A woman from Gallatin County has been issued Montana's first license to grow hemp.

Montana's legislature voted in 2001 to allow the commercial cultivation of hemp. Federal law still prohibits such activity.

Hemp is similar to illegal marijuana but without the mind-altering ingredient of the drug. Hemp is grown in parts of Canada and Europe and has a range of uses, from fibers for clothing to a source of biofuels.

The issuing of the state's first license for an industrial hemp-growing operation sets up a possible test case of whether the Drug Enforcement Administration is willing to override the state law.

Officials say the license went to a woman who wants to grow hemp on 160 acres in Madison County.