On June 10, Governor Greg Abbott signed a bill legalizing hemp production.
“Texas House Republican Charles Perry was the author of House Bill 1325 and has been a huge advocate for the hemp industry in Texas. The bill passed with flying colors.
“The hemp industry is rapidly growing and we need to ensure our farmers are able to participate. We hope this agricultural commodity will help boost rural communities now that there is a new viable crop option for our farmers,” Perry told the Dallas Observer. “
In West Texas, farmers are already making plans for the growing of hemp.
“Village Farms International (VFF) is moving into greenhouse-grown hemp in Texas, as the state officially sanctions growing hemp as a crop. Village Farms stock edged down as the biggest marijuana stocks traded broadly lower. Village Farms has begun converting half its 1.3-million-square-foot greenhouse for cannabidiol (CBD) cultivation. It will apply for required cultivation and production licenses as soon as it can do so.”
The legalization has thrown a wrench into the prosecution of marijuana offenses as now the State will have to prove the percentage of THC:
“Inside the Houston Forensic Science Center, where technicians test marijuana every week, scientists look at the plant under a microscope to detect small hairs unique to the Cannabis Sativa plant. A quick chemical test detected only the presence of THC, the potency was never captured. It didn’t have to be.
Under old laws, “it didn’t really matter (how potent it was),” said Peter Stout, president and CEO of the Houston Forensic Science Center, which tests criminal evidence in Houston.
Now that hemp is legal, it does matter. The microscopic analysis is not helpful as hemp and marijuana are the same plant and look identical under microscopic analysis, according to lab technicians.”
