Texas farmers soon will be able to legally plant fields of hemp for the first time since the 1930s.

Hemp farm educational tour
Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service personnel listen and ask questions on a southeastern Colorado hemp farm. (Texas A&M AgriLife photo by Kay Ledbetter)

Much has changed since then, but one thing hasn’t: Texas farmers can count on Texas A&M AgriLife for practical information and expert insight.

The Texas A&M AgriLife Hemp Team traveled across the state this winter holding meetings in halls packed full of farmers who paid up to $20 each to learn about the pitfalls and possibilities of industrial hemp production.

“There’s a lot of hype out there about growing hemp, but Texas farmers know where to go for the straight facts,” said John Sharp, chancellor of The Texas A&M University System. “AgriLife experts have advised growers for more than 100 years, cultivating a level of trust and credibility they appreciate.”

Topics covered in the meetings included the botany of cannabis, the cost of growing and processing industrial hemp and expected potential yields, THC and law enforcement and the development of markets for industrial hemp.

“We’re not selling anything,” said Reagan Noland, Ph.D., Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service agronomist at San Angelo. “The goal of AgriLife Extension is to help Texas farmers make informed decisions.”

Farmers need all the information they can get before they decide to apply for a license from the Texas Department of Agriculture, which is in the process of finalizing the program’s administrative rules and expects to begin issuing licenses and permits by mid-March.

AgriLife Extension offers more information on growing industrial hemp in Texas, including videos and presentations made to farmers this winter.

About The Texas A&M University System

The Texas A&M University System is one of the largest systems of higher education in the nation, with a budget of $6.3 billion. Through a statewide network of 11 universities, a comprehensive health science center, eight state agencies, and the RELLIS Campus, the Texas A&M System educates more than 153,000 students and makes more than 22 million additional educational contacts through service and outreach programs each year. System-wide, research and development expenditures exceeded $996 million in FY 2017 and helped drive the state’s economy.

This post originally appeared on the Texas A&M System News Site.

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