MDARD Reminds Hemp Growers About Cultivation Season Requirements
April 25, 2024
As the hemp cultivation season progresses, the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) would like to remind hemp growers of the following requirements in Public Act 220 of 2020, the Industrial Hemp Growers Act. If you have any questions, please contact us at 517-294-5516, or email MDARD-Industrialhemp@michigan.gov. We are always happy to help and look forward to working with you this season!
Grower Registration
If you have not received a paper copy of your hemp grower registration certificate in the mail, you may not be registered! If you submitted a complete application and did not receive a certificate, contact MDARD’s Central Licensing Unit at 517-256-7509.
Applying does not guarantee you are registered. If there are any deficiencies, you will receive an email requesting additional information. You will not be issued a certificate if you do not correct those deficiencies. To avoid error, ensure you provide MDARD a valid, monitored email with your application. There is no deadline to apply, but you must be registered before receiving seeds, clones, transplants or performing other grower activities.
Unpaid Fees
MDARD will not issue a registration certificate or conduct pre-harvest sampling until all open invoices are paid. If you attempt to get registered or request sampling, you will receive a reminder email with the previously issued overdue invoice and payment instructions.
Site Modification
If you need to add additional growing locations to your registration, submit a site modification form before planting and mail it in with a $50 check or money order made payable to the State of Michigan.
USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) Crop Acreage Reporting
Michigan growers have until July 15 to report planted hemp acreage or square footage (indoors and outdoors) to FSA. If planting occurs after that date, the grower must report within 15 days of planting. Be sure to provide your EXACT hemp Grower Registration number to FSA (example 26-000123). FSA allows researchers and growers who plant over multiple dates to report the average planting date. This federal reporting requirement is reflected in the state’s law, so MDARD inspectors will verify reporting has been performed and will not conduct preharvest sampling unless reporting is completed or in progress with proof of activity. More information can be found in the FSA Crop Acreage Reporting Requirements Technical Bulletin. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) also provides a free training course to help you understand reporting hemp acreage with FSA.
Pre-harvest Sampling
The sampling process and fees are unchanged. Please see the technical bulletin outlining the process. Submit an online preharvest sampling request to MDARD 20 to 30 days before your planned harvest date, and an inspector will promptly contact you to schedule an appointment. All hemp program costs are outlined here.
The USDA Agricultural Marketing Service has delayed enforcing the requirement that all hemp must be tested by a Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA)-registered laboratory until December 31, 2024.
Hemp Grower Inspections
MDARD will continue conducting comprehensive inspections with hemp growers starting in May for indoor hemp locations, and July for outdoor hemp locations. Inspectors will contact registered growers before the inspection to schedule a date and determine the status of hemp crops. The inspector will conduct a field visit during the inspection, visiting each growing site, and an “office” visit where paperwork and recordkeeping items will be reviewed. Review the Hemp Grower Self-Audit Checklist to help prepare for the inspections.
Hemp Processing
The Cannabis Regulatory Agency (CRA) regulates hemp processing. Contact CRA at 517-284-0815, CRA-Hemp@Michigan.gov, or www.Michigan.gov/HempProcessing with questions on processing, handling, brokering, or marketing hemp and hemp products. Hemp Grower Registration continues to allow you to sell harvested hemp to processors licensed as hemp processor-handlers or licensed medical marijuana processors. Hemp Grower Registration does NOT cover manufacturing or sale of intermediary, in-process, or finished hemp products, including smokable flower.
Other Requirements
Please remember to review requirements for growing location posting, recordkeeping, and non-compliant lot options (remediation or disposal). Compliance assistance documents are found at www.Michigan.gov/HempLaws.
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