Courier Journal: Does Kentucky really grow more marijuana?

UC expert weighs in on claim that neighboring state grows the most marijuana

No one really knows how much marijuana is grown in Kentucky, as the crop is illegal, reports the Louisville Courier Journal.

Thus, the long-held belief – that marijuana is the states’ largest cash crop – cannot be validated.

Claims that the state is the top producer “puzzles” Bonnie Rabin, an adjunct professor with the Cannabis Certificate Program at the University of Cincinnati.

“Kentucky doesn’t allow marijuana cultivation, processing or retail, she said, so how could cannabis be the top cash crop?”, Rabin told the journal.

There might also be some confusion between cannabis and hemp, she says.

UC launched the certificate program in 2020. It is offered through the horticulture program in the College of Design, Art, Architecture, Art and Planning (DAAP)'s School of Planning as a response to an increasing need for knowledgeable graduates familiar with cannabis as the industry becomes more mainstream. It offers students a multi-disciplinary foundation for understanding the cannabis plant and the cannabis industry, enabling them to more readily gain employment in one of its many subfields.

Read the article

Featured image at top courtesy of Unsplash. 

Impact Lives Here

The University of Cincinnati is leading public urban universities into a new era of innovation and impact. Our faculty, staff and students are saving lives, changing outcomes and bending the future in our city's direction. Next Lives Here

Related Stories

1

Ohio looks to fast-track wastewater discharge permits

December 16, 2025

Bradford Mank, James B. Helmer Jr. Professor of Law at the University of Cincinnati, spoke with WVXU for a story about a proposal by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency to streamline the way wastewater discharge permits are issued to data centers.

2

Tariff troubles for online shoppers

December 16, 2025

This year’s new regulations on tariffs and customs are leaving holiday shoppers with unexpected fees on some of their purchases, according to recent reporting by WLWT. Associate Dean of Impact and Partnerships for the University of Cincinnati’s Lindner College of Business Charles Sox spoke to WLWT about why shoppers are only just now feeling the impact, despite these policies being in effect for months.