Jason Smith stops at industrial hemp provider in Sikeston

SIKESTON — U.S. Rep. Jason Smith kicked off his annual farm tour in Southeast Missouri last week, including a stop on Friday at an industrial hemp provider in Sikeston.

Every year, Smith participates in a farm tour in each of his 30 counties to highlight the diverse types of farms, ranches and agricultural businesses in Missouri’s Eighth Congressional District.

On Friday, the Congressman visited Midwest Natural Fiber in Scott County.

“In my 10 years of our farm/ag tour, this is the first time I’ve been to one that has hemp,” Smith said as he arrived Friday afternoon at Midwest Natural Fiber located at 409 W. North St. in Sikeston,

Midwest Natural Fiber is a Missouri-based hemp fiber processing company which started operating in October 2020.

“This industrial hemp farm is the first of its kind,” Smith said following his visit Friday. “... I learned a lot and see the value added benefits it has to our area by being on the cutting edge.”

Currently, hemp fiber is being used in many different industries for a variety of uses, including but not limited to building materials, animal bedding, plastics, and textiles.

In 2018, the Agricultural Improvement Act (Farm Bill) made it where hemp is no longer a controlled substance. However, hemp is still regulated and can only be grown with a permit. This act was signed into law in 2019.

Patrick Van Meter of Columbia, Missouri, co-founder of Midwest Natural Fibers, said when it comes to describing industrial hemp, the first thing he tells people is hemp is not marijuana. They are two totally different things. Hemp is the non-psychoactive, low-THC, and it has absolutely no use as a recreational drug.

“The second thing I tell people is it’s not CBD either,” Van Meter said. “What we’re doing has nothing to do with CBD or anything that’s ingestible; its all about the fiber.”

Van Meter said the fibers from the hemp are used to make commercial and industrial products.

“What we’re mainly selling into right now is animal bedding and building materials, such as insulation and similar items,” Van Meter said.

Van Meter explained the fiber is the outside of the hemp stalk – the exterior plant. The interior of the fiber, called the hurd, is like a skinny, hollow tree trunk, and the larger hurd is used to make for equestrian bedding, he said.

Jeff Limbaugh of Sikeston, chief operating officer/co-founder of Midwest Natural Fibers, explained the hemp is planted, and the whole plant is harvested.

“It’s mowed down just like hay,” Limbaugh said.

Limbaugh and Van Meter are two of the Midwest Natural Fibers’ three co-founders, and they said they were introduced to each other by State Rep. Don Rone of Portageville, Missouri, after both expressed interest in industrial hemp to Rone.

Smith also made stops Friday at AgXplore in New Madrid County, Schoen Dairy in Cape Girardeau County and Spooler Farms in Perry County.

Smith kicked off his annual Farm Tour on Thursday, Aug. 25, with a stop at Harty’s Duck Farm in Stoddard County. He continued the first day of the Farm Tour with stops at Delta Peanut in Dunklin County then Legacy Equipment in Pemiscot County.

“It’s so helpful when you’re in debate on the floor and remember those real life examples – whether it was in Scott City or Parma or New Madrid,” Smith said.

Smith plans to continue the Farm Tour over the next several months.

Smith’s recent farm tour stops in Scott County included: MKay Supply (2021), Pump Trackr (2020), Tyson Chicken Farm (2019), Donnie and Sheila Beggs’ farm (2017), and Heckemeyer’s Sweet Sorghum (2016).

Smith — a fourth generation owner of a family farm himself — said the annual tradition is a great opportunity for him to hear directly from farmers, ranchers and small business owners about the top issues facing agriculture, which is the top economic driver in Missouri’s Eighth Congressional District.

“The goal with the farm tour, which we’ve been doing for 10 straight years now, is to hit all 30 counties in the district, and we want to promote agriculture throughout congressional district,” Smith said. “We do it to hear the concerns the farmers have, the families have and we visit a variety of farms.”

Smith said the No. 1 thing he’s heard from farmers so far on this year’s tour is the increased costs of their input, which, he said, is the direct result of inflation.

“I’ve summed it up that people are complaining of the prices of what I call the three Fs: food, fuel and fertilizers,” Smith said.

Smith said he is concerned with the Inflation Reduction Act, which he said he tried to stop, passed two weeks ago and includes over $745 billion in spending.

“Hopefully, we can stop the spending and rein it back in,” Smith said.