Fallin signs industrial hemp legislation
The Associated Press and The Tulsa World - April 24, 2018 3:17 pm
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – The Oklahoma governor has signed into law a measure allowing universities and farmers who work with them to grow industrial hemp.
The Tulsa World reports that Gov. Mary Fallin signed the bill Monday to establish the Oklahoma Industrial Hemp Agricultural Pilot Program.
The program will be overseen by the state’s Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry. Fallin’s office says the law allows universities and farmers who contract with them to grow the crop “for research and development.”
The National Conference of State Legislatures says 37 other states have also passed legislation to allow hemp cultivation. Hemp can be used in food, fuel, rope and body products.
Former President Barack Obama signed the federal Agriculture Act in 2014 to allow universities and state agriculture departments to cultivate the plant for limited purposes.
