Tracy Ross
Reporter
Quick links: JBS meatpackers strike | 859 wage-theft cases | Small business funding trouble| Office to apartment conversions | AMP’s biochar attracts Google | Take the survey: Jobs
When Ryan Eakes surveys the sprawling farm he manages in the Uncompahgre Valley surrounding Montrose, he thinks about how he could be standing in the global epicenter of production for a natural health and wellness product.
Yet that future hangs on the same material as certain drafts of the U.S. Constitution.
Following negotiations to reopen the federal government during the shutdown in November, the U.S. Senate surprised the hemp industry when it included language in a 2026 Agriculture appropriations act that effectively bans all intoxicating hemp products within one year of President Donald Trump signing the bill on Nov. 12.
Eakes manages Typhoon Farma, the largest grower of hemp for cannabinoids in Colorado. He grows his crop on 315 acres and says he employs 13 locals year-round and as many as 40 during planting and harvest seasons, subject to contracts.
Typhoon Farma sources supplies from many local companies that generate a half-million dollars locally, Eakes said. It generates between $600,000 and $700,000 in local wages annually. The organic hemp he grows contains nonpsychoactive cannabinoids that don’t get a person “high” but may help relieve a variety of ailments including chronic pain and inflammation, epilepsy, anxiety, mood disorders, insomnia and addiction cravings.
“I feel like we’re one of the better, larger employers in the town we’re in,” he said. “I mean, obviously you have the hospital and the school system and the airport. But beyond that, we employ a lot of people. And we drive quite a bit of business to this town.”
A hemp plant soaks in diffused sunlight at Typhoon Farma near Montrose on the Western Slope. Typhoon Farma manager Ryan Eakes says he considers the region the Napa Valley of hemp growing, due to the light, water, soil and 30 to 40-degree temperature swings, which “the plant really likes.” (Courtesy of Typhoon Farma)There’s a catch in Eakes’ rosy picture, though, and it could put Typhoon Farma and dozens of other Colorado hemp growers out of business.
It’s linked to the legalization of hemp containing a tiny percentage of THC in 2018 and the creation of a $2.2 billion quasilegal market for intoxicating hemp products including THC-infused seltzers, brownies and gummies that flowed into in gas stations, farmers markets and CBD stores across the nation.
“Bad players” got into the game, however, and put the industry in jeopardy, Eakes said.
They used toxic solvents to convert CBD into THC, creating products containing harmful chemicals that made thousands of people using vapes and e-cigarettes sick. In 2020, the Centers for Disease Control linked these chemicals to 2,800 hospitalizations and as many as 68 deaths.
Hemp plants spring to life on at Typhoon Farma in Montrose. Hemp and marijuana plants are different varieties of the same species (cannabis sativa) with distinct chemical profiles and uses. The key difference is that legally defined hemp contains 0.3% or less THC, whereas pot contains higher amounts of THC and is psychoactive. Hemp is used for fiber, oils, and CBD, while pot is cultivated for its buds. (Courtesy Typhoon Farma)Colorado was one of the first states to ban intoxicating hemp products made by chemical processing. However, legislators and regulators failed to adopt many critical regulations that other states have employed to keep hemp products off the shelves, according to an investigation by ProPublica and the Denver Gazette.
But Eakes said the way the Trump administration closed the loophole that allowed the sale of hemp containing THC was not “through a surgical adjustment,” like it should have been. “They took a sledgehammer to it.”
The new federal definition of legal hemp will change to a much stricter standard in three significant ways.
While the old rule measured only a certain type of THC in a product, the new one measures total THC. Under the old law, regulators tested the raw hemp plant, while they’ll now test the finished product. And under the old law, a single gummy could contain .3 milligrams of THC; under the new one, an entire package can’t contain more than .4 milligrams.“The only thing that will survive is anything that is made with CBD isolate, which is 0% THC,” Eakes said.
“And the demand and market for those types of products is minuscule, compared to the full- or broad-spectrum products, which retain important qualities when the THC is pulled out,” he added. “They’ll still be available, but they’re harder to make, more expensive and not everybody can make them. So all the people that we sell to, to make all the shelf products, like the good ones that help veterans and athletes and moms and senior citizens, it’s gonna wipe all of that out.”
It might not be the end of the road for Typhoon Farma, though. Eakes said he’s negotiating “one large account” for which they may still be able to provide their hemp.
“It’ll be a unicorn if we get it,” he added. “If we don’t, I’m going to have to lay off 75% of my staff.”
Section by Tracy Ross | Reporter
Sun economy stories you may have missed
Skiers hike up toward the Peak 8 summit from the top of the Imperial Express Superchair at Breckenridge ski area, Jan. 27, 2024, in Summit County. The ski area is owned by Vail Resorts. (Hugh Carey, The Colorado Sun)> Read story
> Read story
> Read story
Apartments at 1371 Xenia St. on March 14 in Aurora. (Jeremy Sparig, Special to The Colorado Sun)> Read story
> Read story
> Read story
Take the survey: How hard is it to get a job?
> Take the poll at cosun.co/WWget-a-job
Other working bits
Workers from the JBS Beef Plant protest across the road from the plant on March 16, 2026 in Greeley, Colo. (Jerilee Bennett/The Gazette via AP)➔ JBS meatpacker strike will go into third week. The labor union representing about 3,800 workers at the Swift Beef Company plant in Greeley owned by JBS said Thursday that the ongoing labor strike will start its third week on Monday, according to the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 7.
The walkout, which started March 16, has workers demanding that the company cover the cost of personal protective equipment and raise wages “sufficient to meet inflation, including rising health care costs,” according to the union. The union also accused JBS of not negotiating.
JBS officials said it’s the opposite and that “Local 7 leadership chose to walk away from the bargaining table, did not allow team members to vote on the company’s offer,” and other issues, JBS spokesperson Nikki Richardson said in a statement. She also pointed to a union contract reached last year with UFCW International and union members in other states. “The company cannot — and will not — undermine the integrity of its nationwide agreement,” she said.
Local 7 officials have called the national contract inadequate because the cost of living is higher in Colorado.
➔ Denver had 859 wage-theft cases last year, still trying to collect $14M from strip clubs. City auditor Timothy O’Brien, whose office houses the Denver Labor Division, said the department pursued a record of 859 cases last year and distributed $2.3 million in payments to workers owed money, according to the auditor’s 2025 annual report. Approximately, 4,236 workers received some sort of financial restitution.
Last year, the biggest offenders were strip clubs Diamond Cabaret and Rick’s Cabaret, which were ordered to pay nearly $14 million in restitution and penalties for more than 230 workers. The auditor’s office alleged the workers were misclassified as entertainers and had to pay their own “house fees” and “promo fees.” The strip clubs have appealed the order so the $14 million is in limbo.
Another offender, staffing firm GigSmart, also misclassified workers as independent contractors and didn’t provide benefits like overtime pay, paid leave and workers’ compensation. The auditor recovered $22,000 and GigSmart voluntarily classified everyone as W-2 employees.
> View 2025 report
➔ Small Business Development Centers lacks federal funds. Colorado’s 14 Small Business Development Centers (plus another 25 or so satellite operations) haven’t received their 2026 allocation of $2.25 million from the federal government yet.
That was enough to get all the Democrats of Colorado’s congressional delegation plus one Republican — Rep. Jeff Hurd from Grand Junction — to pen a letter to Kelly Loeffler, administrator of the Small Business Administration, demanding the funds. Absent were Republican U.S. Reps. Lauren Boebert from Windsor, Jeff Crank from Colorado Springs and Gabe Evans from Fort Lupton.
The development centers provide free one-on-one advising, training and workshops, and other resources to small businesses in urban and rural communities. In 2024, the centers helped 385 businesses get started, advised 10,944 clients and helped businesses secure $75.7 million in capital. A request to the SBA for comment went unanswered Friday.
Developers behind the High Fidelity Plaza project, which consists of two office towers at 621 and 633 17th St., want to turn the underused offices into 700 apartments. (Handout)➔ Denver offers loan to turn two office towers into apartments. The Denver Downtown Development Authority approved a $63 million low-interest loan this week for the developers behind the High Fidelity Plaza project, which consists of two office towers at 621 and 633 17th St.
The Luzzatto Company, which purchased the properties last year for a reported $3.2 million, plans to convert 1 million square feet of underused office space into 700 apartments. The project is estimated to cost $315 million.
> Details
➔ Robotic trash recycler teams up with Google. Louisville-based AMP is rolling out full-service technology of robotics and artificial intelligence to pick out recyclable materials from unsorted consumer waste that would otherwise end up in landfills. But another service the company offers is to remove organic waste and convert it to biochar, which essentially reduces methane-producing decomposition into a stable material that keeps carbon out of the atmosphere.
> Details
Section by Tamara Chuang | Business/Technology Reporter
Got some economic news or business bits Coloradans should know? Tell us: cosun.co/heyww
You made it through March! Thanks for sticking with us. ~ tamara & tracy
Miss a column? Catch up:
Denver leads US for apartment concessions as landlords aim to fill oversupply Imposter-scam complaints decline in Colorado, but consumer complaints hit record How an Estes Park workforce housing program is rewarding renters Denver prices grew faster than US in January How Denver’s Art Gym went from private passion project to artist co-op This 73-year-old Puebloan fixes planes for clients like a Saudi prince. Become an airplane mechanic and write your own ticket too. So many new Colorado businesses filed to start up in 2025, but renewals declinedWhat’s Working is a Colorado Sun column about surviving in today’s economy. Email tamara@coloradosun.com with stories, tips or questions. Read the archive, ask a question at cosun.co/heyww and don’t miss the next one by signing up at coloradosun.com/getww.
Support this free newsletter and become a Colorado Sun member: coloradosun.com/join
The Colorado Sun is part of The Trust Project. Read our policies.
Corrections & Clarifications
Notice something wrong? The Colorado Sun has an ethical responsibility to fix all factual errors. Request a correction by emailing corrections@coloradosun.com.
Hence then, the article about what s working colorado s largest hemp grower fears big staff layoffs under new federal rules was published today ( ) and is available on Colorado Sun ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( What’s Working: Colorado’s largest hemp grower fears big staff layoffs under new federal rules )
Also on site :
- Jensen Ackles Teases 'Bananas' Supernatural Reunion With Jared Padalecki And Misha Collins In The Boys Season 5
- What Is 'Italian Brainrot'? A Child Psychologist Explains the 'Bizarre' Gen Alpha Trend
- Macy’s Has a 12-Piece Lenox Scalloped Dinnerware Set for 59% Off That's Perfect for Hosting Spring Events