Check out the challenges and opportunities for growing industrial hemp at an informational forum Tuesday, June 25 at 6:30 p.m. in the Mini Expo Building at the McLean County Fairgrounds.

Speakers include:

• Dr. Win Phippen of Western Illinois University, 2018 Industrial Hemp Research Trials
• Bill Bodine of Illinois Farm Bureau, Rules & Regulations

As of April 30, 2019 Illinois farmers can apply for a license to grow industrial hemp from the Illinois Department of Agriculture.

Growing industrial hemp without a license is illegal.

Hemp seed must be certifed to ensure the hemp grown will not contain more than 0.3 percent THC (tetrahydrocannabinol).

Growers must also supply GPS coordinates for the field or fields, acreage, variety and/or strain of hemp to be planted, the crop’s
intended use as seed, fiber and/or cannabidiol, also known as CBD.

Industrial hemp fields will be subject to periodic inspection by the Illinois Department of Agriculture for THC levels.

For more information, click here to visit the Industrial Hemp page on the Illinois Department of Agriculture
website.