By Clint Thompson
Georgia hemp producers should be mindful that as of Nov. 1, renewal applications are open for currently licensed growers and permitted processors.
The 2022 applications will close on Tuesday, Nov. 15. That is the final day to apply for a 2022 grower license or processor permit. The 2023 window will reopen to new applicants on Jan. 1, 2023.
Tim Coolong, professor in the University of Georgia (UGA) College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, discussed the future of hemp in Georgia.
“We do actually have a reasonable number of small growers selling boutique products. Some of them in Georgia are working with a grower cooperative for processing. I think the days of someone growing 20, 30 or more acres of hemp to take to a processor are gone, at least in Georgia,” Coolong said. “It’s going to be more where someone has a diversified operation and perhaps have an acre of hemp or something like that. They’re making a value-added product out of it.
“I think it’s going to be more of that moving forward.”
Those interested can click here for grower license application instructions. Those interested can click here for processor application instructions. For questions regarding the Georgia Hemp Farming Act and applications, send an email to hemp@agr.georgia.gov.