The Indiana State Hemp Plan was formally submitted to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) on December 26, 2019. Robert Waltz, Indiana State Chemist & Seed Commissioner, and Bruce Kettler, Indiana State Department of Agriculture Director, were the co-signers of the submitted plan.
Below are some key points along with background information:
- USDA released the interim final rule for the U.S. Domestic Hemp Production Program on October 30, 2019. This rule governs the production of hemp under the 2018 Farm Bill and outlines the provisions for the USDA to approve plans submitted by States and Indian Tribes.
- The USDA has sixty days to review Indiana’s plan and to offer comments.
- This plan addresses elements of the USDA hemp rule including sampling, analytical testing, licensing and growing requirements.
- Indiana was required by the state legislature to submit the hemp program plan to USDA no later than Dec. 31, 2019.
- In Indiana, the 2020 growing season will continue to be a research year.
Indiana anticipates receiving a determination on the Indiana Hemp Program from USDA by early March 2020.
The submitted hemp program plan can be found here. More information can be found on the Office of the Indiana State Chemist website, here, or at the Purdue University Hemp website, here.