As a farmer for 30 years, Janet Gamble has seen lots of changes. She managed the farmer training program for Michael Fields Agricultural Institute, and in 2010, she co-founded Turtle Creek Gardens, a whole-system regenerative farm. When Gamble noticed bigger farms swooping in to fulfill niche produce markets once supplied by smaller farms such as hers, she knew it was time to consider other high-value crops.
Then, along came hemp legalization in Wisconsin. Gamble and her business partner spent last winter researching hemp and working with a local broker-distributor that deals with hemp oils and nutraceutical products. Once the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) had its 2018 hemp-licensing program in place, Gamble applied. “We grew CBD [cannabidiol] hemp and industrial grain hemp,” Gamble said. “The hemp grew well, there was good execution and timing, and we had a successful crop.”
The licensure process through DATCP involved a background check, having GPS coordinates in place to track where the hemp was grown and approval of seed genetics. The DATCP took tests from each hemp farm plot. About 30 days before harvest, farmers had to contact DATCP for additional sampling to be sure the crop was at or below the legal limit of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Farmers whose crops were below the legal limit receive a fit-for-commerce certificate that allows them to harvest and sell it.
If a crop tested above the legal limit, it had to be destroyed. “Every sale you make has to be accompanied by a license number, and the processor also has to have a license,” Gamble explained. She said DATCP officials have been helpful and accommodating during the 2018 pilot process. “I think they really want the hemp industry to succeed in Wisconsin.”
Hemp is ‘Definitely Good Economics’
Gamble said they started with five acres of industrial grain hemp and 400 CBD plants on 1/8th of an acre. Industrial grain hemp is an extremely tough plant because of its fiber and hard stalk, and Gamble said modified machinery is needed to process industrial grain hemp and separate its two byproducts, hemp fiber and hemp hurd—the soft inner core of the stem. She noted there’s currently no hemp processing infrastructure in place in Wisconsin to handle industrial grain hemp.
Turtle Creek Gardens sold many of their industrial grain hemp seeds and will bump up this year’s CBD hemp crop to about 5,000 plants. Like most vegetables, hemp is also harvested in the fall, so Gamble said there was a lot of juggling involved caring for and harvesting their vegetable and hemp crops, but the hard work was worth it.
“The hemp was definitely good economics, because we had such a horrible vegetable year, and we took a hit,” she said. “There’s a saying that ‘hemp can save the world.’ I don’t know if it can save the world, but it definitely saved our farm. The sales of hemp really helped, and it was good that we had that cash crop.”
With so many smaller farms struggling, Gamble sees hemp as an opportunity, but she predicts the recent federal legalization of hemp will fast-track big companies to get on board the CBD bandwagon. But smaller farms can use transparency, traceability and artisanal aspects to stay competitive.
“Like craft breweries creating their own craft industry, I feel that the hemp industry can be the same,” she said. “Along with CBD, the cannabinoid profile also includes the terpenes, chlorophyll and a wider variety of products that are beneficial. I think that’s where the opportunity is for small growers to make it into an artisanal brand.”
For more information, visit turtlecreekgardenscsa.com.
