Despite that two North Dakota farmers are still in court with the DEA, fighting for the right to grow industrial hemp licenses without being federally prosecuted, the state is continuing to issue licenses to grow industrial hemp. As the Jamestown Sun reports:
The North Dakota Department of Agriculture is accepting applications for 2009 industrial hemp production licenses.
“The applications are due Jan. 1,” said Agriculture Commissioner Roger Johnson. “Although the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration continues to prevent holders of state licenses from growing industrial hemp, NDDA remains committed to fully implementing state laws authorizing the production, processing and sale of this crop in North Dakota.”
In addition to the associated fees and paperwork, applicants must submit their fingerprints and clear both state and federal criminal background checks.
Not only does it seem unreasonable to undergo such a process while the legality of North Dakota hemp farming still hangs in the limbo of federal courts, but the process itself is kind of curious. Consider a farmer who was convicted for a non-drug related crime (such as a fraud charge for bouncing a check) twenty years ago: they would be denied a license to grow industrial hemp. That doesn’t seem to make much sense. Of course, the North Dakota Department of Agriculture (NDDA) may very well consider applicants’ history on a case by case basis. Anyone know for sure?
In any case, those interested in applying for a license to grow industrial hemp in the state of North Dakota can contact Ken Junkert at the NDDA at 701-328-2231 or kjunkert@nd.gov. More information can also be found on the NDDA Web site.
{ 1 trackback }
{ 0 comments… add one now }