Arcadia Biosciences Granted New Hawaiian Hemp License

Arcadia Biosciences Inc RKDA, an agricultural food ingredient company, rose nearly 8 percent Monday after the company was granted an Industrial Hemp Pilot Program License by Hawaii’s Department of Agriculture.

What To Know

The license in question allows for the cultivation of industrial hemp. While its main purpose pertains to agricultural and academic research, hemp and byproducts grown and created under the program may be used for commercial purposes – or sold, basically.

Arcadia CFO Matt Plavan, who is also president of Arcadia Specialty Genomics, told Benzinga it’s the company's ambition to extend its reputation as a leading science-driven crop improvement company to cannabis.

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Why It's Important

“With our acceptance into Hawaii’s industrial hemp program, we gain the advantage of commencing our research and cultivation efforts right away while others must play a waiting game," said Plavan. "It’s our ambition to lead the stabilization and optimization of cannabis as a crop and a food ingredient in order to meet the critical needs and high standards of farmers, companies, consumers and regulators. With this development, we are well on our way.”

Last week, the company announced the launch of Arcadia Specialty Genomics, a new strategic business unit, that will focus on the “optimization and standardization of cannabis plant content, quality, disease resistance, climate resiliency and yield." These are critical needs for a burgeoning industry experiencing high consumer demand in the face of unreliable crop consistency and increasing government scrutiny.

Arcadia's stock closed Monday's session at $7.76 per share, up 7.6 percent.

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