Hemp fields in Kentucky are multiplying. So, too, is the field of hemp-related jobs — both inside and outside the agricultural sector. At 60,000 acres, Kentucky has the most hemp acreage of any state, besting even Colorado, a known hemp (and marijuana) production giant. That is just one reason Hemp Industry Daily named Kentucky the second most prominent state in hemp production in 2018. Last week, Atalo Holdings announced the opening of a large hemp processing facility in Winchester. That facility — Atalo’s second in Kentucky to date — will clock in at over 50,000 square feet.

Atalo Adds 50,000sf Hemp Processing Facility Certified by U.S. Hemp Authority. According to Kyle Raney, Director of Operations and Quality at Atalo, “In order to meet current and forecasted market demand, Atalo has expanded its extraction, formulation, packaging and laboratory capabilities with the addition of a second location, a 50,000 square-foot facility, located in Winchester, Kentucky. As the hemp-derived CBD market matures, certification such as this assures consumers that quality and safety are core values of Atalo. This ensures the confidence of our customers as we expand our capacity.”

“Today marks an important milestone in the development of our debut line of CBD products for pets,” said Darcy Bomford, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of True Leaf. “We’re developing a best-to-market CBD line with veterinarian-formulated proprietary blends that are tested from seed to shelf. Pet parents will know they are getting the safest, most effective CBD product on the market. With Atalo’s supply of top-quality CBD we are confident that we can meet the growing market demand and continue to be the cannabis-for-pets brand that retailers and pet parents trust.”

Atalo representatives were recently in Washington, D.C. with KYHIA lobbying for banking access.

Honeysuckle Magazine interview with Space Tango, Atalo and Anavii Market on historic hemp research aboard International Space Station. Atalo seed was onboard.

At zero gravity, “We expect something will happen,” said Kimel. “It could very well be material changes that enhance the efficacy of the plant, and that could have a major impact on people’s lives, particularly in the biomedical area.” The seed will remain on the Space Station for five to six weeks before it comes back to earth. Atalo will study some seeds and plant others. Several months from now, they’ll launch the next phase, which will include germinating the seed in space.

“When plants are ‘stressed’ they pull from a genetic reservoir to produce compounds that allow them to adapt and survive,” Chappell said in a public statement when Space Tango announced its hemp plans. “Understanding how plants react in an environment where the traditional stress of gravity is removed can provide new insights into how adaptations come about and how researchers might take advantage of such changes for the discovery of new characteristics, traits, biomedical applications and efficacy.”

FARMERS HOPE FOR HEMP RICHES DESPITE RISKS. The farm bill, which President Donald Trump signed in December, makes growing hemp in the United States legal again. Now Kentucky, which the Brookings Institution called one of the best places to cultivate hemp in the world, is returning to its roots. Kentucky was the country’s greatest producer of hemp in the 19th and 20th centuries. But two legislative efforts limited production: A 1937 marijuana taxation law characterized hemp as a narcotic and required growers to hold a federal registration and special tax stamp. And the Controlled Substances Act of 1970 made hemp illegal to grow without a permit from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

In 2014, Graves and a Kentucky-bred board of directors formed Atalo Holdings Inc., which now boasts a suite of hemp cultivation, processing, manufacturing and research initiatives. The company, based in Winchester, Ky., shares 147 acres with GenCanna Global USA on what executives call the Hemp Research Campus. Those two companies formalized a partnership on Dec. 12, 2018, at the dawn of the legal domestic hemp industry in the U.S., according to a press release, to “create the largest vertically integrated hemp-derived CBD production, processing and distribution alliance in Kentucky.”

In the short while since last December’s passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, the market has started to make dramatic shifts. Cannabis companies like Canopy Growth Corp. (NYSE: CGC) have decided to go all-in on hemp, and existing hemp producers have begun to ramp up their production capacities.How has the hemp industry adjusted to its newly minted legal status? The Hemp Business Journal caught up with Joe Hickey, Atalo Holdings, Inc.’s founder and director of corporate relations, to inquire.