This article first appeared on cannabisbusinesstimes.com (Sep 29, 2017).

Tree of Life Seeds takes the lead in working with the state to establish regulations for the Arkansas Industrial Hemp Program.

Little Rock, AR: “The Arkansas Industrial Hemp Act” (House Bill 1778), engrossed by the Arkansas Legislature on March 30, 2017, opened the door to the production, development and commercialization of hemp-based products in the Natural State, and placed the Arkansas State Plant Board in charge of creating and enforcing the rules and regulations for the new program, according to a press release.

The Director of the Arkansas State Plant Board, Terry Walker, has selected Mary Smith, Director of the board’s Seed Division, to oversee the industrial hemp pilot program.

The board has created an Industrial Hemp Committee, consisting of Jerry Hyde (Committee Chairman), Bruce Alford, Russell Bragg, Robert Campbell, Matthew Marsh and Barry Walls, to begin the process of drafting the rules and regulations for the program.

The Plant Board has put together a process and timeline for implementation of the proposed regulations:

The Industrial Hemp Committee is engaged in conversation with current members of the hemp industry, such as Tree of Life Seeds, as they research rules and laws in Arkansas and in other states with existing industrial hemp programs. This will allow the committee to establish parameters and guidelines based on what is working elsewhere, and what will work best for Arkansas moving forward…

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