When Banks and Rural Innovators Get In With Hemp, You Know Something is Up

CITIZENS FIRST BANK WAS A MAJOR SPONSOR OF THIS YEAR'S NOCO HEMP EXPO IN COLORADO. WHAT DOES THAT SAY ABOUT THE INDUSTRY AND OPPORTUNITY FOR A STATE LIKE WISCONSIN?

IN April we ascended into the Rocky mountains to Estes Park, Colorado, where the 11th annual (and our first) NoCo Hemp Expo was held. The elevated 4 day event was about half the size of previous years, especially pre-pandemic, when the first hemp boom was raging, led by a wild-west contingency of marijuana and CBD speculators. This group was largely absent, thank you, I have had my fill. Instead was a far more mature and seasoned culture focused on hemp fiber, hemp agriculture and the underlying issues of rural development.

Derek Wolfe, Producing hemp blocks

White rural communities, farmers, native tribes, black investors were intently focused on the slow and steady growth of the industries that will benefit from hemp and the positive outcomes that are near at hand. None of it relates to CBD or marijuana.

First and foremost, it's hemp construction, hempcrete, hemp blocks, and how it may address some of the critical concerns about housing and community development. Hemp and Block LLC of Montrose, CO was an exhibitor They have an actual factory in place producing a range of innovative building products. We have a feature on them coming up soon.

Jacob Bish in Giltner NE, Producing Innovative Hemp Farm Machinery

Then there is processing of hemp fiber, represented by Bish Enterprises in Giltner, Nebraska, developing hemp farming machinery.

Kelley Burke of Kifcure in Northern Illinois

Kifcure in Kane county, northern Illinois, covers all the bases in terms of growing, processing and product.

Pennslvania's Lancaster county, Amish country, is very solid with hemp fiber development and we were honored to meet Steve Groff of the Future-Proof Farm as a farming innovator and influencer in hemp and economics. Rural New Jersey as well, yes there are farms in New Jersey, and a contingent of hemp farming and housing experts were on hand to share their technology and momentum that is taking place on the eastern seaboard.

Steve Groff, Future-Proof Farm, Hemp Agriculture Advocate in Rural PA

Most surprising, however was First Citizens Bank, a major NoCo sponsor, with JP Connell representing the bank's family interests in hemp for a new generation.

JP Connell, VP of Hemp for First Citizens Bank

It has to be another hemp industry milestone, a major bank so fully on board. They appear to be jumping in with no hesitancy about the end product, but we assume the mainstream fiber industry growth is giving them confidence. We will be interviewing some of their hemp banking team in the near future.