Kentucky was the greatest producer of

hemp Hemp, or industrial hemp, is a botanical class of ''Cannabis sativa'' cultivars grown specifically for industrial or medicinal use. It can be used to make a wide range of products. Along with bamboo, hemp is among the fastest growing plants o ...

in the United States during the 19th and 20th centuries, when it was the source of three fourths of U.S. hemp fiber. Production started to decline after World War I due to the rise of tobacco as the

cash crop A cash crop or profit crop is an Agriculture, agricultural crop which is grown to sell for profit. It is typically purchased by parties separate from a farm. The term is used to differentiate marketed crops from staple crop (or "subsistence crop") ...

in Kentucky and the foreign competition of hemp fibers and finished products. In 1970, federal policies virtually banned the production of industrial hemp during the

War on Drugs The war on drugs is a Globalization, global campaign, led by the United States federal government, of prohibition of drugs, drug prohibition, military aid, and military intervention, with the aim of reducing the illegal drug trade in the Unite ...

saying all ''

Cannabis sativa ''Cannabis sativa'' is an annual Herbaceous plant, herbaceous flowering plant indigenous to East Asia, Eastern Asia, but now of cosmopolitan distribution due to widespread cultivation. It has been cultivated throughout recorded history, used as ...

'' is a

Schedule I controlled substance This is the list of Schedule I drugs as defined by the United States Controlled Substances Act. 21 CFRbr>1308.11(CSA Sched I) with changes through (Oct 18, 2012). Retrieved September 6, 2013. The following findings are required for drugs to be pl ...

. Federal law under the

Agricultural Act of 2014 The Agricultural Act of 2014 (; , also known as the 2014 U.S. Farm Bill), formerly the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act of 2013, is an act of Congress that authorizes nutrition and agriculture programs in the United States for t ...

allowed research back into hemp. Kentucky began production again with 33 acres in 2014. As of the 2016 harvest season, only two U.S. states other than Kentucky had over in hemp production: Colorado and Tennessee. The first 500-acre commercial crop was planted in Harrison County in 2017, and research permits were issued for over that year. The 2016 documentary ''Harvesting Liberty'' concerns the 21st century Kentucky hemp industry.

History

Early cultivation

In the 18th century,

John Filson John Filson (c. 1747 – October 1788) was an American author, historian of Kentucky, pioneer, surveying, surveyor and one of the founders of Cincinnati, Ohio. Early life John Filson was born in Chester County, Pennsylvania, around 1747. He was ...

wrote in ''Kentucke and the Adventures of Col. Daniel Boone'' (an appendix of his 1784 work ''

The Discovery, Settlement and Present State of Kentucke ''The Discovery, Settlement and present State of Kentucke and an Essay towards the Topography, and Natural History of that important Country'' is a 1784 book by John Filson. It describes the discovery, purchase and settlement of Kentucky. Inaccu ...

'') of the quality of Kentucky's land and climate for hemp production. The first hemp crop in Kentucky was raised near Danville in 1775. Kentucky was the greatest producer of U.S. hemp in the 19th and 20th centuries, with thousands of acres of hemp in production. Senator

Henry Clay Henry Clay Sr. (April 12, 1777June 29, 1852) was an American attorney and statesman who represented Kentucky in both the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. He was the seventh House speaker as well as the ninth secretary of state, al ...

was a "hemp pioneer" and the "strongest advocate" of Kentucky hemp. He grew it on his Kentucky estate Ashland and brought new seeds to the state from Asia. Clay's oratory on the Senate floor in 1810 in favor of requiring the Navy to use domestic hemp exclusively for ship's rigging was widely reprinted in newspapers and is credited for beginning the elaboration of the American System. According to a 1902 periodical, Kentucky was responsible for three quarters of U.S. hemp fiber production. Production reached a peak in 1917 at 18,000 acres, mostly grown in the

Bluegrass region The Bluegrass region is a geographic region in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It makes up the central and northern part of the state, roughly bounded by the cities of Frankfort, Paris, Richmond and Stanford. The Bluegrass region is characterized ...

, then waned due to market forces after World War I as other sources of fiber were introduced. A Federal program to reintroduce hemp for wartime needs in Kentucky and other states during World War II reached 52,000 acres in Kentucky in 1943. The WWII effort is documented in the U.S Department of Agriculture film ''

Hemp for Victory ''Hemp for Victory'' is a black-and-white United States government film made during World War II and released in 1942, explaining the uses of hemp, encouraging farmers to grow as much as possible. During World War II, the Marihuana Tax Act of 1 ...

''.

Decline and criminalization

Production of hemp had seen a decline after World War I due to market forces including the rise of tobacco as the cash crop of choice in Kentucky and foreign sources of hemp fiber and finished products. The availability of cheap

synthetic fiber Synthetic fibers or synthetic fibres (in British English; see spelling differences) are fibers made by humans through chemical synthesis, as opposed to natural fibers that are directly derived from living organisms, such as plants (like cotton) ...

after World War II even further discouraged farmers from growing it. Federal policies, tightened by the

Controlled Substances Act The Controlled Substances Act (CSA) is the statute establishing federal government of the United States, federal drug policy of the United States, U.S. drug policy under which the manufacture, importation, possession, use, and distribution of ...

of 1970, virtually banned the production of industrial hemp during the War on Drugs. According to an industry group, "the 1970 Act abolished the taxation approach [of the 1937 Marijuana Tax Act] and effectively made all ''cannabis'' cultivation illegal". The

Drug Enforcement Administration The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA; ) is a Federal law enforcement in the United States, United States federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Justice tasked with combating drug trafficking and distribution within th ...

(DEA) refused to issue permits for legal hemp cultivation and held that, since industrial hemp is from the same species plant as prohibited cannabis (despite its being of lower THC yield), both were prohibited under the Controlled Substances Act. In the words of a 2015 ''

PBS NewsHour ''PBS NewsHour'' is an American evening television news program broadcast on over 350 PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virg ...

'' segment on hemp, " the federal government, hemp is just as illegal as marijuana", and according to ''

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis (businessman), Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print m ...

'', "all ''cannabis sativa''—whether grown to ease chronic pain, get stoned or make rope—is a

schedule I controlled substance This is the list of Schedule I drugs as defined by the United States Controlled Substances Act. 21 CFRbr>1308.11(CSA Sched I) with changes through (Oct 18, 2012). Retrieved September 6, 2013. The following findings are required for drugs to be pl ...

". During this criminalized period, the

Cornbread Mafia The "Cornbread mafia" was the name for a group of Kentucky men who created the largest domestic marijuana production operation in United States history. It was based in Marion, Nelson and Washington counties in central Kentucky. The term "Cornbrea ...

began its illegal cultivation of marijuana by cross-breeding imported cannabis seeds with native hemp plants left behind after the "Hemp For Victory" period in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Partial re-legalization

By the late 20th century, consumer demand for hemp products was resurgent but American farmers were left as bystanders. Imported agricultural products were allowed from other countries, including Canada, but growing hemp legally was not possible in the United States. In 1994, Kentucky was one of the first states to consider reintroducing hemp cultivation, with a commission convened by governor

Brereton Jones Brereton Chandler Jones (born June 27, 1939) is an American politician from the Commonwealth of Kentucky. From 1987 to 1991, he served as the 50th lieutenant governor of Kentucky and from 1991 to 1995, he was the state's 58th governor. He now ...

to investigate legal pathways to do so. In 2013, Kentucky passed a state law, Senate Bill 50, allowing production for agricultural research purposes. Although the Industrial Hemp Farming Act of 2013, which would have allowed hemp production, failed, agricultural hemp was allowed by federal law under the

(farm bill). 33 acres in 2014, 922 acres in 2015, 2,350 in 2016, 12,800 acres in 2017, and 6,700 acres in 2018. harvest season, only two U.S. states other than Kentucky had over in hemp production: Colorado and Tennessee. The was conducted under the auspices of the

Kentucky Department of Agriculture Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

. Research at the

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a Public University, public Land-grant University, land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentu ...

's Spindletop Research Farm sought to improved

agronomy Agronomy is the science and technology of producing and using plants by agriculture for food, fuel, fiber, chemicals, recreation, or land conservation. Agronomy has come to include research of plant genetics, plant physiology, meteorology, and ...

and includes research on optimizing

cannabinoid Cannabinoids () are several structural classes of compounds found in the cannabis plant primarily and most animal organisms (although insects lack such receptors) or as synthetic compounds. The most notable cannabinoid is the phytocannabinoid tet ...

yield. The first research crops at Spindletop and

Murray State University Murray State University (MSU) is a public university in Murray, Kentucky. In addition to the main campus in Calloway County in southwestern Kentucky, Murray State operates extended campuses offering upper level and graduate courses in Paducah, H ...

were planted in May 2014, with seed obtained from California and, after a legal battle with the DEA, imported from Italy. The researchers are also engineering new mechanical harvesters that can reach the high flowers of tall-growing hemp. The first 500-acre commercial crop was planted in Harrison County in 2017, and research permits were issued for over that year.

Legal status

Under federal law, the THC present in both cannabis and hemp remains a Schedule I controlled substance. Under state law, all hemp grown in compliance with the 2014 farm bill must have a delta-9 THC content not more than 0.3%. Farmers participating in the program must use seeds provided by an educational institution with a DEA license and use varieties expected to be low in THC. A sample of each farmer's hemp crop is tested by the state. Under the

2018 United States farm bill The 2018 farm bill or Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 is an enacted United States farm bill that reauthorized $867 billion for many expenditures approved in the prior farm bill (the Agricultural Act of 2014). The bill was passed by the Senat ...

, commodity hemp production was federally legalized.

Production

Businesses exist in Kentucky which provide agricultural products based on hemp or supporting hemp production. Cynthiana-based Ananda Hemp has been operating in the Commonwealth since 2014.

Oil extraction

Testing of a $400,000 oil extraction facility in

Winchester Winchester is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs Nation ...

began in March 2016, with full production capacity of per hour expected by the end of the year. GenCanna and Atalo Holdings are hopeful of turning their property at Winchester into a "Hemp Research Campus".

Seed production

Three varieties of hemp seed from Lexington

seed company Seed companies produce and sell seeds for flowers, fruits and vegetables to commercial growers and amateur gardeners. The production of seed is a multibillion-dollar business, which uses growing facilities and growing locations worldwide. While ...

were the first to be certified by

Colorado Department of Agriculture The Colorado Department of Agriculture is the principal department of the Colorado state government that manages agriculture, food safety, agriculture-related consumer protection, and conservation districts. Kate Greenberg was appointed as Commiss ...

. Certified in late 2016 for the 2017 Colorado crop, the varieties were originally from Italy and Serbia.

Documentaries and Books

Documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional film, motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". Bill Nichols (film critic), Bil ...

s concerning Kentucky hemp have included ''Hemp for Victory'' (U.S. Department of Agriculture, 1942) and ''Harvesting Liberty'' (Mike Lewis, 2016), which shows farmers in rural Kentucky considering hemp farming for food, fuel and fiber. The nonfiction book, The

by James Higdon has 14 references to Kentucky hemp.The Cornbread Mafia by James Higdon
Lyons Press, 2012

Footnotes

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * (originally published 1951) * * * * * *Willard Rouse Jillson, Kentucky Hemp: A History of the Industry in a Commonwealth of the Upper South, 1775-1942, Woodford Chamber of Commerce. *James Lane Allen, The Reign of Law: A Tale of the Kentucky Hemp Fields, Library of Alexandria, .

External links

Kentucky Hempsters

Kentucky Hemp Industries Association
* May 8, 2015 {{Hemp in the United States Agriculture in Kentucky Cannabis in Kentucky

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...