Jean Laprise targets the bulk of his hemp product sales to customers in the United States.
His company, Kenex Ltd., has always shipped its goods without
incident.
So when the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) seized a truckload of hemp seed on Aug. 9, Laprise was shocked.
He didn’t comment publicly about the seizure for six weeks, in hopes of resolving it quickly and privately.
But last week, there was no resolution in sight for the southern Ontario company.
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The saga started when U.S. customs officers at the Windsor-Detroit border crossing seized hemp seed destined for a birdseed plant in Baltimore, Maryland.
The seed could not germinate if replanted because it was sterilized.
THC content
Kenex included documents with the shipment showing it was sterilized. The company also included laboratory analysis reports showing the seed’s tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) content as 14 parts per million.
Laprise said the DEA is calling the shipment a “controlled substance” because of its THC content.
But Laprise said the DEA’s zero-tolerance policy for drugs conflicts with U.S. law.
“Whether you’re in the U.S. or Canada, sterilized hemp seed has no THC limitations on it,” he said.
“We knew what the law said before we crossed the border.”
Repeated calls over three weeks by The Western Producer to the DEA’s media relations office were not returned.
The DEA also demanded Laprise recall 17 other shipments of oil, seed, meal, granola bars and horse bedding.
Laprise said that’s impossible, since most of the products have already been used by customers.
However, U.S. officials have since told Laprise they would not prevent horse bedding or fibre from moving across the border.
He has shipped both without incident for more than a month.
Laprise speculated the DEA is using his company as a “test case” for its zero-tolerance policy.
However, he has not yet received any explanation in writing from the agency.
Laprise received his first correspondence from U.S. customs officials on Oct. 21. The letter said the customs department would release the seed if Kenex:
- Provides an affidavit stating the seed will not be used for human consumption.
- Pays seizure and storage costs, which Laprise estimates could run from $5,000 (U.S.) to $10,000.
- Agrees that neither Kenex nor its customers will sue the U.S. government for seizing the seed.
Laprise said he finds the conditions unacceptable.
And even if he agreed to them, he would have no guarantee that future shipments would not be seized.
“So we’re nowhere.”
Laprise also said the seed was seized before it technically entered the U.S.
His truck driver had pulled into the toll house yard, and had not yet gone to the company’s customs broker to have the load cleared for entry.
Kenex’s lawyers have prepared a lawsuit under the North American Free Trade Agreement, and a complaint to file in the federal district.
But Laprise said they have not yet filed the lawsuit or complaint in hopes the matter will be resolved.
The Canadian embassy in Washington has sent letters to customs and DEA officials calling for the immediate release of the seized seed and cancellation of the recall.
