b'theyre a bit steeper in hemp. It was like Prohibitionwe had aas animal feed. I have fielded calls requesting hemp grain to feed lot of speculators who had no experience in hemp or agriculture5,000 head of cattle, to formulate for dog food, for poultry, and rush in with poor execution, and questionable business ethics. for horses.We feel grateful to have weathered that storm, and are still hereIn addition, Mosher comments, There are studies supporting seven years later. that the omega-3s in hemp grain increase the amount of omega-We were working in a brand-new crop, that had absolutely3s in laying hens eggsa clear margin advantage when you no adaptation to, nor agronomic improvement in the U.S., shelook at eggs on store shelves.says.Things are still moving, and the FDA has given us good One thing that Mosher notes about working in the hempdirection, Mosher says. After that gets action, it would be fan-industry: its been much smoother for them to function intastic. Hemp isnt a rival for soybean yet, but watch outonce it Colorado.gets to scale, it certainly could be.Being in Colorado has made it easier for us, Mosher says. Weve always had a wonderful relationship with our Department of Agriculture, and besides Kentucky, Colorado was one of the only states that had a strong start in 2014 with regulations for hemp ready to go. However, with the legalization of industrial hemp production,Hemp isnt a rival for soybean yet, but watch out new standardizations are making it easier on the business.once it gets to scale, it certainly could be. The Interim Final Rule (IFR) was issued in 2018 and was very welcomed for us, Mosher says. Wed been anticipating and Wendy Mosherhoping for Federal standardization. It was needed in the industry to level the playing field across statesespecially in the shipping and testing areas.Although the IFR has made it a bit easier and more standard for her business, Mosher notes that others in the industry havent appreciated the regulations as much. Finally, Mosher says one of the biggest improvements in the Its mainly due to the CBD genetics side, she says, explain- industrial hemp industry is talking about certified hemp seed. ing that its difficult and takes a long time to breed good, CBDWere the first company in the United States to gain seed seed that matches the 0.3% THC level required by the IFR. certification for a U.S. hemp bred variety, she says. That takes Theres an effort in the industry that wants to raise that 0.3%time, and its challenging! And thats why farmers are having level to 1%, Mosher says.issues finding certified hemp seed.However, Mosher notes that this isnt something ideal for NewMosher says in order to qualify as certified seed, you have to West Genetics.ensure your variety does what you say it does, that it has genetic When youre making a good, stable seed for farmers, thepurity and attains a number of other metrics outlined in federal higher THC level isnt necessarily good for international trade,seed law. she says. We like the 0.3% rule because it enables smoothWe received our first certified seed in 2017 from the trade, shipping and customs, so we do not lobby for a higherColorado Seed Growers Association, in cooperation with the THC level.Colorado Department of Ag, which first validated that our THC However, Mosher says theres another side of regulation thatlevels were federally compliantbelow 0.3% total THC. Mosher really piques her interest.says. Not every state seed association does the coordination for The use of hemp grain in animal feed still needs approval byvalidation of the THC content, but we certainly hope they willthe FDAand the fact few if any submissions have been madeotherwise, you could easily sell high THC cannabis seed as hemp, is really hindering the industrys growth, she says. and that would reduce most motivation for breeders to create Mosher explains that industrial hemp grain, so far, has beencompliant seed.one of the only crops approved for human-use before it wasMosher says if you have questions about whether or not your approved for animal-use.seed is certified, make sure to ask. We want to see hemp grain approved for animal feed ingre- Weve seen people forging the COAs on cannabinoids, as dients, she says. I work with a group called the Hemp Feedwell as certified seed tags, so we encourage everyone to call labs Coalition, and weve been working on looking at how to supportand verify reports, as well as calling the seed certifying agency in companies and researchers to get the application packages toyour state. she says. the FDA through, because theres such a large demand for hempOne encouraging piece is that many university Extension pro-OCTOBER 2020SEEDWORLD.COM /39'