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Hemp industry presenters tell committee Idaho hemp program works, urge adjustments to improve scale
Summary
Industry representatives and the Department of Agriculture briefed the Senate Agricultural Committee on Idaho's industrial hemp program, discussing rules, testing, fees, remediation, and economic opportunities in fiber and grain production.
The Idaho Senate Agricultural Committee received presentations Feb. 18 from industry participants and the Idaho State Department of Agriculture (ISDA) on the state’s industrial hemp program, including production, processing, testing and market opportunities.
Braden Jensen of the Idaho Farm Bureau introduced the panel. Director Michelle Tewalt of ISDA described the structure the agency has implemented since House Bill 126 (2021) authorized industrial hemp production, emphasizing that Idaho’s program follows USDA direction on production but is more stringent in key areas. Director Tewalt told the committee Idaho’s on-farm THC standard is 0.3 percent (Idaho’s threshold) compared with USDA’s 1 percent, and that once hemp leaves a licensed handler’s facility any retail product in Idaho must test at 0 percent THC, as described in the state rules the director summarized.
Tewalt explained program mechanics: annual licensing with background checks, per-lot fees and sampling/testing before hemp leaves the farm, a…
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