It's been about a year since we launched the website. It has come a long way and made a solid entry into the space. Analytics from Google show consistent growth of our audience. The Illinois hemp industry is here to stay.
illinoishga.com is built to serve those who participate in the Illinois hemp industry. If you have any suggestions for ways we can improve the site to better serve you please let us know. Thank you for a great first year everyone.
New page on the IHGA Website - Maps
Speaking of improvements, we have yet another for you among the many other features we've recently added to the site (read our two previous blog posts here and over here for more details).
The latest page to be added is the Maps page. As of right now the Maps page consists of two interactive heat maps of Illinois broken down by county. When you highlight or click the county with your cursor, a table will appear in the tooltip that lists the county name and all the public records of growers or processors who obtained a hemp license in Illinois as of 09/30/2019.
With tools like these we hope to help fill in the gaps that are still present in the industry's supply chain. As more data becomes available through the Illinois Department of Agriculture we will be able to make additional maps that have richer content. More data means interactive maps with charts, graphs, tables and analytics to serve the industry even better.
Mike Nowak Show - Rachel Reviews the Year in Hemp
On Sunday January 5th, 2020, Rachel will be a guest on the Mike Nowak Show with Peggy Malecki. Along with Rachel will be Liz Rupel of the Illinois Stewardship Alliance.
Rachel and Liz will be talking with Mike about the Illinois hemp industry year in review. Don't forget to tune in to WCGO 1590AM, 95.9 FM on Sunday morning from 9:00 to 11:00am or call in at 877-711-5611 next week!
iHemp Expo - Hempcrete Demonstrations and Free Pass Giveaway
On Friday and Saturday January 10-11th, 2020, Rachel will be in the Illinois Hemp Growers Association booth doing hempcrete demonstrations and allowing people to get hands on with samples of hemp materials at the Midwest iHemp Expo in Lansing, MI.
We also have a few free passes to give away to the Expo Hall. Click the picture to see what passes include. If you are interested in attending the Midwest iHemp Expo, please contact us for more details regarding the giveaway. We will see you there!
Specialty Crop Conference - Rachel Giving Two Presentations
On Wednesday January 8th, 2020, Rachel will be co-presenting hemp related topics with Liz Rupel of the ISA and Stacy Mccaskill of Hempstock Pharms and the Sauk SBDC at the Illinois Specialty Crop Pre-conference hosted by the Illinois Specialty Growers Association.
At 1:00pm Rachel and Stacy will be presenting "From Field to Market" and at 2:00pm Rachel and Liz will be presenting "Industry Outlook, Rules and Regs". For the complete schedule, click the picture. January is shaping up to be a busy month and February is not far behind.
First Meeting Date and Time - IHGA Quarterly Meetings Begin
Starting this February the Illinois Hemp Growers Association will hold its first quarterly meeting for dues-paying members. Here's a tentative flyer for your convenience.
Quarterly meetings give all of our members a chance to bring new business to the IHGA and set our agenda for the next quarter. IHGA meetings are your platform for representation in the Illinois hemp industry in 2020. Consider becoming a dues-paying member today.
Roaring 20's Here We Come - IHGA 2020
2020 is right around the corner and we would like to share with you this mural in Ottawa, IL. Click the picture, read the article and reflect with us on the decade we are about to embark upon. The Illinois Hemp Growers Association's goal is to make hemp in the '20s a roaring success. Join us.
Best regards and a happy new year to you and your loved ones,
Chris and Rachel