Industrial hemp experts drew a crowd of farmers and ranchers to a roundtable organized by the South Dakota Farmers Union during the 106th Convention of the organization held December 16-17 in Huron.
“Industrial hemp is a crop I don’t know much about, so I wanted to learn,” said Kurt Bindenagel, a Frankfort cow and beef producer. “There seems to be a big learning curve and it requires a lot of manpower.”
Bindenagel has no plans to plant industrial hemp in 2022, but that doesn’t mean it won’t be planted for the future. “After this roundtable, I want to learn more,” he said.
The connection of South Dakota farmers and ranchers with information is the reason why the South Dakota Farmers Union hosted the panel. A few years ago, members of the state’s largest agricultural organization made advocating for the state to legalize the cultivation of this commodity part of its policy. Since then, the organization has worked to ensure that once industrial hemp is legal, family farmers and ranchers have the information they need.
“Industrial hemp has been my passion for six years,” says Oren Lesmeister, director of the SDFU, Parade rancher and 28-A District legislator. “It will not save the family farm or make you a billionaire, but it can be added to the rotations and planted in marginal hectares. It is good for soil health and provides an additional source of income for growers. ”
The profit potential and weed control motivated Wessington panelist and farmer BJ McNeil to plant 1,300 acres of industrial hemp in 2021. An organic food processor contacted McNeil and was able to hire hemp grain. before planting. In some fields, it averaged £ 1,200 per acre.
But it was not easy money. “Planting and growing this crop is easy. Combining it wasn’t easy. But the real challenge is when we took the grain to the farm,” McNeil said.
He explained that the grain should be in the air a few hours after harvest. Unlike corn, soybeans or other crops, industrial hemp does not ripen evenly. The seeds of a plant can be in several stages of maturity. Therefore, it is necessary to dry the harvested seed. It should also be done quickly and over low heat, McNeil explained.
“Your hemp can’t exceed 130 degrees, or you damage the hemp seed oil,” McNeil said.
In preparation for the 2021 harvest, McNeil had installed cone containers with rocket dryers.
They didn’t work.
“We ended up removing the hemp from all the cone containers, taking the grain to another farm with the old agitator drying systems and putting it on low heat,” McNeil said.
In preparation for the 2022 industrial hemp harvest, McNeil is installing another low-heat agitator drying system.
Learning from a farmer who grew industrial hemp and having the opportunity to ask questions during the roundtable was valuable, said Frederick farmer Taylor Sumption.
“Asking questions and learning from another farmer’s lessons is much cheaper than learning the lessons yourself,” Sumption said.
Panelist Ken Meyer agrees. Meyer is the president of the South Dakota Hemp Association and owner of AH Meyer and Sons, a Winfred honey processing plant that began processing hemp to obtain CBD oil in 2021.
“There is strength in the numbers and in an emerging industry, we need to help each other. If you want to grow hemp, be sure to connect with people who have grown it, ”Meyer said.
Providing information and guidance to farmers and ranchers is only one part of Meyer’s mission. As president of the association, he works with the South Dakota Legislature to streamline the regulatory process.
He said lawmakers are listening.
Among the changes Meyer noted for 2022, there will no longer be an application deadline. He added that producers should not procrastinate. “It can take up to three months to complete the background check process,” Meyer said.
Advance planning was an issue among panelists.
McNeil said if a producer plans to raise industrial hemp, he should make sure he sells it before he buys seeds. “Make sure you hire him. Don’t speculate,” he said. “I can expand my acres in 2022, but it all depends on the markets.”
Time also plays an important role. And if you don’t cooperate, said panelist Dennie Stratton, while it’s not easy to find, there are insurance options for industrial hemp. Stratton is Farmers Union Insurance’s crop insurance production manager. “I had to turn a lot of rocks, but I found that hemp appears on the RMA cover.”
When it comes to selecting the right seed variety, Derrick Dohmann, director of sales and marketing for Horizon Hemp Seeds, Willow Lake, encouraged growers to select and plant several varieties. “That way you’ll know what will grow best on your farm.”
Dohmann added that the success of industrial hemp in South Dakota depends on producers asking questions and learning from each other.
“That’s why we’re all sitting here. I’m not here just to sell seeds. I’m here as a resource. If I don’t have an answer for you, I’ll find the answer for you,” Dohmann said.
When it came to the future success of industrial hemp, all panelists were optimistic. “There are many uses for this product, and more are being discovered all the time. I visited a house in Idaho that, except for the windows, was built 100% with industrial hemp and its by-products,” Lesmeister said. “When it comes to the future of industrial hemp in South Dakota, the sky is the limit. We’re just at the beginning.”
For more information, connect with the panelists and read another article about Wessington farmer BJ McNeil, visit sdfu.org and click this article on the News and Events tab.
