LAS VEGAS, June 5, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- After a delay
in other Kentucky State industrial hemp
pilot projects, due to the widely publicized DEA seizure of
imported industrial hemp seeds, it was announced yesterday at a
Murray State University (MSU) Press
Conference, that US Hemp Oil (USHO) and its Parent Company,
CannaVest Corporation, (OTC: BB CANV), had donated seeds to
facilitate the commencement of Kentucky's first successful State industrial
hemp pilot project at MSU, and also the first legal industrial hemp
field in the US, since the passage of the 2014 Farm Bill, that
allows for cultivation under existing State statutes.
It was revealed, at the Press Conference that the first legal US
Industrial Hemp field was in fact planted more than three weeks ago
on May 12, while the Kentucky
Department of Agriculture was suing the DEA for seizing the
imported seeds under a separate law in place since 1970 that says
no one can import hemp seeds without getting a permit. USHO and
CannaVest's donated seeds "were sent quietly without publicity
directly to the Head of the Kentucky Department of Agriculture,
James Comer's office, weeks ago,"
said USHO VP, Chris Boucher, who
represented the companies at the Press Conference.
After Kentucky sued the DEA,
the LA Times reported that, the two sides agreed to a compromise
with the help of a federal judge, who granted Kentucky a drug-importer permit.
USHO's Chris Boucher, was
originally contacted by, Dan
Caudill, co-owner of Caudill Seed Company, and one of the
Pilot Programs partners, to assist in locating seeds for one of
five planned State pilot projects. Because Parent Company
CannaVest's mission is to educate the public on the health benefits
and sustainability benefits of industrial hemp, the companies
agreed to donate the seeds, and will work to create a hybrid
Kentucky seed for farmers,
Chris Boucher said.
USHO and CannaVest, subsequently had contact with James Comer's office, when they arranged to ship
the seeds directly to the Agricultural Department. It was confirmed
at the conference by the department that CannaVest's seeds reached
two other planned pilots through the Department, one that was
affiliated with Kentucky State University and Homegrown by Heroes
military veteran farmer program that will study the cultivation of
Kentucky Heirloom hemp seed in Eastern
Kentucky, and one affiliated with the University of
Kentucky, located in Eastern Kentucky that will focus on
cultivating cannabinoids for medical research purposes. The
Murray State project, will cultivate
European seed for the purposes of studying hemp fiber.
US News reported that the pilot projects intend to help gauge
the economic potency of industrial hemp cultivation for the State.
And James Comer related that
research "will bring industrial hemp back to Kentucky and with it
new jobs and new farm income." And that the pilot projects will
"help us recover much of the knowledge about industrial hemp
product that has been lost since hemp was last grown in
Kentucky." The Kentucky Department
of Agriculture's website indicates that the KDA will work with the
Kentucky Office of the Attorney General (OAG) to pursue a blanket
waiver that will allow Kentucky producers to grow for commercial
purposes.
Of Kentucky, the nation's
leading hemp-producing state in the mid-19th century, CannaVest
President and CEO, Michael Mona Jr.
says, "We stand behind and support Kentucky, and American farmers who are looking
for crop diversity, and viable commercial agricultural
alternatives. CannaVest, and USHO, look forward to continuing our
support, as we begin to grow this new domestic market."
Beyond seed procurement and consultation on cultivation,
Cannavest Corp and US Hemp Oil plan to provide full agricultural
solutions to process raw hemp material, and to distribution bulk
wholesale hemp seeds, hemp oil, and hemp protein powder and
CannaVest will continue to bring industrial hemp products to the
mainstream market place.
Chris Boucher, stated that he
will continue to consult for USHO, and work with the Kentucky
Agriculture Department and Murray State
University, on the Pilot Project. "It's a historic day for
the US, for USHO, for CannaVest, and for myself as well," Boucher,
a twenty-year Hemp industry veteran said. He was the Founder and
CEO of one of the first hemp product companies in the US in the
early 1990's, and Co-Founded the Hemp Industries Association, one
of the first Hemp business Associations in the US in the early
1990's. In addition, he has the distinction of being the first to
grow a legal pilot field at the USDA research facility in Imperial
Valley, CA, in 1994. This year marks the twenty-year anniversary of
that accomplishment.
Other pilot partners who were represented at the Press
Conference are: Murray State
University's Dean Hutson
School of Agriculture, Dr. Tony
Brannon, the Kentucky Department of Agriculture's Organic
Program Manager, and Industrial Hemp Program Coordinator,
Adam Watson, and Carl Gering, Seed Division Operations Manager,
of Caudill Seed.
About CannaVest Corp.
Cannavest Corp is in the
business of investing and developing hemp-based cannabinoid
Companies. CannaVest Corp. also develops, produces, markets and
sells end-consumer products to the nutraceutical industry
containing the hemp plant extract, cannabidiol (CBD). Additionally,
the company resells—to third parties—raw product acquired by
CannaVest Corp. pursuant to the company's supply relationships in
Europe. CannaVest Corp. seeks to
take advantage of an emerging worldwide trend to re-energize the
production of industrial hemp and to foster its many uses for
consumers. Cannabinoids (cannabidiol/CBD) are natural constituents
of the hemp plant, and CBD is derived from hemp stalk and seed.
Additional information is available from OTCMarkets.com or by
visiting CannaVest.com.
About US Hemp Oil
US Hemp Oil seeks to develop
the United States industrial hemp
industry. The company is dedicated to the procurement, processing,
marketing and distribution of bulk wholesale hemp seed, hemp oil,
protein, food and hemp body care products. US Hemp Oil is
determined to bring hemp products into the mainstream by creating
greater public awareness of and media exposure for the exceptional
nutritional profile of hemp and the environmental benefits of
growing industrial hemp. For more information, please visit:
USHempOil.com
Contact:
To learn more about this Cannavest and US Hemp Oil, please
contact:
Chris Boucher
2688 S. Rainbow Blvd., Ste. B, Las Vegas,
CA 89146
Office: 866-290-2157
Logo -
http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140403/LA98016LOGO
SOURCE CannaVest Corp