NC: Hemp In Business In Halifax County

Ron Strider

Well-Known Member
The hemp industry has already kicked off in Halifax County in Hobgood, and eventually the fibrous plants will become medicinal products.

Local farmer and veteran Scott Propheter gave the Halifax County Board of Commissioners an overlook on how the hemp industry was managing in the area. Propheter is in charge of operations, farming and outreach for the Hobgood division of Criticality, which he is the CEO.

"We're going to quickly build a large-scale industrial hemp extraction purification capacity right here in eastern North Carolina, right here in Halifax County, is the plan" he said.

Propheter said the company has invested about $1.5 million into an extraction facility in Hobgood. He said there are about 50 acres of growing hemp, and the plants, when fully grown, will look like large Christmas trees.

"And you'll get about a pound to two pounds of dried material per plant for processing," he said.

About 30 nations already grow and process hemp, and 29 states have pilot industrial hemp programs, he said.

"Right here in eastern North Carolina is actually recognized as one of the best locations to grow in the United States, and that was part of a congressional study done on industrial hemp," Propheter said.

Hemp sees use in industrial, environmental, apparel, energy, food and nutraceutical industries, he said, and it is rich in cannabinoids that have shown health benefits.

"It comes from the cannabis plant family and looks exactly like marijuana, but it has no recreational use," he said. "It's not psychoactive. There's no potential for abuse. It has less than 0.3 percent THC in it."

He went on to say, "Marijuana typically has 10-plus percent THC. You might get sick smoking (hemp), but you're not going to get high from it."

Propheter said the company is targeting four cannabinoids in hemp: CBD, CBG, CBN and CBC.

In his presentation, Propheter revealed CBD has a wide range of use in the nutraceutical market, including pain relief, killing or slowing bacteria growth, reduces blood sugar levels. As for CBG, he said, it shows fantastic promise in cancer research and anti-inflammatory uses. CBN is a natural sleep aid, he said, and CBC also has cancer research uses.

2017 is the first year of growing and processing after the state adopted state Senate Bill 313 in 2015 and modified it to state House Bill 992. The bill established the North Carolina Industrial Hemp Commission, and they approved temporary rules in February.

Said Chairman Vernon Bryant: "I had an opportunity to tour the facility and appreciate everything you're doing so far."

Hemp_in_North_Carolina_-_WLOS_staff.jpg


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