Written by Brandon Topp

The Farm Bill, also known as the Agriculture Improvement Act, was passed in 2018 and brought with it a lot of progressive and impactful policy updates that particularly affect rural communities, farmers and ranchers, and surprisingly cannabis lovers.

What do these different pockets of the American economy and different members of American families have in common? How can an agriculture bill impact producers of gummies?

This deep dive on the Farm Bill is designed to answer these questions and shine light on this impactful and important bill.

Learn more: How Is Mood Cannabis Legal?

Table of Contents

• What is The Farm Bill?

  • Cannabis and The Farm Bill

  • Farm Bill Programs and Policies

• The Farm Bill Process

• The Future of The Farm Bill

• Try Some Farm Bill-Compliant Hemp

What is the Farm Bill?

The Farm Bill is a package of legislation that significantly impacts cannabis, farming, food production, and natural resources in the United States.

Helping Americans

It covers programs ranging from crop insurance to healthy food access for low-income families and from beginning farmer training to support sustainable farming practices.

The Farm Bill sets the stage for our food and farm systems. Its primary goals are to keep food prices fair, ensure an adequate food supply, and protect natural resources.

Historical Legislation

The original Farm Bill was named the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1933.

Responding to drops in US crop prices following the Great Depression and Dust Bowl catastrophes, the bill set a precedent for creating programs that increase access to support for growing food and tending to land.

New Developments

Over time, the Farm Bill has taken on new iterations designed to face new challenges and make other provisions for changing times and evolving fiscal years.

One of the developments included in the 2018 Farm Bill was the removal of hemp from the federal government's list of controlled substances.

Cannabis and The Farm Bill

The 2018 Farm Bill differentiates federally legal "hemp" from illegal marijuana.

It does so by defining hemp as any cannabis product with less than 0.3% Delta-9 THC by dry weight. All of Mood's cannabis products are Farm Bill compliant and legally classified as hemp.

In a charming coincidence, the blossoming of the hemp-derived cannabis market has created a fantastic new industry for today's farmers and ranchers.

When you support the current Farm Bill, you're not only supporting farmers and ranchers, improved food supply, rural development, and improved water quality, but you're also supporting cannabis and developing the U.S. into a hemp-friendly country.

Farm Bill Programs and Policies

Designed to support farmers and ranchers in facing new challenges, these are a couple of the agriculture and food-focused programs and policies that came from the 2018 Farm Bill.

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is a critical component of the Farm Bill, providing assistance to families on a budget and helping them put dinner on the table.

SNAP is the most expensive title in the Farm Bill, dominating almost 80% of the bill’s spending.

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is a vital part of the federal welfare program portfolio and has been a source of controversy in Farm Bill debates.

When drafting Farm Bills, politicians debate measures like these as well as those that are more directly related to hemp and cannabis.

Farm Bill Programs for Rural Communities

The Farm Bill provides programs for rural communities, including rural development and conservation efforts.

These programs aim to support rural economies and improve the quality of life for rural residents.

The Farm Bill also includes funding for rural broadband and other infrastructure projects.

The Farm Bill Process

The Farm Bill process involves four main phases: reauthorization, appropriations, rulemaking, then outreach and evaluation.

The process begins with the reauthorization phase, where a new Farm Bill is written and passed into law approximately every five years.

The appropriations phase involves setting money aside in the federal budget to fund the programs in the Farm Bill.

The rulemaking phase involves the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) writing the actual rules for how the programs will be implemented on the ground.

The Future of The Farm Bill

The 2018 Farm Bill was set to expire in September of 2023 when lawmakers voted for an extension.

Then, in December of 2024, the American Relief Act 2025 was signed into law, and that extended the 2018 Farm Bill once again.

These Farm Bill extensions keep the current states of things like hemp-cannabis definitions, crop insurance, conservation programs, and legislation affecting farmers largely in place for the time being.

FAQs on the Farm Bill

Q: When does the Farm Bill expire?

The Farm Bill is now set to expire at the end of 2025, pending updates to the legislation.

Any upcoming Farm Bill will be subject to legislative updates between now and then.

Q: How does the Farm Bill affect the day-to-day life of farmers and ranchers?

A: The Farm Bill is a vast and complex piece of legislation. To be totally transparent, at Mood we're only focused on how it influences the world of hemp and cannabis.

There is a lot to learn when it comes to things like crop insurance, conservation programs, food programs, agriculture support, and beyond.

We recommend looking into these programs yourself, talking to experienced farmers who are directly affected by the Farm Bill to learn more about these areas.

Q: Can the Farm Bill improve water quality or access to food, land, or agriculture support programs?

Again, we recommend checking in with farmers and ranchers for direct information on how this Farm Bill or any upcoming Farm Bill affects or could affect the land, farm, or food programs associated with it.

Q: How do farmers grow Farm Bill-compliant hemp?

Producers of Farm Bill-compliant hemp are expert farmers who have tailored cannabis plants with unique genetic profiles that create higher concentrations of some cannabinoids while eliminating others.

Mood works with Farmers who have mastered agriculture in an amazing way.

Bringing progressive cannabis cultivation practices to our country, these growers can grow THCa Flower that's both Farm Bill compliant and totally fire.

Try Some Farm Bill-Compliant Hemp

Farm Bill-compliant hemp is here for now and hopefully beyond the next Farm Bill. For those curious about what they can enjoy from this burgeoning market, these are some examples of effective, delicious cannabis products you can enjoy with Mood.

Gummies

We're proud to be producers of the best gummies you can buy online. Featuring varying potency levels, flavors, and ingredients — i.e., Delta-9 THC, nano-THC, functional mushrooms, and more — they invite a wealth of discovery.

Check out Mood's Gummies today.

Flower

Mood's Farm Bill-compliant THCa Flower is rich with skunky terpenes, frosty trichomes, and rich cannabinoids. Order some today and pack your next bowl with the best flower you can buy online.

Check out Mood Flower today.

Concentrates

Keeping Delta-9 THC levels below 0.3% does not mean you have to skimp on the effects or power of a given hemp product. Just check out our high-octane concentrates that include hash, moonrocks, and dab badder.

Check out Mood Concentrates today.

Learn more about the world of cannabis and the Farm Bill on the Mood Blog today.