(ABC 6 News) – Online applications are now open for anyone who wants to grow or process hemp in Minnesota in 2025.

According to a news release, a license from the Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) is required for individuals and businesses.

Applications must be submitted by April 30, 2025, and a license is valid for the 2025 calendar year.

The application can be found on MDA website. Along with the online form, first-time applicants and authorized representatives must submit fingerprints and pass a criminal background check, MDA added.

Apparently these licenses are only for the cultivation and processing of industrial hemp. The Hemp Grower or Processor App is not intended for the cultivation or sale of adult or medicinal cannabis.

Also, the app is not intended for the sale of cannabinoid products derived from hemp. Information about cannabis used by adults can be found on Office of Cannabis Management website.

Producers and processors need to be aware of the following for 2025:

• All authorized representatives designated by the applicant must pass a criminal background check before the license is issued.
• Every batch of hemp grown requires regulatory THC testing before harvest. Each official regulatory sample collected by MDA will cost $100.
• The MDA licenses processors who handle raw hemp and initially process it through extraction, dehulling, devitalization, crushing or packaging, and the department will continue random inspections of processor premises.
• License fees will remain the same. The minimum cost of a grower’s license is $400. A processing license is a minimum of $500. A 5% license surcharge is added to support the modernization of MDA’s technology systems, which will provide better online services and more efficient application processing.

While the deadline to apply or renew is April 30, 2025, those who are actively growing hemp plants indoors after December 31, 2024 must renew their license before it expires at the end of the year, according to the MDA.

Questions about MDA’s industrial hemp program can be sent to [email protected] or 651-201-6600.