By Colleen Redman
Patrick Sisk, Kerry Underwood, Derek Wall, and Daniel Sowers have pooled their entrepreneurial spirit and skills to launch The Buffalo Hemp Company: Floyd’s first hemp farm and retail store! They’ve spent all summer growing their first crop of premium organic hemp, and with a focus on CBD (Cannabidiol) products, have opened their storefront on Main Street in Floyd this September!
Currently, the Buffalo Hemp Company are leasing to buy a seventy-five-acre farm on Franklin Pike. That land, along with an eight-thousand square foot building and outbuildings provide plenty of room for the business to grow. Their first field acre of hemp for CBD should be ready for harvest around October, and other plants have been grown onsite in greenhouses. Some of the harvested plants to be used for free-roll CBD smokes are already hanging in a drying room.
CBD oil is an active ingredient in cannabis derived from the hemp plant. Unlike marijuana, it is not psychoactive; having no – or negligible amounts – of THC (tetrahydrocannabinol). Preliminary studies have shown CBD to be helpful in the treatment of anxiety, insomnia, cognition issues, and pain. Evidence suggests it can be helpful in curbing opiate, alcohol, and tobacco abuse, as well as in preventing or reducing the symptoms of withdrawal. Users have described CBD as having a calming and focusing effect that is fast-acting, non-addictive, and without side-effects.
Buffalo Hemp Company partner, Patrick Sisk, tells us, “the U.S. is pushing to be the third largest hemp producer in the world, next to Canada and China.” CBD was first legalized in Virginia in 2015 for the treatment of epileptic seizures. Since then, laws have allowed its use and availability to be expanded.
Sisk admits, however, that the industry is still evolving and still fighting long-engrained perceptions. Even after the agricultural production of hemp was legalized by Congress through the 2018 Farm Bill, there still remains some stigma around the cannabis plant.
Sisk, who grew up in Fauquier County, first came to Floyd County through an agricultural scholarship to Virginia Tech. He says he’d like to see Buffalo Hemp Company become a boon to the area. The partners hope to eventually process their crop into CBD products on site, but the changing laws may have them outsourcing that work to other states. Though Buffalo Hemp Company paid for their grower’s certificate before breaking ground, they have found that only a handful of companies in Virginia have been granted the right to process hemp.
“The demand for this product is growing quicker than it can be grown,” says partner, Kerry Underwood. “But because of our farming heritage, we’ll be able to meet that demand.” In the mid-nineties, Underwood owned and managed a Hemp store in Roanoke that sold mostly items made from hemp fabrics. He also noted that hemp was grown by our founding fathers and that cannabis has been a safe part of our nature-based pharmacy for ages.
“To be able to grow this plant is an honor and privilege,” Underwood continued. “It can make a huge contribution to solving the ecological problems of the planet. An acre of hemp will consume over one-and-a-half tons of carbon dioxide. And it’s a soil remediator, leaving the soil better than it was found. But,” he joked, “it’s not like growing tomatoes. It’s a lot more complicated than that.”
Partner Derek Wall is more newly-come to the industry. “I knew nothing about farming,” said Wall, “but I’ve learned a lot in the last five months.” Although he and the other partners are involved in all aspects of the business, Wall said he got on board to help run the retail part of the operation.
Attracted to the challenge of creative business development in a new industry, Wall said he likes the idea of CBD products being part of the “farm-to-table” movement, as well as the local economy. The first step toward the focus on the local economy, Wall tells us, will be to hire local employees to run the shop and harvest the crop.
Unlike Wall, farming has been in Daniel Sowers family for generations. “I think the products will help a lot of people,” said the Floyd County native. Sowers criticizes how pharmaceutical companies have been responsible for many people becoming addicted to pain medications. He further points out the tendency for doctors to prescribe them like candy. However, there are studies indicating that CBD could be a promising treatment for opioid addiction, as well as prevention. Sowers says he likes growing plants and leading the way for something new.
Each member of the Buffalo Hemp Company partnership also maintains other successful businesses. Sisk and Underwood are owners of 5 Mile Mountain Distillery, Floyd County’s first distillery since Prohibition. The business features micro-distilled moonshine with Appalachian roots, and houses a tasting room and gift shop. Wall is co-owner of the Thomas and Wall Real Estate firm in downtown Floyd. Sowers owns and operates On the Water; a Floyd kayak, canoe, and tube outfitter along the Little River. He is also a Thomas and Wall agent.
Together, the four partners manage the logistics of production, marketing and retail sales, as well as getting their hands in the dirt. “We all bring something to the table,” says Sisk. I can’t imagine doing this without any one of us.”
For more information about the Buffalo Hemp Company, follow them on social media at thebuffalohempcompany. To learn about or to purchase products, visit online at thebuffalohempcompany.com.
Buffalo Hemp Company • thebuffalohempcompany.com
540-745-TBHC (8242) • info@thebuffalohempcompany.com
facebook.com/thebuffalohempcompany/