TYLER, Texas (KETK) – The Texas Legislature passed House Bill 1325 last April, legalizing hemp crops and products in Texas, and Governor Greg Abbott signed the bill into law last June.

Despite this, it is still not legal to grow hemp in Texas – yet.

On Saturday, a Texas hemp growers group hosted a conference in Tyler to educate prospective hemp farmers and others interested in the subject on where, exactly, matters stand in regard to this crop and its products and what still remains to be done.

Zachary Maxwell, president of Texas Hemp Growers, spoke at the conference.

He told those attending that while hemp products, such as CBD oil, are legal to sell and to possess, the crop that produces them, hemp, still isn’t quite legal to grow. Texas still has to establish a federally approved program for farmers to grow hemp as an industrial crop, including procedures for sampling, inspection and testing, and submit that plan to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Maxwell said he hoped Saturday’s meeting helped convince potential hemp farmers to remain excited about and invested in the benefits the crop will offer once it is legal.

“It’s my hope with this class we shake some people awake,” Maxwell said. “The serious folks are going come out of this class, they’re going to be excited, they’re going to be ready to get started. With hemp right now you just have all this excitement due to that profit potential, and it is there, if you do it well and you do it right.”

Maxwell went on to say if hemp farmers do it well and do it right, they could potentially net $10,000-$15,000 per acre.

And while growing hemp promises an economic advantage, Maxwell said the crop and its products also offer health benefits.

More than 100 people attended the conference.