CLARK COUNTY, Ky. (LEX 18)– Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell was back in Kentucky on Tuesday to talk about the legalization of hemp products.
McConnell was invited to GenCanna’s hemp research campus in Winchester and after touring the facility, he and Kentucky Commissioner of Agriculture Ryan Quarles took the stage to make remarks.
He explained how he successfully passed a bill to get hemp off the U.S. Department of Justice’s list of controlled substances, and turned out over to the USDA.
Federal legalization of hemp is a massive boost to Kentucky’s economy and farming industry, and has given the state a head start in cultivation and production. Many believe Kentucky is, and will be, leading the nation’s charge.
“So we’ve seen the full transition to a bright, new future without the health implications that ultimately sunk tobacco,” McConnell said.
McConnell used a football analogy to describe where the legalization process stands now. He says they’re in the red zone with just a few challenges remaining.
