Farmers Introduction to Hemp Farming and Economics

Welcome to the Farmers Introduction to Hemp Farming and Economics page. We provide answers to some common questions about hemp farming.

I really think industrial hemp has a lot of potential in Kentucky…It’s a product native to Kentucky…It’s a green crop – good for the environment…Not only would it help farmers in Kentucky, I believe it would lead to a manufacturing revolution in Kentucky…
~ James Comer, Agriculture Commissioner, KY 2012 1

Hemp: A Profitable, Specialty Crop

• According to Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development, average yields for hemp grain are between 600 to 800 lbs. per acre in Canada. The highest seed yield has topped 2,000 lbs. per acre. ³
• Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives (MAFRI) reports an average from yields grown and managed for fiber, ranging from 1 to 6 tons per acre. ⁴
• According to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada production statistics, one acre of hemp yields an average of about 700 pounds of grain, which equals about 50 gallons of oil, and 530 pounds of meal. That same acre could also yield an average of 5,300 pounds of straw, which could be processed into about 1,300 pounds of fiber (~ 20-30% long fiber / ~ 70 – 80% short fiber). ⁵
• Hemp can be grown as a single end use, or as a dual-purpose crop for both hemp grain and fiber.
• Hemp’s growth period is ~ 100+ days for grain cultivars and ~ 120+ days for dual purpose cultivars. A hemp bushel weighs about 44 lbs. ⁶

Canadian Hemp Prices

• Price depends on contractor. In 2011, according to Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives (MAFRI), prices ranged from $0.65 to $0.90 per pound for conventional hemp grain. Organic hemp is generally 30 to 40% higher, or $1.00-$1.15 per lb. ⁷
• In 2012 about 52,650 acres of hemp were licensed in Canada. ⁸

The U.S. Hemp Market is Rapidly Growing ⁹

• 2012 marketing data from SPINS, showed up to $43.5 million dollars for 2011 retail sales of hemp-based foods, nutritional supplements, and body care products.
• The Hemp Business Journal estimates that the total retail value of U.S. hemp products, including foods, clothing, body care, paper, auto parts, and building materials, was $820 million in 2017.

Industrial Hemp: A Rotation Crop that can Re-Build your Land and Lower Disease

Hemp works well in crop rotations of corn, soybean, wheat, legumes, barley, alfalfa, and grasses. (Not recommended directly before wheat due to gluten contamination or corn as they are both heavy Nitrogen feeders)

Fertilizer ⁶

• Grown best in fertile soil that’s rich in nitrogen and phosphorous.
• On average 75 to 100 lbs. / acre actual Nitrogen, Phosphate should be applied at about 50 ~ 70 lbs. / acre actual. Apply additional Potassium and Sulfur where soils are deficient.
• Good fertility leads to weed control.
• Conventional hemp is fertilized similar to a high yielding wheat or canola crop.
• Organic hemp production benefits from a perennial legume such as alfalfa, in heavily well- manured composted fields or after summer fallow.
• Soil testing is recommended to determine soil fertility.

Planting Hemp

• Hemp is an annual crop. When planted it needs well-drained, warm soil (42-50°F) that is damp and weed free. ⁶
• Hemp seed is planted shallow (0.5 – 1 inch) ⁶
• Seeding rates for most varieties for grain are in the range of 25-30 pounds per acre for hemp grain production. ¹⁰
• The crop can be seeded using conventional seeding equipment – i.e. air seeders/drills, disk-press drills, hoe-press drills.

Agronomic Benefits
(Hermann, 394-397) ¹¹

• Hemp naturally suppresses weeds and returns nitrogen back to the soil.
• Adding new crops to a rotation helps break disease cycles.
• Preliminary research shows that hemp in rotations may decrease soybean nematodes cyst populations.
• Hemp requires low to zero chemical inputs of herbicides, insecticides and fungicides.
• Frost and drought tolerant but it cannot handle standing water as seedlings.
• Hemp can be seeded later than other crops and it can be re-seeded if required.
• The crop is day length sensitive thus it flowers about the same time each year.

Harvesting ¹¹

• Extensive research and development was done by Canadian stakeholders to harvest and breed hemp.
• In Canada harvesting is a two-step process where grain harvesting is followed by stalk cutting and baling.
• The stalks can be baled at 12% moisture or incorporated back into the field.
• New hemp growers learn how to properly combine hemp to avoid fiber wrapping and cracking the hemp seed hull.
• Some on farm equipment modification maybe required to ease harvest, and combines can come with hemp harvest setting.
• Harvesting methods vary depending on whether the cultivar is grown for seed/grain only, fiber only or for dual purpose.

Disease ¹¹

• Hemp has very little disease and pest problems that have caused economic impacts.
• No pesticides are registered for hemp grain cultivation in Canada.
• Sclerotinia stem rot can be an issue in wet weather and improper rotations.
• Grey mold/head blight have been noted.
• Some insects such as grasshoppers, bertha armyworms and cut worm have been seen in hemp stands.

Footnotes

1. Kentucky Ag Commissioner Comer discusses industrial hemp. Morgantown, Kentucky. February 29, 2012, Jobe Publishing News, YouTube, http://bit.ly/yCitHA

2. Johnson, Renée, Congressional Research Service, Hemp as an Agricultural Commodity, December 18, 2012, https://www.votehemp.com/congressional-research-service-crs-reports-on-hemp/

3. Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development, Industrial Hemp Production in Canada, June 2012

4. Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives (MAFRI) – Industrial Hemp Production / Production and Management / Yield Expectations, (No Date), https://www.gov.mb.ca/agriculture/crops/crop-management/hemp-production.html

5. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada – Industrial Hemp: Profile, Statistics, Associations and Links, March 22, 2007

6. Hemp Agronomy 101, Hemp Oil Canada’s Hemp Agronomy Guide, Copyright 2006 – Hemp Oil Canada Inc., Ste Agathe, MB, https://www.votehemp.com/PDF/HempAgronomy101version2006.pdf

7. MAFRI – Industrial Hemp, Cost of Production, 2011, http://bit.ly/SCPPQq

8. AGCanada.com, Kienlen, Alexis, Right agronomics are key to hemp growing, Posted Nov. 15th, 2012, http://bit.ly/UlorGh

9. U.S. Market for Hemp Food, Body Care and Other Products Continues to Thrive with 2011 Annual Retail Sales Estimated at $452 Million, September 19, 2012, http://thehia.org/PR/2012-09-19-Market_for_Hemp_Food.html

10. MAFRI, Industrial Hemp Production, Seeding Rate, (No Date), http://bit.ly/W0PveW

11. Hermann, Anndrea, 2008. Canadian National Industrial Hemp Strategy (NIHS), Appendix D. pp. 284-344, – Literature Review of the Agronomics of Industrial Hemp: Seeding and Harvesting Literature Review Agronomics: Industrial Hemp Seeding and Harvesting