Oklahoma lawmakers are poised to consider legal hemp production in 2018, a move that would open the state’s limited cannabidiol program to in-state producers.
If the bipartisan proposal aimed at boosting a sagging farm economy succeeds, Oklahoma would join more than 30 other states that allow hemp production.
“It’s a true cash crop and has a lot of beneficial properties,” state Rep. Jon Echols told KFOR-TV in Oklahoma City.Oklahoma has allowed citizens to buy CBD oil under certain circumstances since 2015. But the state doesn’t allow the raw product to be produced in Oklahoma.
One company, Can-Tek Labs, manufactures CBD products from massage oil to edible candies in Oklahoma City. But it must import its raw hemp from a neighboring state.
The hemp proposal has backers from both parties for the 2018 legislative session.
“I certainly hope, given the state of the economy, that the chances of this becoming a law are good,” Echols said.
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