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Laura Drotleff

Laura has specialized in agricultural journalism for the past 20 years. Most recently she served as the editor of a B2B publication and multimedia properties focused on productivity, efficiency and profitability in commercial greenhouse cultivation. She has reported on multiple aspects of specialty crops including floriculture, fruit, vegetables, citrus and cannabis. She also has served extensively on various horticulture industry association boards. Laura is a Michigan State University graduate and is based in Cleveland, Ohio.

Oregon city considering hemp production ban

Published March 16, 2020

Hemp bans in California towns are common as the crop struggles to gather broad support in a state where nearly half of its counties outlaws hemp production. But in Oregon, where hemp has become a widely accepted stable, one city is considering banning production within its limits. The Medford City Council this week reviewed possible […]

Reporter’s Notebook: Why hemp producers should use biocontrols to promote sustainable production

Published March 16, 2020 | By Laura Drotleff

Cannabis is often touted as a self-sustaining crop that doesn’t need pest protection. Yet in 2019, outdoor hemp farmers saw heavy disease and pest pressure.

South Dakota sends hemp legislation to governor’s desk

Published March 13, 2020

Coming in hot at the end of the legislative session, state lawmakers in South Dakota sent an industrial hemp bill to Gov. Kristi Noem to sign after clearing the proposal to legalize hemp production and develop a state plan on Thursday. Noem has indicated she will sign the bill, which includes the $3.5 million budget […]

Tax relief and higher THC limits: Q&A with U.S. Rep. Denver Riggleman

Published March 11, 2020 | By Laura Drotleff

Raise THC limits, improve access to banking, provide tax relief and offer opportunities for new hemp and CBD businesses – one Congressman has heard distress calls from the nascent hemp industry and is working to introduce legislation that could help. U.S. Rep. Denver Riggleman, a Republican from Virginia, says he plans to introduce legislation called […]

USDA approves Montana hemp plan, but state will keep pilot rules for now

Published March 10, 2020

Montana agriculture officials have pushed through with getting federal approval on the state’s hemp production plan. But they will still operate the 2020 production season under the existing pilot rules, which expire Oct. 31. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) approved Montana’s plan Friday. The Montana Department of Agriculture (MDA) submitted it on Jan. 9. But […]

South Dakota lawmakers scrambling to settle hemp compromise

Published March 10, 2020

After a year-long dispute over legalizing industrial hemp in South Dakota, state lawmakers are jostling to finish work on a hemp bill that won’t provoke another veto from Gov. Kristi Noem. The latest move came this week when the state Senate passed a “placeholder” hemp bill on a 25-9 vote without debate, according to the Argus […]

Coronavirus outbreak leads to postponement of NoCo, Southern hemp expos

Published March 9, 2020

More hemp industry events have been postponed, including the NoCo Hemp Expo this month in Denver, after the rapid spread of the coronavirus outbreak. Originally slated for March 26-28, the expo has been rescheduled for Aug. 6-8 in the same locations in Denver, the event’s organizers said in a statement. As of last week, Morris […]

Cannabis firms BR Brands, Dixie to merge hemp, MJ portfolios in $43 million deal

Published March 9, 2020

Connecticut-based BR Brands, which owns and distributes a range of marijuana and hemp products, on Monday announced it will merge with Denver-based Dixie Brands in a $43 million reverse takeover. Dixie Brands is a consumer-packaged goods company and manufacturer of cannabis-infused products, including Aceso Hemp, a line of hemp-derived supplements for humans, and Therabis hemp-based […]

Florida hemp company appoints former Cargill extraction and refining expert

Published March 5, 2020

A former executive from agriculture giant Cargill has joined the ranks of a Florida hemp processing company as it scales its operations to meet anticipated demand for bulk hemp extract. Matthew Turner joins the executive leadership team of Fort Lauderdale-based Green Point Research as chief science officer and will oversee the company’s extraction and refining […]

Marijuana giants have a new plan to jump-start US hemp’s supply chain

Published March 3, 2020 | By Laura Drotleff

Three cannabis veterans who helped grow a Canadian firm into the biggest company in the industry are setting their sights – and investing up to $175 million – on the U.S. hemp supply chain beyond just flower products. Bruce Linton and Tim Saunders, the former co-CEO and chief financial officer, respectively, of Canopy Growth, have […]

USDA drops DEA hemp testing requirement for 2020, while FDA acknowledges demand for CBD

Published February 26, 2020 | By Laura Drotleff

Federal agriculture officials will delay the requirement that all THC testing on hemp crops must be performed at laboratories registered with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

Insiders share harvest, storage tips to avoid costly mistakes in hemp farming

Published February 26, 2020 | By Laura Drotleff

First-time hemp farmers learned hard lessons about the cost of doing business in 2019, when many grew the crop on speculation, without harvest plans or contracts in place. Promised they could make upwards of $50,000 per acre, farmers looking for a reprieve from low crop prices and foreign tariffs rushed into planting and growing the […]