Hemp growers Justin and Hilari Courtney were growing hemp for CBD in Nebraska. They had too little THC in their hemp crop mid-October, so they postponed their harvest. After an unfortunate delay in the state testing procedure, they watched their crop be destroyed days before Thanksgiving.
Christin Kamm, spokeswoman for the Nebraska Department of Agriculture, told the Lincoln Journal Star that state officials wanted a 30-day notification prior to harvest to allow time to schedule sampling dates for state testing. Samples were to be taken within two weeks of the projected harvest date.
The Courtneys were originally set to harvest their hemp Oct. 25. Their crop tested well below the 0.3% THC limit Oct. 10, but they didn’t want to harvest at such a low level, so they requested an extension.
Another sample collection was taken mid-November, but results were delayed until the Courtneys paid the lab fee. The samples tested at 0.496% and 0.38% THC.
The department ordered the destruction of the crop Nov. 26 and would not allow the family to keep the seed the crop produced either, family member Steve Johansen told The Journal Star.
The Courtneys were one of 10 growers the state of Nebraska granted hemp licenses in 2019.
