Tuesday, the state senate passed Senate Bill 676 that allows 5 California counties—Imperial, Kern, Kings, San Joaquin and Yolo—to begin farming hemp. The bill would make it so that industrial hemp (having no more than .3% THC) could be cultivated to make fiber, oil or cakes from the sterilized seeds or the stalk but not the resin or buds.

Traditionally, the cannabis legalization movement has joined hands with hemp farmers who aren’t allowed to grow the low THC cousin to the marijuana. (In fact, one of our local stores with a marijuana twist which caters to both tourists and locals is known as The Hemp Connection—THC  wink, wink, nudge, nudge.) However, some pot farmers fear hemp’s legalization because the pollen from the one can fertilize the flowers of the other resulting in seeded and thus a less desirable product. Oregon currently allows hemp to be cultivated but I have yet to hear of any cross pollination issues.  I’ll be curious to see if California’s current crop of medical marijuana producers can coexist with hemp farmers.

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Photo from here

Hat tip to Mark Lovelace who pointed out the story.