1. A. Designation of Classes of Seed

   1. 1. Only the certified class is allowed for the production of feminized hemp seed, except for foundation class for the purpose of variety maintenance.
   2. 2. Feminized seed varieties must be produced from seed or clonal stocks approved by LDAF. These seed and clonal stocks shall consist of female lines and chemically assisted pollen shedding female lines of any class of certified seed or clones.

2. B. Growth Facility Requirements

   1. 1. Growth facility shall only contain certified hemp plants or plant material.
   2. 2. Multiple feminized hemp seed varieties may be maintained in the growth facility.
   3. 3. Other hemp plants are prohibited, except for pollen parent plants that are the intended pollen source.
   4. 4. Growth facility shall be free of all plants for a minimum of six weeks prior to receiving plants at the beginning of the crop year or production cycle unless the previous crop was the same certified variety.
   5. 5. If pollen sanitation is used to reduce the six-week hemp free period, a sanitation plan must be submitted to and approved by LDAF prior to introducing the new certified plant material into the growth facility.
   6. 6. Pollen sanitation is not required if the entire greenhouse facility produces only one pollen source, and other female lines are continually rogued to prevent contaminating pollen sources.

3. C. Land Requirements

   1. 1. Certified feminized hemp seed crops shall not be grown on land in which:

      1. a. Produced a non-certified crop of hemp or a different variety of hemp in either of the preceding two years, or
      2. b. Produced a certified crop of the same variety in the preceding year.

4. D. Inspections

   1. 1. It is the grower’s responsibility to request and ensure that the growth facility and field inspections are conducted by LDAF at least twice prior to swathing or harvesting.
   2. 2. Certified plants within a growth facility or field that have been cut, swathed or harvested prior to all required inspections shall be ineligible for certification.
   3. 3. Inspections of pollen parent plants and seed parent plants shall be at a stage of growth when varietal purity is best determined. Crops not inspected at the proper stage for best determining varietal purity may be cause for rejection.

   4. 4. LDAF will perform a minimum of two inspections.

      1. a. First inspection for pollen parent and seed parent plants will be made just before or at early flowering. The pollen parent will be inspected prior to pollen collection or dispersal.
      2. b. Second inspection for pollen parent and seed parent types will be completed after pollen shed and seed fill.
   5. 5. LDAF will inspect for the presence of volunteer hemp plants within isolation areas.

5. E. Specific Requirements. For the production of feminized hemp seed varieties via pollen shedding by the chemically reversed female plants.

   1. 1. Detailed records shall be maintained on the pollen parent, including, but not limited to, the chemical application dates, concentration, and pollen collection date.
   2. 2. Pollen storage containers, if used, shall be labeled with a unique ID or lot number and the source of pollen.
   3. 3. Pollen parents shall be removed and destroyed after pollen collection is complete.
   4. 4. Male, sporting male, and hermaphroditic plants shall be removed from the growth facility or field by grower and a record of roguing activities maintained and made available to LDAF upon request.

6. F. Isolation Requirements

   1. 1. Certified feminized hemp seed fields shall be isolated from all other contaminating pollen sources by the minimum distances provided in Table 4 of this section.
   2. 2. Roguing to eliminate all possible contaminating pollen sources shall be completed prior to visible flower formation.

   3. 3. Greenhouse production of certified feminized hemp seed is allowed if mechanical isolation of pollen sources is provided, and the following additional greenhouse requirements are met:

      1. a. Method of pollen exclusion must be documented and submitted to LDAF.
      2. b. Each greenhouse facility is limited to one variety, except in the case when one pollen parent is utilized for all varieties.
      3. c. Each variety shall be clearly labeled and easily identifiable from one another.

   4. 4. LDAF may approve a reduction in isolation distances for off-season greenhouse production when outside pollen sources are not present.

      Table 4. Minimum Isolation Distances Required Between Certified Feminized Hemp Seed and Other Hemp Crops
      Certified Crop	Other Hemp Crops	Minimum Isolation Distance Required (feet)
      Feminized Hemp Seed	- Varieties of hemp, or other contaminating pollen source that has pollen shedders present, including other greenhouse complexes - Non-certified crops of hemp - Different varieties of the same type of hemp with no male shedders present in field that is not for seed production. - Planted with certified seed of the same variety that meets certified standards	15,748
      	- Certified seed crop of the same variety that meets certified standards for varietal purity	3

7. G. Impurity Standards

   1. 1. Impurities shall be removed prior to crop inspection.
   2. 2. Any combination of impurities may be cause for rejection of certified status.

   3. 3. Table 5 indicates the maximum number of impurities permitted in approximately 10,000 plants of the certified feminized hemp seed crop.

      Table 5. Maximum Number of Impurities Permitted in Approximately 10,000 Plants of the Certified Feminized Hemp Seed Crop
      Maximum Impurity Standards per 10,000 Plants
      Crop	Maximum Number of Plants Shedding Pollen	Maximum Number of Off-Types or Other Varieties
      Feminized Hemp Seed	0	20

8. H. Seed Standards

   Table 6. Seed Standards for Classes of Certified Feminized Hemp Seed
   Factor	Foundation	Certified
   Pure seed (minimum)	98.00%	98.00%
   Inert matter (maximum)1	2.00%	2.00%
   Weed seeds (maximum)	0.10%	0.10%
   Total other crop seeds (maximum)	0.01%	0.08%
   Other hemp varieties (maximum)	0.005%	0.05%
   Other seed kinds (maximum)2	0.01%	0.07%
   Germination (minimum)	80.00%	80.00%
   Feminized Seed3	99.00%	99.00%

   ¹ Inert matter shall not include more than 0.5 percent of material other than seed fragments of the variety under consideration.

   ² Other seed kinds shall not exceed 2 per lb. (454 grams) for foundation class; 10 for certified class.

   ³ Determined by variety verification trial or approved molecular testing

Authority Note

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 3:1433.

Historical Note

HISTORICAL NOTE: Promulgated by the Department of Agriculture and Forestry, Office of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Agricultural Chemistry and Seed Commission, LR 51:1574 (October 2025).