Iowa farmers are now able to apply for licensing to grow hemp this year, after the U.S. Department of Agriculture approved the state’s production plan and it was recently published in the Iowa Administrative Bulletin.

License applications are due by May 15th, and the Iowa Department of Agriculture advises producers to research and confirm that there is a viable, profitable market for commercial production before they buy seed and equipment. ISU Extension Field Agronomist Mike Witt says hemp production could become a secondary crop market for Iowa, but he believes the chances of profitability are very slim. Witt says the infrastructure is not ready, and the odds are low for finding a local distributor to sell to, “There’s a lot of rules, regulations, and different licenses that are going to require to grow and do that sort of thing. So it’s not the same as corn and soybeans, that is just make the product and take it to an elevator and sell it. There are a lot more hoops to need to be jumped through for that for farmers to do and I want them to be aware of that.”

Farmers are eligible to grow up to 40 acres of hemp, and THC levels must be 0.3 percent or less or they will be considered a controlled substance and must be destroyed. Witt reminds farmers that the state program does not legalize the use of cannabidiol for human consumption, extraction, or processing.