Hemp Processing in the U.S. - Not Enough Focus?
I am surprised that the 1999-2000 Canadian hemp processing bottleneck issue suffers under-exposure given all the recent U.S. hemp hoopla. Here's what happened...
The year Canada legalized hemp cultivation (1998), the acreage dedicated to hemp production totaled some 5,587 acres. One year later, the total cultivation area grew sixfold to an astounding 34,657 acres. With relatively little processing capacity in key provinces, such as Manitoba, overcapacity of harvested hemp followed. It took years for the extra capacity to work it's way through the system...that is, up until 2004 when license requests nearly rebounded to 1999 levels. The good news is that the processing shortfalls spawned many smaller entrepreneurs into action...today there are well over a dozen hemp processing companies. So, is there a lesson to be learned here for (hopefully) soon-to-be American hemp farmers? Interestingly enough, the company behind the Canadian processing woes was a Californian company that would fall into bankruptcy.
Consolidated Growers and Processors (CGP) Inc., based in Monterey, California, had contracted an estimated 40 percent of the Canadian hemp crop but later fell into bankruptcy proceedings. During the ensuing legal morass, farmers stockpiled harvested hemp. Clearly there is a need to plan for both hemp cultivation and processing. There's an excellent summary of the Canadian experience (although somewhat dated) posted here.