A hemp processing plantin west Kentucky that promised 100 new jobs will no longer open.
Carlisle County Judge-Executive Greg Terry said Kings Royal Biotech could not come up with the money to build the facility.
The California company and their Chinese partners Hemp Investment Group broke ground on the $40 million, 75,000 square-footfacilityin March-- but nothing has been built since.
Terry said local farmers have already grown a healthy crop of hemp and said there are still economic benefits for the community to reap because of that.
“I’m dissatisfied for the community because we wanted those jobs," Terry said. "But I think in years to come as we just heard at our Ag Day event, Warren Beeler talking about the things that can be made from hemp are endless.”
Beeler is Kentucky’s Executive Director for Ag Policy. The news of the cancellation comes during the West Kentucky Alliance for a Vibrant Economy - or WAVE - Ag Day.
The event focuses on economic opportunities shared by the river and agriculture industries.
Terry said Carlisle County does not yet have specific buyers for the hemp, but is looking at signing contracts with people to harvest the crop.
He said he believes Kings Royal failure to secure investors in the facility doesn't have anything to do with the trade war between the U.S. and China, adding that the decision to cancel the project had been building long before it began. He said he believes Chinese investors Hemp Investment Group is still interested in having an extraction plant in west Kentucky.
Kings Royal COO Keith Taylor said he has recently parted ways with the company and has no comment on the cancellation.
