Randy Batts in Southeast Missouri is one of those small farmers who got hit hard . “ I convinced a bunch of smaller guys to put in hemp . The company didn ’ t cover the seed like they would have on a “ normal ” crop , and I helped the guys I talked into growing buy the seed . They were gonna pay me back with the harvest . We planted 170 acres and harvested 38 acres . I won ’ t get any money back . That money is just lost , and I just don ’ t see a way to survive . I wasn ’ t a farmer ; I was a dreamer . Hemp will save the planet . I was trying to do my part , do the right thing .” manufacturing and factories for clothing , food , shelter ,” Cook said , laughing . I ’ m praying for a hemp guardian angel , but we ’ ll take any help we can get .
Keep your toe in it , Randy .
Hemp farmer Brandi Ortega of Mary Pottin ’ s Supply ( The EVOLUTION Magazine May 2023 ) had to give up her indoor grow space in Archie , MO , and move her grow operation to her backyard and garage . She had the garden home for a week when the house was robbed . Someone came in and cut the tops off all her mature CBG hemp plants . So , Ortega called the police . They took a report and commented on how nice it smelled in her house .
“ Now that the smell of weed doesn ’ t mean we have to bust someone , we really enjoy it ,” commented one of the officers . Progress .
Ortega got crop insurance in 2023 through Missouri FSA and was reimbursed at retail for the plants she lost . Crop Insurance became available this year , but it took Ortega some digging and some diligence to work through the bureaucracy to obtain the coverage , and many small farmers were not aware of the opportunity .
For Ortega , last year ’ s kick in the gut came from the now-eliminated Missouri Dept of Ag . “ I paid $ 1,500 for a three-year license in 2021 , then , less than a month into 2022 , I got a bill for $ 1,500 for dues , which I already paid . Then , a month later , the Dept of Ag Hemp division in Missouri disappeared . It was great that they were gone , and we are now under the U . S . Dept of Ag , but they hurt my feelings . You shouldn ’ t treat people like that .”
USDA only requires fingerprinting , and that ’ s usually around $ 50 .
On the Kansas side , hemp activist Kelly Austin Ripple , who works as a crop adjuster in Kansas , is still trying to get his state to follow in Missouri ’ s footsteps and just let everyone be under one Federal Umbrella . “ The piecemeal legislation from state to state isn ’ t helping anyone ,” Ripple sighed .
The problem , in a nutshell , for Missouri is our road to nowhere . We have farmers , but they are farmers . Farmers grow crops and sell them . We have processors that buy crops , but that ’ s where Missouri stops . We have no infrastructure for manufacturing all those fabulous planet-saving products . And we have zero infrastructure investment money .
“ What we need in Missouri is a hemp ‘ sugar daddy .’ Somebody who loves the plant and is willing to dump a lot of cash into hemp
Shannon Poindexter and son Bo working the November hemp harvest for soon to be Rural Route Hemp Co products .
The Farm Bill will be coming up again this next session , so I have given the last word of the state of hemping in 2023 to Chris Hope , board of director member of the National Hemp Association .
“ Industrial Hemp can transform the world economy . Hemp can provide food , fiber , fuel , building materials , grain , and medicine . Please ! Support our efforts to transform our world to a more sustainable planet and a regenerative economy by buying hemp products and encouraging your local , state , and federal governments with your voice and votes to promote the development of the hemp industry .”
Tis the season of gift giving . Please make an effort to buy and give hemp , and hemp products . Remember to shop local businesses — including cannabis dispensaries . Hemp makes all sorts of amazing gift , from tinctures , salves , and oils to clothing , hats , socks , and more .
Thank you to all The EVOLUTION Magazine supporters in 2023 . Cheers to a great 2024 !
Dolores Montgomery Halbin , RN , BSN , and Ordained Nurse Minister , resides in SW Missouri . After her husband passed in 2015 , she retired from nursing . She worked with the 2014-2018 Missouri campaigns for legalized medical marijuana . She continues as a cannabis reform activist volunteering with Canna Convict Project and working Dr . Lisa toward Roark Federal decriminalization through educational speaking and freelance journalism . Dolores Halbin , doloreshalbin @ gmail . com .
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