USDA Clarifies Import Requirements for Industrial Hemp

The Department of Agriculture clarified its policies on how federal law applies to industrial hemp, in a notice issued Aug. 12 (here). Developed “in consultation with” the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Food and Drug Administration, USDA’s “Statement of Principles on Industrial Hemp” says that recent legislation “did not eliminate the requirement under the Controlled Substances Import and Export Act that the importation of viable cannabis seeds must be carried out by persons registered with the DEA to do so.” The statement also clarifies that “any USDA phytosanitary requirements that normally would apply to the importation of plant material will apply to the importation of industrial hemp seed.”