Why a New Farm Bill Amendment Threatens Every Hemp Farmer and Business, and How We Fight Back.
For years, the members of iHemp Michigan—our farmers, processors, entrepreneurs, and innovators—have worked tirelessly. You have invested your capital, your time, and your passion into building a vibrant, legal hemp industry from the ground up. You took the promise of the 2018 Farm Bill and turned it into reality, creating jobs, revitalizing rural economies, and developing sustainable products for the future.
Now, that future is under direct threat.
A dangerous amendment to the Farm Bill, proposed by Rep. Mary Miller (R-IL) and passed by the House Agriculture Committee, seeks to turn back the clock. This amendment would effectively dismantle the entire hemp-derived products industry, unraveling nearly a decade of progress and investment.
This isn’t a tweak to the rules. This is an existential threat.
What the Amendment Does
According to reporting from Cannabis Business Times, the amendment’s language is intentionally destructive. It seeks to redefine “hemp” in a way that would ban all ingestible hemp products with any quantifiable amount of THC.
This isn’t just about “intoxicating” cannabinoids like Delta-8. This language is so broad it would outlaw the vast majority of the popular, non-intoxicating full-spectrum and broad-spectrum CBD products that consumers rely on and that form the economic backbone of many Michigan hemp businesses.
It is, as our national partners at the U.S. Hemp Roundtable state, a backdoor attempt at prohibition.
Why This Threatens EVERYONE in Hemp—Not Just Cannabinoids
Some in the grain and fiber sectors might think this fight doesn’t concern them. They would be dangerously mistaken.
As the U.S. Hemp Roundtable powerfully argues in their national call to action, the hemp industry is not a collection of separate silos. It is an interconnected ecosystem.
- It Kills Innovation and Profitability for Farmers: The future of hemp farming is in genetics. Researchers are developing incredible dual- and tri-crop varieties that allow a farmer to harvest a crop for grain, fiber, and cannabinoids. This genetic innovation maximizes the value of every acre planted. By eliminating the cannabinoid market, this amendment removes a key revenue stream, making hemp a far less viable and profitable crop for farmers. It takes away a vital risk-management tool.
- It Repeats the Mistakes of the Past: History teaches a clear lesson. When the 1970 Controlled Substances Act outlawed domestic hemp, the industry didn’t vanish—it simply moved overseas. For decades, the hemp products on American shelves, from textiles to protein powder, were imported from Canada, China, and Europe.
This amendment won’t stop demand; it will simply kill American jobs and hand a multi-billion-dollar industry to foreign competitors, forcing us to once again rely on imports. - It Chooses Prohibition Over Regulation: The hemp industry agrees that we need robust regulation to ensure consumer safety, create clear standards, and provide market stability. That is the responsible path forward. This amendment rejects that path and chooses to eliminate an entire American industry instead. It’s a solution that solves nothing and creates economic devastation in its wake.
Our Stand: Regulation, Not Prohibition
iHemp Michigan, in solidarity with the U.S. Hemp Roundtable and a coalition of dozens of industry associations, is fighting back. We believe in protecting consumers with sensible regulations, not destroying an entire agricultural sector with misguided prohibition.But we cannot do this alone. Washington D.C. needs to hear from the people on the ground—the farmers, the business owners, the employees whose livelihoods are at stake. They need to hear from Michigan.This is the moment where a strong, unified voice is not just important; it’s essential for survival.
Your Voice is Needed NOW. Here’s How to Act.
- Join the Fight. Become a Member of iHemp Michigan: Your membership is the fuel for our advocacy. It allows us to represent Michigan’s industry in critical moments like this. If you are not yet a member, there has never been a more important time to join. If you are a member, thank you—your support is making our work possible. Join or renew easily at iHempMichigan.com.
- Contact Your U.S. Representative Immediately: Call and email your representative in Congress. Tell them to OPPOSE the Mary Miller amendment to the Farm Bill. Tell them you support REGULATION, NOT PROHIBITION for hemp products. You can find your representative here: Find Your Representative.
- Share This Message: Forward this article to your network. Post it on LinkedIn, Facebook, and X. The more people who understand the threat, the stronger our collective voice becomes.
The promise of hemp is too great to let it be extinguished by misguided legislation. Let’s stand together to protect our industry, our businesses, and our future.In solidarity,
The iHemp Michigan Team
