm Bill, the organic industry’s leading trade association, the Organic Trade Association (www.ota.com) invited my communications agency, Compass Natural, to help plan and present an educational track focused on farmers’ perspectives and market opportunities for certified organic hemp, CBD and related products as part of OTA’s annual Organic Week policy conference, held May 20-23, 2019, in Washington, D.C. OTA’s Organic Week draws organic industry leaders from across the U.S. to interact with policymakers and Congressional leaders to help forward the interests of organic food and agriculture.
At the Organic Week conference, OTA announced that sales of organic products in the U.S. surpassed $50 billion, growing 6.3% to reach a record $52.5 billion in 2018. Almost 6% (5.7%) of all food sold in the U.S. is now organic, driven in large part by demand for organic produce, dairy, plant-based products, dietary supplements, textiles and fiber. “Organic is now considered mainstream. But the attitudes surrounding organic are anything but status quo,” said Laura Batcha, CEO and Executive Director of the OTA. “In 2018, there was a notable shift in the mindset of those working in organic toward collaboration and activism to move the needle on the role organic can play in sustainability and tackling environmental initiatives.”
Lobbying for Hemp
As part of OTA’s Organic Week, I was scheduled to visit several congressional offices on Capitol Hill, lobbying on behalf of organic food and farming and industrial hemp, CBD and related products. The staff at the offices of Colorado Senators Michael Bennett and Cory Gardner were supportive of industrial hemp in our meetings, and in alignment with Colorado Governor Jared Polis’ goal of furthering Colorado’s leadership in industrial hemp, as were staff leaders in the offices of Colorado Representatives Joe Neguse and Diana DeGette. However, staff at the offices of Idaho Congressmen Russell Fulcher and Mike Simpson deferred to their state’s legislature when it came to my questions regarding Idaho’s seizure in January of a container shipment of industrial hemp from a licensed grower in Oregon bound for processing in Colorado, despite the 2018 federal Farm Bill declaring that interstate transport and commerce of hemp-derived products is now legal throughout the U.S.
In addition to our Capitol Hill visits, I moderated a lively seminar attended by a number of organic farmers interested in or already growing hemp for food, supplements and fiber as part of an educational track focused on hemp during OTA’s Organic Week. At the seminar, longtime organic farmer Chris Jagger, owner of Blue Fox Farm in Oregon, shared how he began growing hemp three years ago. Instead of planting hemp densely, like they do for fiber production where tall stalks and little foliage are desired, Chris farms his hemp like a specialty crop, or “like vegetables,’ he says, to cultivate the delicate hemp flowers for CBD extraction. Currently, a small number of organic certifiers, including OneCert, CCOF and MOSA are certifying farms for organic hemp production, and rumor has it some other major certifiers will soon follow.
At the same time across town, hemp advocate Ben Droz participated in the inaugural Congressional Cannabis Forum hosted on May 21 by Washington, D.C.-based KCSA Strategic Communications. “While covering all aspects of the cannabis market, the KCSA forum presented a hemp panel that examined capital markets and the global economic implications of the legalization of hemp under the 2018 Farm Bill,” said Droz. “If hemp extracts become a global commodity, it might not necessarily benefit small scale farmers and producers,” he cautioned. “However, until the FDA comes up with more clear guidelines concerning hemp products, the big corporate players will continue to sit on the sidelines, allowing time for smaller brands to establish and build market share, but that could change at any time,” he said. Droz noted that the FDA scheduled its first public hearing on hemp and CBD in food and beverage for Friday, May 31, 2019. Information on the hearing is published in the Federal Register.
Organic agriculture is a bright spot in the U.S. farm economy, continuing to grow at a rate more than double the growth rate of the overall U.S. food market. According to new OTA data, the number of organic farms grew by 39% while the total number of farms in the U.S. shrank by 3% between 2012 and 2017. Organic products can now be found in more than 82% of U.S. homes, and in some states, including California, Arizona, Oregon, Washington and my home state of Colorado, organic products are in over 90% of U.S. households. Here’s hoping that organically produced hemp follows suit.
Denver to Host World’s Largest Gathering of Hemp Industry Professionals
Originally Appeared in Let’s Talk Hemp Newsletter, March 2019
By Steven Hoffman
Hemp is changing the world, and as sales take off for all things hemp – from full spectrum hemp extract and CBD products to foods, textiles, building materials, plastics and more – nearly 10,000 producers, investors, entrepreneurs and others will converge on March 28-30, 2019, at the Crowne Plaza DIA Convention Center in Denver, Colorado, for the 6th Annual NoCo Hemp Expo.
NoCo Hemp Expo is the largest gathering of hemp industry professionals under one roof. The highly anticipated event includes an expert lineup of speakers plus a pre-conference Investors Forum on March 28, and full day events including a Business Conference on March 29 and Farm Symposium on March 30. An expanded exhibit hall is open for B2B visitors on March 29-30, and to the public on Saturday, March 30. Visit here for ticket info.
Program Highlights
Featured speakers for this year’s NoCo Hemp Expo include Colorado Governor and hemp advocate Jared Polis; Native American tribal leader turned hemp farmer Winona LaDuke; David Bronner, 5th generation CEO of legendary soap maker Dr. Bronner’s; renowned market researcher Dr. Michelle Barry; regenerative agriculture and soil expert Ray Archuleta; hemp expert and author Doug Fine; hemp entrepreneurs Dani Billings of Nature’s Root and Janel Ralph of Palmetto Harmony; and other leaders breaking new ground in the industrial hemp market. For a complete list of speakers, visit here and for a full program schedule, visit here. Other event highlights include:
Hemp Industry Daily Investor Forum, Thursday, March 28, 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Legal updates and insights; investment trends and deal flow; opportunities and investments; networking; luncheon and more. Visit here for info.
Let’s Talk Hemp Business Conference, Friday, March 29, 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Vertical integration; policy and regulation; compliance and certification; processing and manufacturing; market research; the global business of hemp. Visit here for info.
Let’s Talk Hemp Farm Symposium, Saturday, March 30, 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Regenerative farming; soil health; genetics; new technology and equipment; regulations and compliance. Visit here for info.
Expo Hall, Friday and Saturday, March 29-30, 10:00 am – 6:00 pm
With more than 225 exhibitors, NoCo6’s Expo Hall is open to B2B visitors on March 29 and March 30. The Expo Hall is open to consumers and the public on March 30. Features include an Equipment Zone, International Alley, Science & Tech Spotlight, Workshop Stage, Fashion Parade, Art Zone and more. Visit here for info.
After Party, Saturday, March 30, 8:00 pm – Midnight
Hang with friends at the Hemp Renaissance Ball After Party on Saturday, March 30, 8:00 pm – midnight at the Renaissance Hotel – Denver Stapleton. Buy tickets here.
Press Conference, Friday, March 29, 9:00 am – 9:45 am
For media attendees, NoCo Hemp Expo will host a press conference on Friday, March 29, 2019, onsite at the Crowne Plaza DIA Convention Center at 9:00 – 9:45 am, before the conference and exhibition hall opens. To qualify for a Press Pass, journalists, editors and media must complete a press application here.
“We are truly excited to have top leaders, founders and luminaries in the hemp industry participate in and support this year’s NoCo Hemp Expo,” said Morris Beegle, co-founder of Colorado Hemp Company, producer of NoCo6. “With more than 25,000 industrial uses, hemp is a gift to humanity and the environment. We have an incredible opportunity to build the kind of sustainable, regenerative, socially responsible marketplace we want, and NoCo Hemp Expo is where the hemp community convenes to plan and prepare for a bright future.”
Giving Back
NoCo6 provides support to nonprofit organizations including save-the-bees group Bee Heroic; hemp education group the Jack Herer Foundation; and Hemp History Week, celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, June 3-9, 2019.
Thank You to Our Sponsors
GenCanna™, is the Presenting Sponsor of NoCo6. Other sponsors include Ambary Gardens, Botanical Rush, Canalysis Laboratories, CV Sciences, Enerhealth Botanicals, Extract Labs, Front Range BioSciences, Hawthorne Gardening, Hempsac, Ingenuity Beverages, Isolate Extraction Systems, Lazarus Naturals, Lilu’s Garden, New West Genetics, ProVerde Laboratories, Pure Hemp Botanicals, RAD Extracts, and Frank Robinson Law Group. Meet all of our Sponsor Partners here: https://nocohempexpo.com/sponsors/.
Tickets Are On Sale Now
Tickets are available for the Pre-Conference Hemp Industry Daily Investment Forum, Let’s Talk Hemp Business Conference, Let’s Talk Hemp Farm Symposium and B2B Industry Day in the Expo Hall. For all ticket levels, information and to purchase tickets, visit our website.
About the NoCo Hemp Expo
The 6th Annual NoCo Hemp Expo is produced by the Colorado Hemp Company, a division of WAFBA LLC (We Are For Better Alternatives), based in Loveland, CO. WAFBA also is the producer of the 2nd Annual Southern Hemp Expo and founder of TreeFreeHemp paper and printing services. Areas of focus include product and brand development, event production, consulting and advocacy. Visit NocoHempExpo.com, or visit our YouTube Channel for a video about #NoCo6. You can also find us on Facebook and Twitter, #NoCo6.