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The post Meeting hemp at the Asian Hemp Summit was originally published on HempToday. Subscribe to our newsletter, check out our events and follow us on facebook, instagram and twitter.

By Andi Lucas
Special to HempToday

As an absolute newcomer to the world of cannabis, the Asian Hemp Summit 2019 is the first industry event I’ve attended.

Inspired by a chance meeting with Alicia Fall from Her Many Voices and hemp industrialist Eric McKee in Denver last year, I’m happy to say that making the decision to travel to Kathmandu, Nepal for this event was the right one as this has been an incredibly worthwhile experience.

While I have a deep interest in learning more about cannabis and hope to work in this space, the truth is that I effectively have no knowledge of what exactly the plant is, what it can do, or who the current industry players are, so I leapt at the opportunity to come to Himalayan hills to absorb as much as I could about hemp.

The post European Industrial Hemp Association names new director was originally published on HempToday. Subscribe to our newsletter, check out our events and follow us on facebook, instagram and twitter.

Lorenza Romanese, a veteran European policy advisor, has been named Managing Director of the European Industrial Hemp Association (EIHA), the Association has announced.

She replaces Michael Carus of Germany’s Nova Institute, an original founder of EIHA who served as Managing Director of the organization for 13 years.

“I am very conscious of the challenges the industrial hemp sector faces and I am convinced that a harmonized and comprehensive European approach could be beneficial for citizens, consumers and the whole industry,” said Romanese, who brings more than 10 years of experience as a policy advisor and communication manager at the European level. She has advised interests in the oil and gas sector, and most recently led the European Association of Independent Winegrowers.

Prior to taking up her new role with EIHA Romanese worked with a number MEPs to propose hemp reforms to the Common Agriculture Policy in the European Union.

The post Tests find problems in four CBD brands probed in USA was originally published on HempToday. Subscribe to our newsletter, check out our events and follow us on facebook, instagram and twitter.

Four of 29 CBD products were found to be troublesome in recent test results, according to Remedy Review, which contracts with independent laboratories “to validate products and protect consumers.” The results indicate the need for independent monitoring and testing of CBD products, Remedy Review cautioned in a press release.

Two of the products, Joy Organics Orange Bliss 500mg tincture and Pure Hemp Botanicals’ 750mg Pure CBD Oil Full Spectrum Tincture failed testing for pesticides. Joy Organics’ product failed due to detection of the pesticide Imazalil while Pure Hemp’s product showed presence of the pesticide synergist piperonyl butoxide. The producer has recalled Orange Bliss units that were purchased in the month of December 2018, according to Remedy Review.

Bacteria, labeling cited

In other results, Sagely Naturals Relief + Recovery CBD + Turmeric Capsules exceeded limits for bile-tolerant gram-negative bacteria; and JustCBD’s 550MG tincture (retail price $74.99) contained only 1.8 mg/mL of CBD – one-tenth the concentration listed on the label, or the CBD equivalent of a 50MG tincture that JustCBD sells for $15.00.

“There is unprecedented incentive for brands to rush products to market and potentially take risks in the supply chain that could harm consumers,” Remedy Review, which is based in Raleigh, North Carolina, said in the release.

The post Kentucky hemp fields could triple as applications soar was originally published on HempToday. Subscribe to our newsletter, check out our events and follow us on facebook, instagram and twitter.

Hemp fields in the U.S. state of Kentucky could nearly triple this year as state agriculture officials say they have approved applications to grow up to 42,000 acres of the crop in 2019, up from 16,000 acres last year.

Farmers do not always take full advantage of their hemp farming allotments, however. For example, last year only about 6,700 acres of the 16,000 approved went under hemp.

Hemp ‘epicenter’

“The growth shows that Kentucky is rapidly becoming the epicenter of the hemp industry in the United States,” following passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, said Ryan Quarles, the state’s Agriculture Commissioner. “We believe Kentucky is ready to lead as the nation begins the process of transitioning to commercialization of a crop that connects our past to our future.”

Quarles said the Kentucky Department of Agriculture (KDA) also approved 2.9 million square feet of greenhouse space for hemp cultivation.

The post Taking the ‘hemp’ flag into the battle with social media giants was originally published on HempToday. Subscribe to our newsletter, check out our events and follow us on facebook, instagram and twitter.

Another skirmish in the broader battle to get “hemp” free in the social media space launched from Planet Boulder on Yahoo Finance (YF) earlier this month.

“We’ve been rejected by almost every single digital media company that’s out there,” Ari Sherman, founder of Colorado, USA-based Evo Hemp, a food and CBD seller, told YF.

More alarmingly, Sherman says he’s observed some big players getting preferential treatment from social media giants in allowing advertising for competing products.

Not a new problem

“They’re allowing them to advertise a few hemp products here and there,” Sherman said. “We couldn’t promote those exact same items,” Sherman told Yahoo, and the problem is not new.

The post ‘Calling out to my nation’: Erdogan urges farmers to grow hemp was originally published on HempToday. Subscribe to our newsletter, check out our events and follow us on facebook, instagram and twitter.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has called on farmers to begin growing more hemp in the country.

”I am calling out to my nation; let’s start the process to cultivate industrial hemp. We will see that industrial hemp has many different benefits in many different areas,” Erdoğan said at a meeting of BMC, a privately owned Turkish-Qatari armored vehicles manufacturer. *

Permitting is afoot

Erdogan said the Agriculture and Forestry Ministry and the Environment and Urbanization Ministry departments have already held talks on the matter. His statement comes days after Agriculture and Forestry Minister Bekir Pakdemirli first revealed new permits were going to be issued.

Currently, hemp cultivation under strict regulations is allowed in 19 regions of Turkey. However, it was a major crop during the Ottoman era and was grown extensively in the provinces of Samsun, Sinop, Kastamonu, Amasya, Çorum, Tokat, Yozgat, Ordu, Burdu, Urfa and Malatya. Aside from being used by the Ottoman Navy, hemp was also used by individuals at home for fabric, twine, rope, and sacks.

The post One processor goes online, second is planned in New York State was originally published on HempToday. Subscribe to our newsletter, check out our events and follow us on facebook, instagram and twitter.

The capacity for hemp processing in the U.S. state of New York looks to be ramping up quickly, with one facility recently starting operations and an announcement this week that a second factory is planned.

CNY Hemp Processing, Canastota, New York, recently went online and will produce hemp oil, fuel pellets and animal bedding, according to company president Stephen Halton.

The company also is taking fiber waste from CBD producers and turning it into bedding material for farm animals

CNY will add five workers over the next few months and is exploring development of a satellite facility, Halton said.

The post Deep-rooted Herer Hemp Inc. sees a wide, challenging horizon was originally published on HempToday. Subscribe to our newsletter, check out our events and follow us on facebook, instagram and twitter.

Hemp entrepreneur Dan Herer and an executive group have established Herer Hemp Inc., a new entity that has positioned itself to develop products across all major industrial hemp sectors in the USA.

“We just took hemp off Schedule 1,” Herer said of recent changes at the federal level in the USA that saw hemp reclassified as a common agricultural crop. “We’re now gonna be able to get crop insurance, have bank accounts — and grow tens of thousands of acres of crops without the restrictive framework of being a schedule 1 Drug,” Herer said.

Strong roots

Herer, son of the late, legendary hemp visionary and rabble-rousing advocate Jack Herer, is also Director of the California-based Jack Herer Foundation, which works to advance the industry by emphasizing how industrial hemp can impact lives through education, community and farming.

Herer spent several years carefully developing high-quality products with a team of scientists, studying hemp and biomass for a wide, wide array of applications. It’s that work that serves as the basis for a “well rounded, diverse hemp company” going forward in the new era, Herer said.

The post Hemp firm CEO detained in Florida for carrying lotion, shampoo was originally published on HempToday. Subscribe to our newsletter, check out our events and follow us on facebook, instagram and twitter.

Cannabis activist and hemp entrepreneur Hana Gabrielova was detained and fined $500 in Florida yesterday for being in possession of hemp-based shampoo and lotion.

Gabrielova, a Czech citizen and CEO at Jihlava, Czech-based Hempoint s.r.o., was singled out and detained after a sniffer dog alerted authorities to her luggage upon arrival to Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, she told HempToday.

3-hour detention

U.S. Customs & Border Protection agents detained her for three hours, Gabrielova said. They issued the fine after they claimed analysis showed the presence of THC in lotion Gabrielova picked up in California and a Czech made shampoo she’d carried with her on a business trip to South America after flying from California. The officers did not indicate how much THC their test showed, only saying the analysis was “positive,” Gabrielova said.

“I asked them many times to cite the law the fine was based on,” Gabrielova said. “They couldn’t do it. They just kept saying THC is an illegal substance to import. So I got fined for the illegal import of THC in shampoo and lotion.”

The post FDA asserts it has regulatory role over CBD products in USA was originally published on HempToday. Subscribe to our newsletter, check out our events and follow us on facebook, instagram and twitter.

The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has asserted its authority to regulate products derived from cannabis, including hemp. FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said CBD products, including those derived from hemp, would be subject to FDA oversight.

The declaration came recently in the wake of December’s signing of the U.S. Farm Bill that expanded the legal bounds for hemp

Gottlieb said in a press release that while the Farm Bill removed hemp from the Controlled Substances Act, the agency still has a regulatory responsibility.

“Congress explicitly preserved the agency’s current authority to regulate products containing cannabis or cannabis-derived compounds under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act) and section 351 of the Public Health Service Act,” Gottlieb said. “In doing so, Congress recognized the agency’s important public health role with respect to all the products it regulates.”

The post Canada’s ICC agrees to buy Enigma of Portugal in all-stock transaction was originally published on HempToday. Subscribe to our newsletter, check out our events and follow us on facebook, instagram and twitter.

Canada’s ICC International Cannabis Corp. (ICC) has an agreed to acquire 100% of Portugal’s Enigma Unipessoal Lda, which ICC said holds one of the first hemp licenses to be issued in Portugal. ICC, based in Vancouver, British Columbia, will issue $11.8 million in shares to Enigma under terms of the all-stock deal.

160 hectares

Enigma’s license permits the cultivation, processing and import/export of hemp-derived products from 160 hectares (400 acres) of farmland in the Castelo Branco region of Portugal, according to ICC. The Portuguese company’s hemp operations have the potential to yield 45,000 kg of CBD isolate per year, ICC said.

“International Cannabis is progressing towards a full spectrum cannabis license in Portugal, which it is hopeful to achieve before the end of Q1 2019,” ICC CEO Eugene Beukman said in a release. “This acquisition lays an excellent foundation for the comprehensive buildout of a vertically integrated Portuguese operation.”

Enigma plans to make branded and white-label products such as CBD-infused chocolate, CBD oils and CBD-based topical creams.

The post Stakeholders working on EU ag policies to better position hemp was originally published on HempToday. Subscribe to our newsletter, check out our events and follow us on facebook, instagram and twitter.

With the EU’s Common Agriculture Policy (CAP) currently up for reform, the European Industrial Hemp Association (EIHA) and members of the European Parliament (MEP) are working together to make improvements for the hemp industry in the EU. Stakeholders expect final recommendations could be ready by mid-January.

CAP implements a system of agricultural subsidies and other programs supporting member nations. Introduced in 1962, the program has undergone constant reform and now also embraces rural development.

THC levels, genetics

Efforts at policy shaping on the EU level currently embrace such things as increasing allowable THC levels allowed in hemp varieties grown in the EU from 0.2% to 0.3%, which would return the EU to the limit that was valid up until 1999, incoming EIHA Managing Director Lorenza Romanese told HempToday. Current restraints on THC levels “restricts the choice of varieties for European farmers,” she said. Currently, around 60 varieties are available but she believes an increase in THC levels could see that list grow substantially.

Clarity on EU-allowable THC levels in food is also being requested. Romanese believes outdated and unnecessarily strict levels of THC means “the hemp food industry in Europe has a significant competitive disadvantage to producers in North America and Asia.”

”Furthermore, the importance of plant genetic diversity (PGD) is now being recognized. Hemp plants used today in Europe are the result of long interbreeding process,” said Romanese, who believes this process undermines the genetic heritage and the strength of the plants; new varieties would mean new genes to breed.

The post Elixinol names Beckerman regulatory officer and liaison in USA was originally published on HempToday. Subscribe to our newsletter, check out our events and follow us on facebook, instagram and twitter.

Colorado, USA-based Elixinol has named Joy Beckerman Regulatory Officer and Industry Liaison, the company said in a release.

Beckerman is president of the (U.S.) Hemp Industries Association, and Vice President of the U.S. Hemp Authority. She also serves as national board member for the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), and is principal owner of Hemp Ace International, a New York-based cannabis consulting firm.

Elixinol said Beckerman will advise the company’s executive team on industry changes and compliance with hemp’s fast-changing regulatory framework after passage of the 2018 Farm Bill. She’ll also represent the company in other cannabis and hemp industry organizations, Elixiol said.

Beckerman will report to Elixinol President Gabriel Ettenson.

The post CannabiGold signs on to sponsor first-ever Asian Hemp Summit was originally published on HempToday. Subscribe to our newsletter, check out our events and follow us on facebook, instagram and twitter.

European CBD brand CannabiGold has signed on as a sponsor for the Asian Hemp Summit Feb. 1-2 in Kathmandu, Nepal. CannabiGold products also will be on display in HempToday’s HempBoutique, a traveling showroom for premium hemp products that is part of the Summit.

Rapid expansion

Produced by Elblag, Poland-based HemPoland, CannabiGold has rapidly expanded in the last two years. The brand currently has distribution in Poland, Austria, Germany and several other EU countries.HemPoland is a leading supplier of quality CBD products in Europe, managing more than 50 bulk and private label clients.

The vertically integrated company manages local hemp fields via third parties, as well as commercial scale extraction units in a tightly controlled production system. CannabiGold-brand products are turned out via state-of-the-art CO2 extraction technologies, while an on-site laboratory monitors for standards and quality.

All about hemp

A roster of international hemp industry leaders will give presentations on a wide range of topics during the Summit — from cultivation to food, hemp construction, cosmetics, textiles, CBD and more.

The post Polish company launches hemp-infused ‘Jim’s Beard Oil’ was originally published on HempToday. Subscribe to our newsletter, check out our events and follow us on facebook, instagram and twitter.

Poland-based Herbs & Hydro (H&H) has launched Jim’s Beard Oil, the first product in a planned line of men’s health and beauty products based on hemp and other herbs.

“Hemp has amazing properties in all health and beauty products,” said Tomek Gorski, H&H CEO and Founder. “It shouldn’t necessarily be singled out but should be integrated freely into natural products generally. We’re at that moment.”

Legacy Polish hemp firm

H&H, based in Katowice, Poland, which has been in business since 2014, already produces a high-end line of craft bar, liquid and foam soaps, sold primarily in Poland via its web site and specialized distributors such as health and herb stores.

Herb & Hydro’s planned line for men includes beard & pubic shampoos, mustache wax, lubricants, skin lotions and a massage oil — all incorporating hemp oil.

The post Elixinol CBD, other cannabis brands to advertise on Times Square was originally published on HempToday. Subscribe to our newsletter, check out our events and follow us on facebook, instagram and twitter.

After being denied advertising space on Times Square in New York a year ago, CBD brand Elixinol secured space for this year’s annual celebration at the iconic New Year’s Eve celebration, the company said.

Brand parent Elixinol Global, which has distribution in 40 countries, said advertisements for its namesake brand will appear in multiple locations throughout Times Square during the celebration. This year marks the first in which ads for cannabis brands will appear at the event — due in part to passage of the 2018 Farm Bill which is opening new avenues of advertising for brands in the CBD and hemp extract space, Elixinol said.

Iconic ad venue

”What a difference a year makes,” said Chris Husong, Director of Sales and Marketing for Elixinol, noting last year’s ban on cannabis ads at the New York City event. “Times Square on New Year’s Eve is one of the most iconic advertising spaces in the United States, with over a million in-person visitors and over a billion around the globe watching the festivities on TV. This placement reflects our optimism for 2019.”

Elixinol was the first CBD company to advertise CBD on outdoor space in Japan at Toyko’s Omotesando subway station.

The post Asian Hemp Summit organizers look for innovative ideas was originally published on HempToday. Subscribe to our newsletter, check out our events and follow us on facebook, instagram and twitter.

One entrepreneur will earn a spot at the podium during the inaugural Asian Hemp Summit under the event’s Entrepreneur Reward Program, which organizers have announced. The deadline for applications is Friday, Jan. 11, with winners to be announced Monday, Jan. 14.

“A lot of the industry’s future is in the ideas that bubble up from the bottom,” said Dhiraj K. Shah, Shah Hemp Inno-Ventures (SHIV), which is one of the organizers of the Summit, Feb. 1-2 in Kathmandu. “We’re looking to give those innovators a higher profile, to help get their ideas before others in the industry who can help them realize their vision.”

Enterprise Hemp, an online business matchmaker, is the sponsor of the Entrepreneur Rewards Program.

Up to five honorees will be selected from among researchers & business students, startups and other initiatives. The top prize winner will receive a free accreditation and accommodation at the Summit and make a 15-minute presentation to attendees.

The post Sustainability ethos drives hempcrete-built village in Western Australia was originally published on HempToday. Subscribe to our newsletter, check out our events and follow us on facebook, instagram and twitter.

An eco-village which utlitizes hempcrete in all 12 of its homes recently opened in Western Australia.

“We are pretty sure this is the biggest hempcrete construction project in Australia,” and may be be the biggest in the Southern Hemisphere, Project Manager Paul Llewellyn recently told local media.

Located in the town of Denmark, the village is known as the DecoHousing project. Llewellyn came up with the idea five years ago and now is enjoying life in the village as one of its first residents.

Strong sustainability ethos

Developed by DecoHousing Denmark Group, the project is a local initiative to create a co-housing community with a strong sustainability ethos among its collaborative owner/builders. 

The post Irish hemp firm cited for ‘high-potential’, earns development award was originally published on HempToday. Subscribe to our newsletter, check out our events and follow us on facebook, instagram and twitter.

Hemp farmers Laura Foley and her partner Daniel Lyons have been awarded a stipend of €15,000 to help develop their hemp business from Enterprise Ireland, a development agency. The partners launched their company, Canabaoil, in late-2017.

The award, under the agency’s “New Frontiers” program, is among a number granted annually to high-potential startups.

Stamp of approval

“It is an opportunity to develop our strategic growth plan with guidance from a panel of international experts but most importantly for me, it was the stamp of approval to say yes this is a commercially viable idea,” Foley said. It also opens other avenues for the company to help promote hemp in government and business circles and add legitimacy to the wider Irish hemp industry.

Canabaoil, based in County Clare on the west coast of Ireland, hopes to have a CBD tincture on the market in March 2019, and is researching other products such as cosmetics, foods, beers and pet food.

The post Legacy, vast market make India a rich target for hemp investors was originally published on HempToday. Subscribe to our newsletter, check out our events and follow us on facebook, instagram and twitter.

Nivedita Bansal Shah is co-founder of Shah Hemp Inno-Ventures (SHIV) where she manages administration and human resources, and imbues every aspect of the company with social consciousness. Trained as a psychologist and life and relationship coach, she began her professional career in organization development, working toward improving the quality of education for underprivileged students. Nivedita has a Masters Degree in Psychology from the University of Delhi, and holds certification as a Trained Positive Psychology Coach. She is also SHIV’s coordinator in the company’s partnership with HempToday on the Asian Hemp Summit next February.

HempToday: What do you think are the biggest potential strengths of the Indian hemp industry?
Nivedita Bansal Shah: Hemp and cannabis in general are nothing new for India and the Indian subcontinent. So acceptance of this plant and its products is inherited. Medicinal benefits of cannabis are highlighted in Ayurveda (Vedic science), so proving its potential for human health is not painstaking. We’ve also worked with hemp fiber throughout history, particularly as that applies to textile production. We also see a strong entrepreneurial class developing.

HT: What do things look like at the entrepreneurial/startup level in India?
NBS: There is a lot of interest among entrepreneurs, and the urge among these startups to work hemp into broader initiatives that help people is very strong. While Uttarakhand in the north is most advanced in the beginning stages of development, we get inquiries from all over the country.

HT: Why should investors be interested in putting their money into Indian hemp?
NBS: India has always been an area of interest for investors and entrepreneurs mainly because of the vastness of its market and population. Investors can see returns from investments in cultivation, research and other fundamental areas initially. There are Indian entities looking into every application of industrial hemp including health and medical products such as CBD. And, of course, it’s always an advantage to the investor to get in on the ground floor of any economic movement.