OSU, USDA Continue Hemp Relationship

Oregon State University is extending a partnership with the USDA to study potential future uses of hemp.  OSU’s Global Hemp Innovation Center is getting $5.5 million over five-years from the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service, to build a scientific foundation for the future of hemp. 

“We’ve gone from primarily flower hemp in our emphasis, now to look at industrial hemp," noted Jeffrey Steiner the center’s Director.  He said the plant, which became a legal crop under the 2018 Farm Bill, could be used for building materials, bio-plastics, even food and beverages.

“We want to know, ‘what are the characteristics of the raw materials you need to manufacture your products?’ And then, what do we need to do, working on the genetics, to meet their needs? Because, it’s not just the generic- we don’t have a silo full of hemp fiber, and we don’t want it to be that. We want it to be a tight market between what’s produced and what it’s utilized for. “

The USDA has awarded more than $26 million in federal grants to OSU’s Global Hemp Innovation Center since it opened in 2019.

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