Austin company has a solution to know hemp potency
The unintended consequences of the Texas' new hemp law have caused prosecutors all over the state to drop some marijuana charges -- and some law enforcement agencies aren't making pot arrests for large amounts.
Part of the reason is most law enforcement agencies don't have a way to decipher between what's legal hemp and what's illegal marijuana.
The people at Ionization Labs are looking to change that.
"We're here to provide a tool to get farmer's growing and to get law enforcement the tools they need," said Cree Crawford, the co-founder and president of Ionization labs.
The new company has simplified a way for hemp and marijuana growers to know the strength of their plant and for hemp growers to make sure their crop meets the legal requirement.
In less than 15 minutes, Chief Science Officer Chase McMichael was able to display the multi-step test to determine hemp potency. McMichael grinded frozen hemp then began to dilute it before the liquid was analyzed in a high-performance liquid chromatography, known as an HPCL.
The box is no bigger than a mini-fridge, and McMichael said once the diluted liquid is in the HPCL, it takes 12 minutes for users to know the CBD and THC levels of the plant their analyzing.
Simplified software shows users if the hemp they're growing is at a legal THC level of less than 0.3.
"Anything over 0.3 is marijuana, under 0.3 is hemp," said Crawford.
After two years of research and development, Ionization labs has now been in the market for 90 days. Crawford said they've already sold a dozen HPCLs across the country at a price tag of $28,500 apiece. On Tuesday, he said they're selling about two a day.
A state known to be a leader in agriculture, Crawford said the climate in parts of South Texas allows hemp to grow twice a year, which helps the bottom line for farmers. Ionization Labs hopes to help law enforcement know the difference between the fine line of what's legal and what isn't.
"There's too much benefit from this plant to not look at it more seriously," said Crawford.
