The current trade war between China and the U.S.A. has cost China the export of Hemp which they now have to buy in large numbers from the United States under the new trade deal. The world’s two largest economies have been at loggerheads for quite some time which has resulted in many unusual impositions of tariffs on hundreds of billions of dollars worth goods on both sides. Till now, China was the main source of hemp importers of the U.S.
Hemp is defined in legislation as the cannabis plant which is non-intoxicant. Therefore, consuming it won’t make you high. The Congress finally decided to legalize hemp under the novel Farm Bill Act, 2018, which provides extensions to policies related to agriculture and nutrition. Although the inclusion of the cannabis plant is a bit unusual, it was the Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s strong support of and leadership on the issue of hemp that has thrown the cannabis plant into the spotlight. It is under this Act that China has agreed to import on a large scale of hemp for over the next two years.

The official statement of the Accord is –

“The Parties acknowledge that trade and economic structural changes resulting from this Agreement and from other actions being taken by China to open up its economy and improve its trade regime should lead to improved trade flows, including significant increases in exports of goods and services to China by the United States and other countries,” and that,
“The Parties believe that expanding trade is conducive to the improvement of their bilateral trade relationship, the optimal allocation of resources, economic restructuring, and sustainable economic development, given the high degree of complementarity in trade between them. The Parties recognize that the United States produces and can supply high-quality, competitively priced goods and services, while China needs to increase the importation of quality and affordable goods and services to satisfy the increasing demand from Chinese consumers.”
According to the Hemp Industry Daily, in 2018, the U.S. had imported around $3.3 million in hemp from China. Jonathan Miller, general counsel for the U.S. Hemp Roundtable, has referred to this new strategy as an exciting event for the American market.

CONCLUSION

This year, the Trump government has seen two different symbolic events- one being the impeachment and the other is the Trade war. China being the earliest producers of hemp, which dates back to the 11th to 7the century BCE, has just recently observed a boom in its industry. This drastic policy has challenged its position in the race to become the world’s top superpower country. The decision of the Congress has not only paved way for an economic boom in the cannabis industry, but has also awakened hope in the hearts of the American farmers (2 million of them) toward the Republican Government.