In partnership with The Mountain Maryland Hemp Alliance (MMHA), WMRC&D has been awarded $38,950.00 in FY2021 MAERDAF funding by the Rural Maryland Council to build capacity for local testing and processing of industrial hemp grown in western Maryland.
The project will develop field and lab testing capacity and educational programs in western Maryland through a partnership with University of Maryland Extension Services and regional institutes of higher education. Frostburg State University will house potency lab equipment, while also providing students with internship and research opportunities . The Mountain Maryland Hemp Alliance plans to host educational field days to generate interest in growing hemp locally.
In addition to addressing testing capacity, this grant has been used to purchase post-harvest processing equipment. In order for hemp to be extracted, biomass (leaves and buds) must be removed from the stalk of the plant. Farmers in this region have been manually removing this biomass, which is very labor intensive. A mobile, mechanized device for stripping biomass will help to alleviate bottlenecks in the processing of regionally grown hemp and help farmers move their crop for extraction. A trimming machine and bucker machine have been purchased to create added value for wholesale markets of CBD flower.
