Rancho Tissue Adds Hemp to Lineup

Chris Beytes

Rancho Tissue Technologies (RTT) announced entry into the hemp and hemp/CBD markets. The tissue culture lab, based in Rancho Santa Fe, California, will soon be offering “clean, high-quality, true-to-type tissue culture and propagation of hemp.”

As a registered hemp cultivator in San Diego County, RTT will provide custom contract growing for growers’ own selections, as well as tissue culture of the most in-demand hemp selections. They’ll accept orders from registered hemp growers located in any U.S. state, and will also hold genetics for other hemp growers.

“With 40 years of tissue culture experience, I regularly receive requests from growers wanting tissue-cultured microcuttings and liners of popular hemp selections or of their own genetics,” said owner and founder Heather Hunter May in the press release. “Hemp fits in well with the lab’s history of tissue culture and exclusive work for high value crops from growers around the world.”

One thing I noted was that RTT isn’t bothering to do this under the guise of a separate division. They’re being quite open about adding hemp to their production, alongside the numerous varieties of ornamentals and edibles they've been doing for four decades. I asked Heather via email if they were at all concerned that some of their more conservative customers might take exception to them going into the hemp business.

“I have spoken to some of our customers and they haven’t expressed concern,” she replied. “I believe there should not be any conflict in the minds of our ornamental customers.” But she wanted me to make it clear that they are NOT producing medical or recreational cannabis, which is still federally illegal. They’re producing hemp, which by law contains no more than .3% THC and is now, thanks to the 2018 Farm Bill, legal to produce in the U.S.

“We will be working very hard to produce clean, true-to-type plants without pesticides, just as we have been for the last 40 years.”

RTT will be doing liners and microcuttings of industrial and CBD hemp in their lab and 40,000 sq. ft. greenhouse. Heather says they won’t be doing any breeding; instead, they’ll produce varieties supplied by registered hemp growers along with some industry favorites. She wouldn’t get at the quantity they might be producing, saying that it depended upon market demand, custom-grow contract arrangements and licensing deals.

For more information or to order hemp or other RTT varieties, email them at info@ranchotissue.com, or visit www.ranchotissue.com. GT