Fall Hemp Update
November 16, 2022
Greetings,
As the harvest season winds down, the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development’s (MDARD) Pesticide and Plant Pest Management Division has a few updates to share:
Grower inspections
MDARD staff are completing 2022 grower inspections. You may be contacted for an inspection regardless of whether your crop has been harvested or not. To find out more about what information is reviewed during these inspections, see the self-audit checklist.
Annual reporting requirement
Previously, MDARD had an online, end-of-year survey for growers to complete with information about your planted, harvested, or disposed of hemp crops. This year, we are assisting growers with this reporting requirement by having inspectors contact you directly. Inspectors have already contacted growers who requested preharvest sampling this year. For registered growers who did not request preharvest sampling, inspectors will contact you by November 30, even if no planting occurred.
Hemp grower registration renewal
Your current grower registration expires January 31, 2023. Look for a mailing with your renewal application in mid-December. Do not complete a new application if you were registered in 2022 or you will need to redo your paperwork on the correct renewal form.
Which license? Grower vs. processor
We are often asked about which type of license is required for different steps in the growing, processing, and sale of hemp and hemp products. Since hemp processing and retail are under the purview of the Cannabis Regulatory Agency (CRA), MDARD partnered with them to produce a simple, one-page document outlining which type of registration or license you may need depending on what type of hemp activities you are engaged in. Find this document under www.Michigan.gov/HempLaws under the Compliance Assistance Documents heading, along with many helpful documents breaking down hemp law requirements.
USDA’s new lookup tool
New this month, anyone can look up people or businesses licensed to cultivate hemp nationwide. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) refers to these as “licensed producers” while MDARD calls them “registered hemp growers.” States and tribes are required to report licensee information to USDA, and that information is used to populate their database. In addition, it also includes producers USDA licenses directly in the states where the federal agency manages the hemp cultivation program. This is a great tool for making connections to help build better supply chains for the industry, nationwide. Search the list here: hemp.ams.usda.gov/s/PublicSearchTool.
Additional information
If you have questions, please contact Michigan’s hemp program at MDARD-IndustrialHemp@Michigan.gov.
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