About Eastern US Hemp Growers Conference & Expo
Returning to the Albany Capital Center, the 2nd annual Eastern US Hemp Growers Conference & Expo continues to educate and celebrate the “Hempire State” of New York!
As a result of the state’s top-tier research capabilities, its ample land, access to water - and now, its industry-friendly laws and regulations - New York is emerging as the ideal place to capitalize on the budding industrial hemp market.
Speakers
Sponsors
Agenda
Sunday, June 2, 2019
REGISTRATION OPENS
9:30 AM • Level 1 Pre-function Area
WORKSHOP: HEMP CULTIVATION FOR CBD - INDOOR FACILITY DESIGN
10:00 AM - 12:00 PM • Meeting Room 2
An introductory discussion of the requirements for growing/cultivating hemp for CBD extracts, specifically related to indoor facility design. We will discuss the planning and design process from permitting, zoning and licensing to the building systems necessary for a successful controlled environment agricultural operation. We will also weigh the pros and cons of new construction vs renovating an existing building, project delivery options such as Design-Build, and the effects these have on your overall schedule and budget. Along the way, we will discuss the plant biology and taxonomy of Cannabis, Hemp vs Marijuana, CBD oil vs CBD extract vs hemp seed oil, and the current regulations and status of growing and cultivating hemp in NYS.
Presenters:
Matt Monaghan, AIA – Senior Principal, SEI Design Group
David Hallmark – Designer, SEI Design Group
VENDOR MOVE IN
11:00 AM - 5:00 PM • Level 2
WORKSHOP: DESIGNING WITH HEMPCRETE
2:00 PM - 3:00 PM • Meeting Room 2
What is Hempcrete and how is it made? Uses for and designing with Hempcrete.
Presenter: Bob Escher, AIA – Architect, Escher Design PC
WORKSHOP: FIBER
3:30 PM - 4:30 PM • Meeting Room 2
The four types of hemp and why hemp fiber is special. Learn about the hemp fiber value chain from seed to end use, applications for hemp fiber, industry bottlenecks, and the pathway to a mainstream fiber market.
Presenter: Alex Escher – Director of Project Development, HempHollow, an Escher Design affiliate
INDUSTRY SUMMIT
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM • Meeting Room 2
Certified organic status is one of the most challenging certifications to obtain from the USDA, yet it’s importance for hemp growers and CBD products may be well worth taking on this challenge. Larisa Pavlick, who has more than 20 years of combined experience working within the dietary supplement industry, including nearly eight years as an investigator at the FDA, will impart her knowledge on the ins and out of organic certification.
Presenter: Larisa Pavlick - VP of Global Regulatory & Compliance, United Natural Products Alliance (UNPA)
Following her presentation, Larisa will be joined by a panel of industry experts who will answer questions and share their experiences with the organic certification process.
Panel includes:
Larisa Pavlick - VP of Global Regulatory & Compliance, United Natural Products Alliance (UNPA)
Chris Bailey – COO, Victory Hemp Foods
Margaret MacKenzie – Co-Founder, Salt Creek Hemp Company & Co-Founder, Eleven Acres
Janel Ralph – CEO & Founder, Palmetto Harmony
Preston Whitfield – Co-Founder, Sales & Marketing Director, Source Hemp
Moderator: David Newsom – Vice President of Operations, Palmetto Harmony
Concluding the summit, the aforementioned panel will discuss the every changing landscape of product labeling and compliance.
Monday, June 3, 2019
REGISTRATION OPENS
8:00 AM • Level 1 Pre-function Area
CONTINENTAL BREAKFAST
8:30 AM - 9:30 AM • Level 2
TRADE SHOW FLOOR OPENS
9:00 AM • Level 2
GENERAL SESSION: STATE OF THE HEMP UNION
9:00 AM - 10:15 AM • Level 2
Renowned international hemp educator and advocate Joy Beckerman, who hails from New York and is also President of the Hemp Industries Association® founded in 1994, will deliver an engaging and inspiring State of the Hemp Union address! The revolutionary 2018 Farm Bill is bringing many changes to the nation, and Joy will present on the federal and New York state legal and regulatory landscape of hemp, as well as highlights and challenges from various states. FDA issues surrounding hemp extract and hemp-derived cannabinoids will be discussed, and Joy will also provide a U.S. hemp industry snap shot and comparison crop reports showing how quickly American farmers and entrepreneurs are marching the hemp economy right down the field!
Speaker: Joy Beckerman – Principal, Hemp Ace International
GENERAL SESSION: THE INDEPENDENT HEMP FARMER/ENTREPRENEUR IN THE TRENCHES - WHAT IT TAKES TO SUCCEED
10:45 AM - 12:00 PM • Level 2
Can you grow, process and market your hemp crop on small acreage and make a living, all while building soil for future generations? Yes, but it’s not a get-rich-quick scheme and it’s not for whiners.
Speaker: Doug Fine – Regenerative farmer, leading hemp expert, and bestselling author of Hemp Bound
LUNCH ON TRADE SHOW FLOOR
12:00 PM - 1:15 PM • Level 2
GENERAL SESSION: RESEARCH ADVANCES IN GRAIN AND FIBER HEMP
1:15 PM - 2:30 PM • Level 2
Year 4 of Industrial Hemp research - lessons learned and questions raised
Presenter: Jennifer Gilbert-Jenkins – Assistant Professor, Morrisville State College
Jennifer Gilbert Jenkins is an Assistant Professor of Agricultural Science at SUNY Morrisville. For the past four years, her research has focused on nutrient and pest management in industrial hemp grain and fiber crops.
Evaluation of hemp cultivars across New York state
Presenter: Craig Carlson – Postdoctoral Scientist, Cornell University
Craig earned BS and MS degrees in Plant Science at North Dakota State University, and a PhD in Plant Breeding and Genetics from Cornell University, where he worked on the genomics of hybrid vigor in triploid willow. He is currently a Post-doctoral Scientist with Cornell Hemp, where he deploys new and existing breeding and genomics strategies to improve yield, pest and disease resistance, cannabinoid content, and quality traits.
Assessment of fiber variation for industrial application
Presenter: Jared Nelson – Assistant Professor, SUNY New Paltz
Dr. Jared Nelson is an assistant professor of mechanical engineering at SUNY New Paltz specializing in materials and solid mechanics with research focused on advances in bio-industrial materials toward realizing sustainability. He has spent nearly two decades contributing to the better understanding of material responses of fiber reinforced plastics toward development of improved engineered products. Most recently, he and his students have been studying variation in natural plant fibers to be used as sustainable replacements for synthetic fibers. He has also been a founder in the Bio-industrial Materials Institute (BMI) which endeavors to collaboratively understand the bio-industrial materials from bast fiber plants, their opportunities, and how to economically process them into useful products.
GENERAL SESSION: RESEARCH ADVANCES IN CBD HEMP
3:00 PM - 4:15 PM • Level 2
Overview of cannabidiol biochemistry and insights into molecular approaches to increasing CBD synthesis
Presenter: Gerry Berkowitz – Professor, Univ. of Connecticut
Gerry Berkowitz is a professor of plant molecular and cell biology in the Dept. Plant Science and Landscape Architecture at the University of Connecticut. Research (funded variously by NSF, USDA, and DOE) focus includes plant cell signal transduction and response to biotic stress, publishing over 100 refereed journal articles. New to cannabis research, he has received some funding from Connecticut MMJ grow facilities, and has worked with dozens of undergraduates on cannabis research. He developed and is co-teaching a course on cannabis horticulture at UConn with nearly 400 student registrants.
Developing CBD hemp research program in Vermont
Presenter: Heather Darby – Extension Associate Professor, Univ. of Vermont
Dr. Heather Darby is an Extension Agronomist at the University of Vermont. Since 2016, she has been working to develop best management practices for hemp production in the Northeast. Her research has evaluated grain, fiber, and CBD production practices are their optimization for the region.
Evaluation of CBD hemp production in New York
Presenter: Larry Smart – Professor, Cornell University
Larry Smart, Professor in the Horticulture Section of the School of Integrative Plant Science, is a plant geneticist and breeder whose lab uses genomic tools in breeding shrub willow bioenergy crops and to better understand hybrid vigor and pest and disease resistance. More recently, he has been leading Cornell’s hemp research and extension team and has initiated a long-term breeding program to develop new hemp cultivars for New York State.
GENERAL SESSION: WHAT TO DO WITH YOUR HEMP NOW THAT IT’S ALL GROWN UP - GRAIN & FIBER
4:45 PM - 6:00 PM • Level 2
You chose to grow for grain or fiber. You raised your plants from the ground up and now they’re ready to “leave the nest.” We’ll explore the options for your harvest, discussing potential products, finding buyers, and selling your crop. Learn how grain & fiber go from farmer to processor and from processor to manufacturer.
Panel includes:
Chris Bailey – COO, Victory Hemp Foods
Morris Beegle – Co-Founder and President, WAFBA (We Are For Better Alternatives)
Larry Serbin – President, Hemp Traders
Moderator: Preston Whitfield – Co-Founder, Sales & Marketing Director, Source Hemp
TRADE SHOW FLOOR CLOSES
6:00 PM • Level 2
NETWORKING PARTY & SILENT AUCTION
6:00 PM - 9:00 PM •
