Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1287953
elling hemp has been tricky for some Montana farmers. Aer they have gone to the trouble of geing a license to grow the hemp and then raising this new crop, they have had the experience of finding out that contracts they were holding for buying the hemp were worthless. For those farmers who have had a bad experience selling their hemp, it's time to look elsewhere for a reliable company offering contracts to buy the commodity. A company that farmers should be watching this next year in anticipation of the 2021 growing season is the Montana Farmers Development Group (MFDG). e CEO is Kevin Nelson who is based in Sherman Oaks, California. He grew up in Great Falls and aended the University of Montana. During those college summers, Nelson worked for Kelly Lenington on his farm near Fort Benton. Since then, Nelson has spent the last thirty years working in healthcare and with Fortune 500 companies as an entrepreneur in a variety of business development, operational, commercialization, and leadership roles. Montana Farmers Development Group has direct ties with Tyson Ranch, a division of e Ranch Companies, owned by Mike Tyson, the boxer. MFDG has developed a plan to contract with farmers to grow hemp biomass for quality cannabidiol (CBD) that will be sold mainly to e Tyson Ranch Companies. Hemp and its cousin, marijuana, are both members of the cannabis family. e difference is that marijuana contains 5 to 20 percent of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) which is a psychoactive substance while hemp has no more than 0.3 percent (by dry weight) THC, but it does have cannabidiol (CBD) oil. To grow hemp, the farmer must obtain a license from the Montana Department of Agriculture and purchase seed from an approved source that sells quality hemp seed. Regular inspections by state ag officials during the growing season are part of the licensing process. e variety of hemp that is grown depends on the purpose. In other words, hemp that is grown for CBD oil, hemp seed oil, S Montana Farmers Development Group Montana Farmers Development Group BY SUZANNE WARING PHOTOGRAPHY BY RACHEL MEADORS 17 farm406 Left to Right: Grant Briggs, MFDG agronomist; Mike Nelson, MFDG Director of Field Operations; and Joe Nelson, records keeper for MFDG.