The Wisconsin Farmers Union held their 86th annual State Convention Jan. 27-29, 2017 in Wisconsin Dells. According to a press release from the group, delegates adopted a number of resolutions reflecting the farm organization’s views on key issues.

Among them was language supporting hemp farming in Wisconsin:

“Support for the removal of hemp from the Controlled Substances Act, for the import of industrial hemp seeds from outside the United States and for an end to restrictions surrounding transportation of industrial hemp seeds and live plants across state boundaries.”

Wisconsin’s last commercial hemp fields were planted in 1957, and the last legal hemp producer nationwide, the Rens Hemp Company of Brandon, Wisconsin, closed in 1958.

In other Wisconsin hemp news, Rep. Jesse Kremer (R-Kewaskum) is working on a bill that would legalize industrial hemp farming in Wisconsin. His office recently said they were in discussions with stakeholders but the legislation should be coming soon.

An article in the Washington County Insider discussing Kremer’s hemp advocacy noted the Wisconsin Farm Bureau also had passed supportive language on hemp in late 2016:

“We support the production, processing, commercialization and utilization of industrial hemp and that it be regulated by USDA rather than the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA).”

As more information on the new legislation becomes available, we will cover it here.