{"id":2738,"date":"2021-12-01T14:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-12-01T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cannabisnow.com\/?p=57860"},"modified":"2021-12-01T14:00:00","modified_gmt":"2021-12-01T14:00:00","slug":"new-york-bill-pushes-hemp-packaging-for-cannabis-products","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/?p=2738","title":{"rendered":"New York Bill Pushes Hemp Packaging for Cannabis Products"},"content":{"rendered":"
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New York\u2019s upcoming adult-use cannabis industry could become a model of sustainable packaging under a bill that would make hemp the primary source of materials used to package regulated marijuana products. Under the bill from state Sen. Michelle Hinchey, the New York Cannabis Control Board would be directed to develop a plan to designate industrial hemp as the primary source of packaging materials for all cannabis products manufactured in the state.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is no other natural resource that offers the same environmental, agricultural, and economic potential as hemp. My bill will create a market, kickstarting the industry and moving New York State to the forefront in a way that will help us tackle the climate crisis, give our small farmers a competitive edge, and boost upstate economic development,\u201d Hinchey, the chair of New York\u2019s Senate Agriculture Committee, said<\/a> in a statement.<\/p>\n

Bill Creates Program to Spur Innovation<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Hinchey drafted the bill to support the creation of a sustainable industrial hemp industry that provides economic opportunity for the state\u2019s independent farmers and small businesses. The measure also directs the state\u2019s Office of Cannabis Management and the Empire State Development to establish a Sustainable Cannabis Packaging Incubator Program to offer financial incentives to farmers and entrepreneurs who contribute to the development and use of environmentally friendly, hemp-based packaging materials.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat we have done is directed the state\u2019s new cannabis control board to develop a plan so that industrialized hemp can be used as a packaging material,\u201d Hinchey told<\/a> reporters after introducing the bill. \u201cThat way we won\u2019t use plastics, will be using something that is biodegradable, that will support our farmers, specifically New York State farmers \u2013 small- and mid-sized family farms with a new product and create the demand.\u201d<\/p>\n

Participants in the incubator program will be challenged to create cannabis product packaging that is compostable and biodegradable and made from at least 30% hemp. Up to 70% of the remaining material could be sourced from recycled plastic, which is not necessarily biodegradable or compostable. Hemp materials used for the program must be purchased from an eligible New York farm, business, or individual. Eligible suppliers include those designated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture as small farms, which generate less than $250,000 in annual revenue.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith my bill, we have an incredible opportunity to unleash the potential of biodegradable hemp-based products that slashes our use of plastics, incentivizes farmers and entrepreneurs to be part of this innovation stage, and propels an industry that has not reached even a fraction of its full potential,\u201d Hinchey said. \u201cEnvironmentally-safe industrialized hemp is the future of manufacturing and I look forward to getting my bill passed in the 2022 session so that New York can lead the way in this emerging market.\u201d<\/p>\n

Traditional Plastic Is Environmentally Unsound<\/strong><\/h4>\n

In 2018, about 35.7 million tons of plastic trash was sent to landfills, accounting for about 12.2% of the municipal solid waste generated. The amount of discarded plastic jumped by 4.3 million tons per year between 2010 and 2018, with much of the increase caused by containers and packaging, according to data<\/a> from the Environmental Protection Agency.<\/p>\n

Packaging requirements in areas that have legalized cannabis for recreational or adult use vary from one jurisdiction to another, with most mandating child-resistant containers for licensed marijuana products. Other regulations such as labeling requirements or provisions that call for only opaque containers also limit the packaging options available to licensed brands.<\/p>\n

Plastics manufactured from hemp or other plant materials have several advantages over many other options, taking advantage of a renewable resource unlike petroleum-based plastics. Plant-based plastics are also more environmentally sound and can biodegrade in three to six months, compared to hundreds of years for traditional materials.<\/p>\n

But hemp is unlikely to solve all the cannabis industry\u2019s packaging challenges. James Eichner, co-founder and chief science officer at Sana Packaging, a Colorado company specializing in sustainable packaging for the cannabis industry including hemp-based and reclaimed plastics, applauds the spirit of Hinchey\u2019s proposal. But he adds that \u201cwe don\u2019t have a one-size fits all solution\u201d for the needs of the regulated marijuana industry.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis bill is well intentioned, but it doesn\u2019t take into account the many complexities in the cannabis packaging industry such as the absence of FDA approved hemp materials suitable for packaging,\u201d Eichner wrote in an email to Cannabis Now. \u201cCannabis packaging is not currently subject to FDA regulations, but we believe it will be as we continue to move towards federal legalization. Additionally, there is no consensus on the definition of \u2018biodegradable.\u2019 which further complicates the issue. We would love to work with Senator Hinchey on this bill to develop a solution that addresses all the nuances of the cannabis industry.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hinchey unveiled her bill, S.7508<\/a>, on November 19, noting that she has made the proposal a priority for the upcoming 2022 legislative session, which begins in January. The bill has been referred to the Senate Rules Committee for further action.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

New York\u2019s upcoming adult-use cannabis industry could become a model of sustainable packaging under a bill that would make hemp the primary source of materials used to package regulated marijuana products. Under the bill from state Sen. Michelle Hinchey, the New York Cannabis Control Board would be directed to develop a plan to designate industrial hemp as the primary source of packaging materials for all cannabis products manufactured in the state. \u201cThere is no other natural resource that offers the same environmental, agricultural, and economic potential as hemp. My bill will create a market, kickstarting the industry and moving New… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2738","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-marijuana_information"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2738","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2738"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2738\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2738"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2738"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2738"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}