We Believe In Hemp
In the 18th century Hemp was a staple of American’s lives. Hemp was used for clothes, rope, paper, medicines, and food. The Midwest was once known as the hemp belt of America, and during the brief re-legalization of hemp in the 1940’s to help support the war efforts, one of the largest hemp processing mills in the world of its time was located just one hour west of the Hemp Acres facility.
Hemp’s history in America dates back centuries, yet hemp in the 21st century is uncharted territory.
There are few who know much about the entire plant and its potential. Hemp Acres founder, Charles Levine, is one of them.
For the past seven years, Charles has immersed himself in the plant; learning about hemp’s history, nutritional properties, sustainable nature, how to grow hemp, how to process hemp, and hemp’s innumerable applications. He was one of the first licensed hemp growers and the first licensed hemp processor in the state of Minnesota.
Charles built Hemp Acres from the ground up on a farm in Waconia, Minnesota. The farm became his incubator to prove his hemp processing concept. Now, Hemp Acres is the largest wholesale producer of grain, botanical extract, and fiber ingredients in the nation. Hemp Acres is on a mission to widely introduce hemp back into the American market.
Our Story
In 2017, Charles Levine, founder of Hemp Acres became one of the first licensed growers and the first licensed processor in Minnesota. He begins developing a small scale operation on his farm in Waconia, MN, growing and processing hemp for wholesale food ingredients.
The 2018 farm bill passed, removing hemp (under 0.3% THC) from the Controlled Substances Act. In the same year, Hemp Acres received its food manufacturing license, and began selling GRAS (generally recognized as safe) hemp ingredients to food and cosmetic manufacturers.
In 2019, Hemp Acres added botanical extracts to its processing capabilities.
Due to an increased demand for food ingredients, Hemp Acres expanded into a 37,000 square foot warehouse in Waconia, Minnesota and began construction to meet processing capacity of 50,000 acres of hemp grain.
Hemp Acres opened its new location, becoming the largest hemp food producer in the nation, ready to meet customer demand. Simultaneously, in response to the high demand for hurd and fiber ingredients, Hemp Acres invests in fiber separation equipment, becoming the only processor in the nation to handle all three commodities derived from the hemp plant.
The Hemp Acres Advantage
Hemp built America. Its innumerable uses supplied Americans for centuries until the early 1900’s when special interest groups realized the power of hemp and lobbied against the plant to protect their industries.
With the 2018 Farm bill, hemp was removed from the controlled substance act allowing for hemp to legally be grown nationwide. Hemp Acres is on a mission to bring hemp back to America; to cloth us, to house us, to feed us, to fuel us, to positively change our lives.
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Why Grow Hemp
- Hemp is a cash crop that can fit into traditional rotations.
- Hemp requires low management with a quick maturity.
- Hemp is a fantastic transition crop to organic farming.