Hemp thefts question crops’ future in Conn.
NEW MILFORD — When Curtis Ek headed out to his fields this week to harvest his hemp crop, he noticed 85 percent of his 200 plants were gone.
“They stole it at night, right before we harvested,” he said. “We just missed them by about eight hours.”
Hemp farmers are reporting thefts across the state, though hard numbers aren’t available yet for what this mean’s for the state’s pilot crop. About $11,200 worth of hemp plants — 45 plants — were stolen from a grower in Redding last month, and two people were arrested in Easton for attempting to steal plants this month.
Towns further east, including East Windsor, Simsbury and Bloomfield, have also investigated instances of hemp plant thefts in recent months.
The timing is especially worrying as farmers look to see if this new crop could be the answer they’re looking for to stay profitable in Connecticut’s changing agricultural landscape and deciding if they want to increase their investment or even continue to grow hemp.
Many have lost their traditional crops to new invasive species and diseases or the demand has shifted to other countries and states that can produce that same crop for less. Connecticut’s declining cattle and dairy industry has subsequently hurt the hay growers.
“We finally have a crop that can make some money and it can’t even make it to processing,” Ek said, adding they were only left with the “runt of the crop.”
He had planned to expand his operation, but questioned the investment if the hemp keeps being stolen.
Agriculture experts suspect the thefts are happening because people think the plants are marijuana since the two look and smell the same, though hemp only produces 0.3 percent of THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, which is the intoxicating part of the plant. Other thefts might come from those who know it’s hemp and are stealing it to sell the CBD, or cannabidiol, which is why the crop is so popular right now.
CBD is used for medicinal purposes and can be found in a number of products, including creams, and does not get people intoxicated.
Though hemp has a history in ropes and textiles, the oils are the big demand now and why the farmers in numerous states are growing it, said Bonnie Burr, assistant director with University of Connecticut’s Cooperative Extension.
“It’s all driven by money and what the market wants,” she said.
A new crop
Hemp has garnered a lot of interest from existing farmers looking to remain profitable by adding it to their fields, as well as outofstate growers looking to come to Connecticut.
It’s still too early to determine what the revenue will be for Connecticut, but economists estimate hemp yields $30,000 to $100,000 in revenue per acre, which is two to three times the profit vegetable farmers are seeing in Connecticut, said Shuresh Ghimire, assistant extension educator with the UConn Extension, who has been working on the hemp program through the extension.
“It’s a very, high valuable crop,” he said.
Crowds of at least 80 people came out to each of the extension office’s four interest meetings and the training in June reached its 200people capacity.
“The farmers are very excited,” Ghimire said.
Ek decided to start growing hemp to supplement his oats, hay and barley. He also sits on New Milford’s farmland preservation committee and sees this as a way to keep the town’s agricultural land in business.
“We were trying to transition into something else that could be a cash crop,” he said, adding he still sells hay though those figures are down. “It’s not what it used to be so we’re trying to diversify the land.”
Connecticut itself is fairly new to growing hemp.
States were first allowed to start pilot programs with the passage of the 2014 Farm Bill. Connecticut was only one of nine states that decided to not start one. The next opportunity came around when the 2018 Farm Bill was passed. This time, Connecticut jumped onboard, Burr said.
Gov. Ned Lamont made it a priority and the pilot program and regulations went into effect this spring. Growers have to be approved by the state Department of Agriculture. About 82 licenses have been administered.
“It’s a work in progress as a crop in the state,” Burr said.
Challenges
Ek said the thefts were the latest hurdle in an already challenging first season. Earlier this year, Connecticut state police saw his fields while out surveying in a helicopter, thought his plants were marijuana and tried to cut down the whole plot.
He was able to stop them in time, but questioned how it could have happened in the first place because he’s licensed to grow hemp through the state Department of Agriculture and all of the coordinates are registered.
“One hand didn’t know what the other hand was doing because it’s so new,” Ek said.
While the crop is resilient, there are a number of pests and diseases that go after hemp, said Shuresh Ghimire, assistant extension educator with the UConn Extension, who has been working on the hemp program through the extension.
He said the effect of those is minimal right now because hemp is still new and more people are reporting losses through theft, though it’s still too early to say how much of the crop was stolen.
The actual impact of hemp being stolen will probably be more apparent as farmers gather with the extension after this fall’s harvest to discuss the pilot season, Burr said.