The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) has begun publishing what will be a weekly report on the nation’s hemp sector.
The National Hemp Report, to be issued each Wednesday, contains national and regional advertised retail prices of selected hemp products, plus volumes and cost, insurance, and freight of imports of hemp into the USA.
“USDA has recognized the hemp industry’s need for timely market information,” said Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Jenny Lester Moffitt. “The National Hemp Report will equip stakeholders with weekly price and volume information to help guide smart business decisions.”
The first National Hemp Report highlights that although the USA has a significant and growing hemp industry, imports are still very common. It noted the following in terms of hemp imports for the week ending January 25:
- Hemp oil – 13,122 kilograms (2023 to date: 19,127 kilograms)
- Hemp (raw or retted): 16,357 kilograms (2023 to date: 55,401 kilograms)
- Oilcake & Solid Residues, From Extraction of Hemp Seeds: 5,251 kilograms (2023 to date: 12,805 kilograms)
- Yarn: 765 kilograms (2023 to date: 1,754 kilograms )
- Twine: 22,405 (2023 to date: 57,210 kilograms)
Regarding the “hemp oil” figures, it doesn’t clarify whether this is cannabis oil (e.g. CBD) or hempseed oil – and they are very different things. But given the context and based on the HTS Code (1515908110), it appears to be the latter.
This first report also notes there was a 79% increase in retail ads from the previous week and a 493% increase over the same week last year.
“Price differences from last week for the National region were negligible except for a 6% increase in the price of 7 oz. organic hemp seeds”
Further reports will be available via the AMS’s miscellaneous specialty reports page.
The AMS publishing these reports is further evidence of growing recognition of hemp’s role in the USA’s economy and it will be interesting to see how it evolves over time. It’s hard to believe it was only a few years ago when hemp was somewhat of taboo topic. That all changed with the signing of the 2018 Farm Bill, which finally recognised and defined hemp as being different from marijuana and gave it the same status as other agricultural crops.
