Join the Texas Hemp Coalition Board Members, Jake Garry of Fresh Grown Texas & Drops of Life and Taylor Kirk of 4KPharm as they discuss a recap of the 88th Texas Legislative Session. We discuss all bills, issues and ongoing policy efforts at the state and federal levels. Moderated by Executive Director, Ilissa Nolan.

For five generations, Kimberley's family has been a steward of the land. South Texas heritage soil is part of our past and is our future. Our venture into hemp farming compliments our established ranching and deer operations and we continue the family tradition of hard work, hands on management, and organic stewardship.  From the time a hemp seed goes in the ground, until it is used in a consumable product, it is a healer.  

CBD Texas Farms hemp is grown outdoors and indoors depending on the season. Unlike marijuana and medical marijuana, which have  high levels of THC, our hemp is grown for CBD which contains under .3% THC. Our CBD oil is grown to be used in cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and nutritional supplements. The seeds are certified hemp seeds approved by the State of Texas. We have implemented a rigorous testing schedule and have been 100% compliant.  Our girls, as we call them, are tested continuously throughout the flower season, are officially tested by a Texas certified sample contractor, and are tested again before leaving our facility. All that to say, we grow it, so we know it! Once extracted, our oil undergoes several panels of testing for pesticides, mycotoxins, residual solvents,  density, Cbd and THC content. The final product, whether it be our 20% Full Spectrum blend for our manufacturing clients, or any of our custom formulated products, we test again once it reaches our warehouse.  

Terpex Technology allows our unique and proprietary 20% Grape-seed blend to be solvent free and the most organic oil on the market. Using the plants own terpenes as a solvent, the biomass is not processed using alcohol or ethanol. You can see, taste, and smell the difference. Our oil is being used in national CBD cosmetic and supplement brands, something we are extremely proud of.  After a successful first year producing hemp to be manufactured into our proprietary CBD oil blend for cosmetic and pharmaceutical manufacturers, we have expanded our operations to include two product lines. The LTM boutique Live the Moment CBD product line is available for wholesale, retail, and private label as well as retail stores and online at ltmcbd.com.

Our farm brand is also available for wholesale, retail, private label and online at cbdtexasfarms.com. 

This episode goes into the policy issues that are in Texas versus other states such as Delta 8, hemp feed, etc. Our Executive Board member Spencer Owens of CBD Kratom and new HIA Board Member shares his expertise as he works in other states across the nation to protect the interests of the hemp industry. 

Jody McGinness comes to the Hemp Industries Association with more than 20 years of experience in leading associations and membership organizations in the nonprofit sector.

Most recently, he served as the head of fundraising for the Marijuana Policy Project.  He served while that organization campaigned successfully to pass adult-use legalization legislation in Illinois and Vermont.  During his tenure, the organization also  engineered the passage of medical cannabis legalization in Utah.

Jody’s  passion for hemp is informed by personal experience.  That’s because he witnessed family members directly harmed by prohibition. In addition, he takes inspiration from the potential of the U.S. hemp industries to provide opportunities for entrepreneurship and innovation to the benefit of all Americans.

He makes his home just outside the nation’s capital, where he resides with his wife and three young children. In what free time he’s able to find, Jody enjoys hiking in the beauty of nature.  He also enjoys reading great books, and writing short fiction.

This is an episode that you definitely do not want to miss! Join us as we hear from our two Executive Board Members, Shayda Torabi and Jeromy Sherman, as they give us a recap of our recent trip to Washington D.C.

They discuss the importance of reaching out to your respective representatives both at the Federal and State level on what changes that you want to see for the industry, important issues we advocated on behalf of and how the 2023 Farm Bill will affect our industry.

Also, don't forget to register for your ticket for the Texas Hemp Summit at Texas A&M University on November 11-12. 

Jonathan Miller, a nationally-celebrated government relations professional, leads Frost Brown Todd’s federal advocacy practice and has emerged as one of the country’s leading advocates and attorneys for the global hemp industry.

Jonathan serves as Member-in-Charge of Frost Brown Todd’s Washington, D.C. office, whose combination of public policy and regulatory experience, backed by the support of a full-service law firm with offices in key markets, carves out a unique value proposition: He can draw readily on the firm’s strong constituent-based relationships to provide clients with exclusive and actionable insights regarding the legal trends and developments that stand to greatly impact their industries. In so doing, Jonathan leads a team that presents clients a one-stop shop for regulatory and legislative services, promoting efficiency, communication, and collaboration.

There are few individuals who have been more influential in the development of the U.S. hemp industry. Upon helping found the U.S. Hemp Roundtable (and its sister organization, the U.S. Hemp Authority), Jonathan has served as the industry’s leading advocate for Hemp and CBD legislation on the ground in Congress and in dozens of state legislatures. A recovering politician (the Democrat was elected twice as Kentucky’s State Treasurer), Jonathan has worked across the aisle with leading hemp champions such as U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell on critical legislation, including the 2014 and 2018 Farm Bills. Now he spends his time working with Congress, the White House, the USDA, FDA and DEA to promote policies that advance the industry. In acknowledgment of his accomplishments, the National Law Journal named Jonathan to its inaugural class of “Trailblazers” among government relations professionals and Politico labeled him a “Power Player” on hemp issues on Capitol Hill.

Prior to joining FBT, Miller spent nearly two decades in public service, where he held numerous senior positions in state and federal government, including two terms as Kentucky’s State Treasurer, in addition to serving as Kentucky’s Secretary of Finance and Administration, Deputy Chief of Staff of the U.S. Department of Energy, and Legislative Director for Congressman Jim Cooper.

Visit US Hemp Roundtable.

Leah Lakstins is a native Kentuckian with a passion for facilitating amazing consumer experiences that educate and entertain. Before her cannabis career, she assisted commercial roofing contractors grow their businesses. She is a Trainual Certified Consultant and has a certificate in Retail Fundamentals from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth. Additionally, she is a Trichome Institute Professional Interpener, UNLV certified cannabis professional, and secretary of the ASTM D37.06 subcommittee for cannabis curriculum. She is also the interim Chief Operating Officer at Greenlight Events and the Founder of Hemp Business Builder. Since 2018, Hemp Business Builder has assisted emerging hemp entrepreneurs streamline and scale their operations as well as train their employees. Leah has been a speaker at various hemp events including the Southern Hemp Expo, USA CBD Expo and NoCo. When not consulting with hemp clients, you may find her DJ-ing in Austin, Texas, or building client experiences for brands like Higher Ed Hemp Tours and Float On Tours.

Daulton O’Neill is a freethinking thought provoker looking to make maximum impact in the hemp industry. He leverages industry insights and relationships to push the ball forward to create unique memorable events for clients and sponsors. Daulton has helped facilitate multiple event contracts, most notably for Earthx (The largest environmental experience in the world) which he still works as a consultant. An activist at heart, he spends time during the legislative sessions talking about issues that matter to him and networking with different industry leaders to create change. He builds with others around him that believe in the same core principles.  He holds a bachelors of public administration from Texas State University and utilizes his ties to the hill country when needed. If you are passionate about creating lasting relationships in the hemp industry, contact Daulton today.

Visit Green Light Event Co. and Hemp Business Builder.

Dr. Russell W. Jessup is the Associate Professor of Perennial Grass & Industrial Hemp Breeding of the Department of Soil and Crop Sciences at Texas A&M University. 

His research focuses on conventional, cytogenetic, and genomic strategies towards development of improved perennial grasses as biorefinery platforms for biofuels, turfgrasses, forage, ornamentals, phytoremediators and renewable bio-based products.  This includes developing molecular tools to assist marker-assisted breeding programs for value-added traits such as: net primary productivity, carbon sequestration, perenniality, photoperiodism, hybrid sterility, and apomixis.  Feedstocks are further selected for resource use efficiency, stress tolerance, and novel seeded-yet-sterile hybrid systems.

He has developed the Industrial Hemp Breeding Program at Texas A&M where they are doing extensive research on genetics that can be grown in the Texas soil & climate. 

Tune in to learn from two of Texas’ leading legal professionals, Lisa Pittman of Pittman Legal and Cameron Field of Michael Best, what the recent Texas Supreme Court update regarding the smokable hemp ban means for Texas hemp businesses as well as what is the latest status of Delta 8 THC in Texas.

Lisa Pittman has been a pioneering figure in the Texas cannabis industry since 2015. Ms. Pittman is appointed to the Texas Department of Agriculture Industrial Hemp Advisory Council by the Texas Agriculture Commissioner.  She is also a Non-resident fellow at Rice University Baker Institute of Public Policy, Drug Policy Program.  She is on the Board of Directors for the Texas Hemp Coalition.  She has worked extensively in Texas and surrounding states to bring hemp and marijuana laws to fruition. As a result, Ms. Pittman earned the 2020 Texas Lawyer Trailblazer and 2020 National Law Journal Trailblazer awards for Cannabis Law.  Finally, Ms. Pittman Chairs the American Bar Association’s Cannabis Law & Policy Committee for 2021-2022, which she spurred the creation of by presenting the ABA’s first marijuana law CLE in 2016. 

From her involvement in the nascent cannabis industry, Ms. Pittman has represented a broad range of clients from investors to ancillary service and product providers to “plant touching” companies — farmers, processors, manufacturers, laboratories, distributors, and retailers. Some of these clients have now expanded into other countries. In pursuit of becoming an authority in this area, she spent two years in Colorado, and she understands the many challenges facing marijuana and hemp businesses, such as tax, banking, insurance, and regulatory compliance issues, and she has grown a vast network of experts to assist in these areas. Ms. Pittman participates in the constantly evolving laws, news, and deals occurring in the cannabis industry internationally on a daily basis. 

Throughout Ms. Pittman’s 21-year career, she has litigated and tried disputes relating to labor & employment, breach of contract, commercial banking, fraud, fiduciary duty, construction defect and injury, deceptive trade practices, premises liability, professional liability, and products liability. She also possesses extensive expertise in complex commercial insurance coverage matters, having both defended insurance companies and advocated for policy holders in commercial property, residential property, and life insurance matters.  She is licensed in Texas and Colorado, and is also a certified mediator and arbitrator.

Cameron Field is an attorney with significant experience in the cannabis industry as is the co-leader of the cannabis industry group at the law firm of Michael Best LLP.  

As a recognized expert in hemp regulations and hemp-based products, Cameron has twice been a featured speaker at Texas Hemp Convention and has organized hemp-focused panels for the South By Southwest conference in Austin, where he calls home.

Cameron’s cannabis clients range from some of the nation’s largest industrial hemp processors to family-owned retail stores, and he enjoys helping those clients navigate ever-changing regulations, negotiate commercial contracts, and secure venture capital funding.   

Grow House Media is an Austin-based production company that is clearing the smoke around the most misunderstood plant on the planet. We live at the intersection of education and entertainment, advocacy and amusement, telling the truth about cannabis and getting a little wild along the way. They are the producers of Big Texas Hemp which is a docuseries about Texas Hemp Farmers!

Founded by husband-and-wife team Liz Grow and Patrick Pope, Grow House Media is Texas’ only cannabis-focused production company.

About Liz Grow
If you’re looking for the stereotypical “lazy stoner,” then look elsewhere. (Also, that stereotype is completely unfounded — but we digress.) In her college days, Liz was a 5-time All American athlete and Notre Dame track star. She’s still a fitness junkie, working out with the help of a little CBD to ease sore muscles.

Liz’s first introduction to cannabis was medicinal, prescribed by a San Francisco doctor. Since then, she’s been fascinated by plant medicine and wants to share its hope and healing with anyone and everyone.

About Patrick Pope
Patrick has been working in media and production for two decades, creating content for companies like Maker Studios, Chive Media Group, and Rooster Teeth. He’s won several awards for his work, including the first Shorty Award for a LinkedIn campaign. 

Once the LA life lost its luster, Patrick returned to Texas where he and Liz reconnected. Sparks flew, magic happened, and within a year, they were married!

Visit Grow House Media.