UNL partners with Nebraska Panhandle farm to research industrial hemp

The Panhandle Research and Extension Center has embarked on a partnership with a family farm corporation in Scotts Bluff County, Nebraska, Western Farms LLC, to conduct scientific research on growing industrial hemp for seed production in the Panhandle.

The public-private joint venture will take place in Scottsbluff, Nebraska, and is titled “Evaluation of Hemp Seed Production in Greenhouse Environment in Western Nebraska.”

For the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the project leader is Dipak Santra, alternative crops breeding specialist at the Panhandle Center. Other team members are Jeff Bradshaw, entomologist; Bob Harveson, plant pathologist; Nevin Lawrence, integrated weed management specialist; and Bijesh Maharjan, soil and nutrition management specialist. Jack Whittier, Panhandle Center director, is project advisor.

Panhandle Center faculty will perform research at Western Farms’ 22,000-square-foot greenhouse on Avenue B to help their industrial hemp venture as well as for other farmers interested in growing industrial hemp in the Panhandle. Western Farms LLC is providing $31,152 to fund the project, which began Oct. 1, 2019, and will extend until Dec. 31, 2020. The objectives are to research and answer several questions about hemp production for CBD under greenhouse conditions, including:

— The best variety for high seed production with high CBD and low THC. CBD stands for cannabidiol, a non-psychoactive compound that is being used for its pharmaceutical qualities for a variety of conditions and illnesses. THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) is the psychoactive chemical in the plant.

— Pest and disease issues. At this time, no pesticides or herbicides are labeled for use on hemp.

— Weed management options for hemp production in the field.

— Optimized nutrient management for hemp production under varying soil types.

According to Santra, the project started when the Hoehn family approached the Panhandle Center about a collaboration. The Hoehns have relatives in Minnesota who operate Midwest Hemp Farms, which has been growing hemp for several years. Their experience in Minnesota familiarized them with the economics and genetics of raising hemp for CBD oil.  According to their website, Midwest Hemp Inc. focuses on growing industrial hemp for several products, such as flower, CBD products and processing.

Nationwide, interest in industrial hemp as an agricultural crop has grown rapidly since the 2018 Farm Bill removed industrial hemp from the controlled substances list, opening the way for production, which is being regulated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and state departments of agriculture.

Nebraska legalized hemp production for fiber, grain or CBD in 2019, with the condition that plant parts of industrial hemp have a THC concentration of less than 0.3 percent.

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