‘When I thought about how I wanted to spend my days, I knew I wanted to grow things’

INTERVIEW: Robbin Pott is co-founder and managing member of Pott Farms, L3C, a Michigan, USA-based regenerative hemp operation. Her work spans living soil systems, regenerative crop production, and community-based workforce development. Trained in law and public policy, Pott brings a systems-level perspective to agriculture, with a focus on ecological restoration, farmer education and durable rural enterprises.

HempToday: What first drew you to regenerative farming?
Robbin Pott: When I decided to transition into farming, I wanted to use practices that supported both the land and the people working it. With no farming background, I started from scratch. In 2019, our first hemp-growing year, we leased a fallow field and used the best compost available, achieving amazing results. That success led me to pursue making our own high-quality compost, where I discovered Dr. Elaine Ingham’s soil food web work and began a years-long deep dive into the science of healthy, living soil.

HT: How did hemp become part of that journey?
RP: From the beginning, I knew I wanted to be a cannabis farmer. In 2015, Michigan was on the cusp of launching a commercial marijuana industry. As I was winding down my academic career, the legislature was finalizing a bill to make that possible, and by the time I left, it had been signed into law. After many months and a significant investment, Pott Farms submitted an application for a medical marijuana license. The same month we received pre-approval, the state began offering hemp cultivation licenses. Within four days, and for $100, I had one in hand. We decided to grow hemp while working out the details of building our marijuana operation. Our first season was successful—it was exhilarating to be part of hemp’s return to the U.S. The costs and regulations were minimal compared to marijuana, and we chose to focus entirely on hemp for the foreseeable future.

HT: For several years, CBD was a central part of your commercial model. Where does CBD sit today within Pott Farms’ overall strategy?
RP: It’s in flux right now for us. We love growing hemp for its flower, but it’s unclear whether it will remain a viable product. A near-total national ban on consumable hemp is scheduled to take effect this fall if nothing changes. Meanwhile, our state is working to fold consumable hemp into its marijuana regulatory framework, but the proposed rules are also highly restrictive. As a result, we will likely focus more heavily on our CBD topicals to keep cannabinoid production part of our operation.

HT: You’ve hosted “Build With Hemp” workshops — how do you see hemp building materials fitting into regenerative agriculture and local economies?
RP: Hempcrete has emerged as an early pathway to market for hemp farmers and is gaining awareness and popularity. We grew pilot-scale plots of fiber hemp for research for several years but had to destroy the crops due to a lack of local processing. After the third year, I secured a Michigan Department of Agriculture grant to purchase an on-farm hemp HurdMaster decorticator. As a small-scale operation, we aim to demonstrate a model where farms grow, process, and use hemp locally. Hemp supports regenerative farming by requiring few inputs and improving soil health, but adoption depends on accessible post-harvest processing. Our vision is to establish local, small-scale processing with the HurdMaster.

HT: From your perspective, what are the biggest bottlenecks holding back hemp fiber production in the U.S. right now?
RP: Processing infrastructure is a major challenge. Although more facilities are gradually coming online, most are still far from potential hemp farms. Growers also face burdensome regulations compared to other row crops and a high risk of crop failure due to noncompliant THC test results. Farmers are typically risk-averse, practical people, and the current requirements present real barriers to expanding hemp acreage in the U.S.

HT: Pott Farms has a strong social mission, including supportive job training. Why was that important to build into the business model?
RP: I actually built the business model into my social mission. I have extensive experience as a child and youth advocate. As a lawyer and public policy researcher at the University of Michigan’s Law School, I led and researched projects that supported court-involved families and have a real affinity for young people coming from those types of circumstances. I reached a point where I wanted to have more control over my life and have a more direct impact on these young people by helping them successfully transition into adulthood. I decided I wanted to provide job training through a company I owned. And, when I thought about how I wanted to spend my days, I knew I wanted to be growing things. I am a long-time cannabis consumer, Michigan was working on developing a commercial industry, and my last name is Pott, so what to grow was obvious.

HT: Your work also includes soil biology consulting and farmer education. How does the fit in with your overall business model?
RP: It has become an essential part. I trained to become a soil biology consultant to have the credentials to lead regenerative farming internships and quickly discovered the broader and vast need to educate other growers on how healthy soil really works. The farm has a unique legal structure where we are a for-profit business that is allowed to pursue social goals. Instead of a traditional charity that relies on donations, we fund our supportive training program through the income we generate. A few years ago, I decided to diversify our income and launch our Living Soil Services which include soil biology testing, small-scale biologically-active compost, and consulting services. I also teach living soil workshops, and invariably I find myself introducing farmers to the life under their feet. The demand for these workshops is growing. 

HT: Stepping back from hemp specifically, what does “regenerative” mean to you in a broader agricultural context?
RP: Soils around the world are badly degraded from decades of “conventional” practices like frequent tilling and harmful chemical inputs. We absolutely need to reverse course and restore heath to our land, and we know regenerative farming does exactly that. Regenerative means to re-generate health through practices that restore and protect the soil microbiome. Practices include using compost and mulch to introduce and feed the essential beneficial microbes, keeping living plants in the soil year-round through cover cropping, reduced tilling, biodiversity, and no synthetic inputs. 

HT: Looking ahead five years, what would success look like for Pott Farms – and for regenerative hemp more broadly?
RP: Honestly, I would like Pott Farms to become a standard-bearer for the industry. Traditional cannabis culture is rooted in justice and nature, but it has veered off that path quite a bit in recent years. However, these are still early days. Hemp has the potential to transform how people think about and grow cannabis, and I’d like our farm to influence that.