David Monson, a North Dakota state representative who farms near the Canadian border, has also pushed for years for federal permission to grow the crop, which is legal just 20 miles to the north.

“I was hoping DEA would be left out of the picture and the farm bill would take care of it,” he said. “It doesn’t seem like that’s happening. Now we have two agencies involved with it.”

Monson and other advocates got more bad news recently. The DEA announced Aug. 11 it has denied petitions to legalize the cultivation of industrial hemp, leaving the plant’s classification the same as marijuana under the Controlled Substances Act.

“The 2014 Act did not remove industrial hemp from the list of controlled substances and, with certain limited exceptions, the requirements of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and the CSA continue to apply to industrial hemp-related activities,” DEA said in a statement.

While hemp has many uses, its most promising may be its fiber, which is some of the strongest found in nature. Detroit automakers have used the material in the past for doors and other parts. Gain tells of an experimental truck body Henry Ford made entirely from hemp fiber.