By Rose Krzton-Presson
Murray, KY – Industrial hemp production may come to Kentucky- at least if Senator Joey Pendleton's bill is approved in the upcoming General Assembly.
Senator Pendleton is sponsoring the act for the second year in a row. It was denied last year, he says, because of stigmas surrounding the crop.
"The THC in it is extremely low. The thing about it is some people always say, Well they're going to plant it in an industrial hemp field.' Well, no. They're not going to do that. Because industrial hemp, if it cross-pollinates with marijuana, it lowers the THC in marijuana and they're not going to let that happen."
Pendleton says the act requires federal approval, but even with that, it will still face quite a few hurdles.
"We've got the chairman who's got a little philosophical difference. He still hasn't gotten over the fact that it's not marijuana. That's what happened last year. But we didn't have a Commissioner of Agriculture that's going to be as vocal as this one will be. He seems to think he can change the chairman's mind and some of the others and get them on board. We'll move forward and try to get it passed."
Agriculture Commissioner Jamie Comer will speak to legislators on behalf of the bill in January. Pendleton says growing industrial hemp in Kentucky could expand the state budget by over 400 million dollars and create over 17,000 farming and manufacturing jobs in the Commonwealth.