After it was legalized to grow and sell, the pent-up desire for the amazing Hemp plant exploded. Millions of dollars were invested at all levels from growing small plots to giant international production companies with thousands of acres of hemp planted. At first most of the planted acreage was for hemp product (cannabis with less than 0.3% THC). As more states legalized marijuana (cannabis with over 0.3% THC) acreage planted often moved towards that market.

The interest in the health and nutritional benefits as well as recreational use has increased, along with skepticism in the quality and safety of the products. It has been a wild west with no regulation on quality, contaminants or concentrations of the products being sold.

A combination of overinvestment, overplanting and underestimating the market has led to huge changes in the industry. What was once seen as an unlimited marketplace has become one where many of the smaller, quality-oriented companies have survived, a few of the well-run large companies are doing well and many others have gone bust. This has led to a glut of both hemp and marijuana left in farmers’ fields without the infrastructure or processing plants to turn it into quality CBD or marijuana products.  

The 2022 National Hemp Report revealed a significant decline in the value of industrial hemp production in the United States, with a 71 % decrease from 2021, totaling an estimated $238 million. The breakdown of this valuation included $212 million from hemp cultivated outdoors and $26.1 million from hemp grown indoors. This is a huge change for any industry.

However, it's not all gloom and doom for hemp. Very slowly other industries are building infrastructure to use hemp in some of the thousands of ways this incredible plant can be used. Do you know, there are 7-10 thousand uses for hemp, from food to building (hempcrete) to paper to clothing and so many more.  Stay tuned to the Doc’s Hemp Digest for information.

There have been some encouraging developments on using hemp in animal feed, which is a highly regulated industry. The Hemp Feed Coalition (HFC) is heralding a breakthrough in the quest for federal approval of hemp grain products for animal feed, specifically for laying hens. This development follows the tentative approval of hemp seed meal (HSM), a protein-rich byproduct of hemp seed oil production, at the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) Mid-Year Meeting.

This approval would allow for HSM's inclusion in laying hen diets at a maximum of 20%, with strict limits on cannabinoid content to ensure safety and no transfer of contaminants to human food products. The HFC highlights the potential benefits of HSM in enhancing egg quality through enrichment with essential fatty acids and Lutein, marking a significant step forward in utilizing hemp products within the US feed supply chain and offering a sustainable alternative to feed producers. The HFC is working on other species as well to allow hemp to be a normal part of feed.

Currently we feed hemp seeds and hemp protein to horses as a supplement (Hemp seed and protein). It contains no CBD or THC so is legal for competition. This is a fabulous way to get non-GMO sources of protein and avoid soybean meal.

CBD products continue to be incredibly useful to many horses, dogs, and cats. As people learn about how to find high quality companies and more research is being done, animal owners are using more and more CBD for horses, donkeys, dogs, and cats.

Though there are issues in the hemp industry, it remains strong, and the plant continues to help animals as well as to find its place in many other aspects of life.