Hemp Industry News

Japanese company Hiro International has unveiled a new line of CBD products produced using orange peels, not hemp or cannabis.

Aurora Cannabis announced it will acquire U.S. hemp CBD company Reliva in a $40 million all-stock deal.

PetSmart is now carrying its first cannabinoid extract product at 122 locations in Colorado, Indiana, Kentucky, Oregon, and Tennessee.

A judge has approved the $77 million bankruptcy sale of GenCanna Global USA Inc., a Kentucky hemp processing company, to MGG GenCanna Acquisition Group.

Summitt Labs announced last week it was voluntarily recalling Batch#730 Lot#K018 of its Kore Organic Watermelon CBD Oil Tincture.

94% of Arkansas hemp farmers reported losses from last year’s crop; farmers planted 1,819 acres of the crop but only 883 acres were harvested.

The USDA last week approved hemp production plans for Massachusetts and five separate Native American tribes.

Oregonized Hemp Co. is suing two different sheriffs’ offices claiming that they unlawfully seized and destroyed $2 million worth of the company’s industrial hemp crop.

Panda Biotech announced it is donating 60 tons of hemp fiber seed to Texas farmers as the state’s hemp industry takes off.

The FDA has issued warnings to two CBD companies over claims that their products could treat opioid addiction and/or replace pharmaceutical drugs.

The USDA has approved Florida’s hemp program; the state will be accepting industry applications starting today.

Lebanese lawmakers have approved the legalization of medical cannabis and industrial hemp; the move was recommended by economic advisors prior to the coronavirus outbreak.

The Hemp Feed Coalition is submitting an application to get hemp approved as chicken feed by the FDA; the process could take 18 months or longer.

Texas regulators issued the state’s first industrial hemp license this week; Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller said it was “just the beginning.”

The USDA approved state hemp program plans for Georgia and South Carolina this week.

State-legal hemp businesses will be allowed to access financial relief under the multi-million dollar federal coronavirus stimulus package approved last week.

The USDA has approved Iowa’s proposed industrial hemp plan; state officials, however, have specified that the program does not legalize the CBD industry.

Kentucky lawmakers have advanced two pieces of hemp legislation: one would establish CBD label requirements and the other would legalize smokeable hemp products.

Kentucky hemp processing company Atalo Holdings has filed for bankruptcy after “a failed capital commitment, which left the company unable to pay its creditors.”

The Idaho House State Affairs Committee has blocked a bill to legalize hemp production in the state, likely killing the proposal and ending any hope for passing hemp legalization in 2020.

Lawmakers in South Dakota have reached a hemp legalization deal with Gov. Kristi Noem, who had promised to veto hemp reforms without having funds set aside for costs associated with the plan.

Bruce Linton, the renowned former CEO of Canopy Growth, has launched a new company focusing on hemp and CBD investment opportunities.

The coronavirus has now disrupted the CBD space after Expo West, the world’s largest natural products tradeshow, was canceled due to fears about a growing pandemic.

The USDA has removed a requirement for the coming growing season that all hemp crops be tested by DEA-approved labs.