Over 30,000 products from hemp. It's eco friendly, paper can be produced in 110 days not 40 years, and has holistic healing benefits. There are also legal issues. Hemp is classified as an illicit drug with the DEA. Our legislatures won't declassify hemp, it is not a drug it has been used over 10,000 years and historic farmers included George Washington. Curious. Want to learn more? Don't forget to subscribe to our blog to stay up to date with the industrial hemp world.
Friday, December 23, 2011
Industrial Hemp in the United States: Status and Market Potential
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http://www.ers.usda.gov/Publications/AGES001E/AGES001E.pdf
There Are 22,500 patents on hemp products
With that many patents at the US Patent Office why are they making it so hard to legalize hemp they are making money off the patent fees alone? See for yourself.
http://www.google.com/search?q=hemp&btnG=Search+Patents&tbm=pts&tbo=1&hl=en
http://www.google.com/search?q=hemp&btnG=Search+Patents&tbm=pts&tbo=1&hl=en
How legalizing hemp would be a boon to humanity
(NaturalNews) Mike Adams recently interviewed Phil Moffett, who is running for governor of Kentucky. Phil is proposing that Kentucky defy the federal government's ban on hemp. His focus is on industrial hemp, not medical marijuana, and he wants toreturnthis cash crop to Kentucky's farmers.
There's even more to hemp thancashflow.
Hemp for Nutrition
Hulled hemp seeds, their powders and cold pressed oils provide all the essential amino acids for easily digested high protein. Hemp is not only very high in omega-3, but it provides an almost perfect ratio of omega-3 to omega-6. It is truly a super food.
Hemp is so nutritionally dense that one could survive on hemp seeds alone during extreme food shortages.If hemp were legal, you could easily grow your own.
Hemp Improves Farming
Hemp plants don't need pesticides or synthetic fertilizers, which rely mostly on the phosphate industry. A phosphate industry byproduct is the fluoride that is sold to municipalities for our daily poison. Hemp's thick roots ward off weeds, and growing hemp improves the soil's nitrogen, making that soil better for other crops. They would be useful and lucrative rotation crops for organic farmers.
Hemp plants have a growth cycle of only four months. In mild climates, harvesting hemp up to three times in one year would create an annual cash cow for farmers. The cannabis taboo is eliminated by allowing the male plants to continually pollinate the female plants. This reduces psychotropic THC to legal levels.
Eliminating Toxic Petrochemical Plastics
There is a clump of plastic waste residue larger than the state of Texas floating in the middle of the Pacific. A lot of it is expected to decompose, creating a plastic soup in the ocean. The toxins from this plastic soup spread out into other oceanic regions and are hazardous to fish and bird wildlife. This soup could find its way into our kitchens as well!
All kinds of plastics are produced with hemp, from clear wraps for foods toautomobileparts. Hemp plastics are durable and heat resistant.And they are bio-degradable. Currently, the French auto industry is making some of its automobile parts from hemp. Henry Ford pioneered this in 1941 when he built his "vegetable car" with hemp and flax. It was stronger and lighter than steel cars.
Ford's hemp-mobile also used hemp bio-diesel fuel, which creates very little pollution. The petroleum industry didn't approve of that. Hemp seeds were even used to make paints and lacquers in the mid-1930s.
Petrochemical plastics for all purposes could be replaced with hemp plastics that are non-toxic and bio-degradable. Bye-bye BPA!
More Trees for Tree Huggers
Pulp from trees is used to make paper. But anything wood pulp can do, hemp fibers can do better. Paper from trees can be recycled three times. Hemp paper can be recycled eight times. Since hemp was banned in the USA in 1937, 70% of the USA's forests have been eliminated.
It's estimated that one acre of hemp produces more oxygen from CO2 and methane than 25 acres of forest. One idea is to have inner city hemp plots to improve urban air quality. We wouldn't need bogus carbon tax legislation.
Pulping trees for paper creates more waste and consumes more energy than most enterprises. This industry consumes more water than almost all others. It is the fifth largest industry consumer of energy, and it emits a good deal of toxicity in the process.
In 1937, hemp was banned just after a machine was invented to remove hemp fibers rapidly in large quantities. Humanity suffers from the reaction of threatened industries.
Sources for moreinformationinclude:
Ocean plastic souphttp://news.nationalgeographic.com/...
Comparing hemp to tree produced paperhttp://www.hemphasis.net/Paper/pape...
Wikipedia on hemp plasticshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hemp_p...
Hemp Plasticwebsitehttp://www.hempplastic.com/
Naming names of those behind banning hemphttp://relegalize.info/hemp/competi...
How hemp as a cash crop can help our economyhttp://transformwabudget.ideascale....
Paper on the industries behind banning hemphttp://marijuana-tax-act-1937.blogs...
50,000 uses for hemphttp://www.voteindustrialhemp.com/
The decoricator machinehttp://www.erowid.org/plants/cannab...
Learn more:http://www.naturalnews.com/031926_hemp_legalizing.html#ixzz1hLyadqPY
There's even more to hemp thancashflow.
Hemp for Nutrition
Hulled hemp seeds, their powders and cold pressed oils provide all the essential amino acids for easily digested high protein. Hemp is not only very high in omega-3, but it provides an almost perfect ratio of omega-3 to omega-6. It is truly a super food.
Hemp is so nutritionally dense that one could survive on hemp seeds alone during extreme food shortages.If hemp were legal, you could easily grow your own.
Hemp Improves Farming
Hemp plants don't need pesticides or synthetic fertilizers, which rely mostly on the phosphate industry. A phosphate industry byproduct is the fluoride that is sold to municipalities for our daily poison. Hemp's thick roots ward off weeds, and growing hemp improves the soil's nitrogen, making that soil better for other crops. They would be useful and lucrative rotation crops for organic farmers.
Hemp plants have a growth cycle of only four months. In mild climates, harvesting hemp up to three times in one year would create an annual cash cow for farmers. The cannabis taboo is eliminated by allowing the male plants to continually pollinate the female plants. This reduces psychotropic THC to legal levels.
Eliminating Toxic Petrochemical Plastics
There is a clump of plastic waste residue larger than the state of Texas floating in the middle of the Pacific. A lot of it is expected to decompose, creating a plastic soup in the ocean. The toxins from this plastic soup spread out into other oceanic regions and are hazardous to fish and bird wildlife. This soup could find its way into our kitchens as well!
All kinds of plastics are produced with hemp, from clear wraps for foods toautomobileparts. Hemp plastics are durable and heat resistant.And they are bio-degradable. Currently, the French auto industry is making some of its automobile parts from hemp. Henry Ford pioneered this in 1941 when he built his "vegetable car" with hemp and flax. It was stronger and lighter than steel cars.
Ford's hemp-mobile also used hemp bio-diesel fuel, which creates very little pollution. The petroleum industry didn't approve of that. Hemp seeds were even used to make paints and lacquers in the mid-1930s.
Petrochemical plastics for all purposes could be replaced with hemp plastics that are non-toxic and bio-degradable. Bye-bye BPA!
More Trees for Tree Huggers
Pulp from trees is used to make paper. But anything wood pulp can do, hemp fibers can do better. Paper from trees can be recycled three times. Hemp paper can be recycled eight times. Since hemp was banned in the USA in 1937, 70% of the USA's forests have been eliminated.
It's estimated that one acre of hemp produces more oxygen from CO2 and methane than 25 acres of forest. One idea is to have inner city hemp plots to improve urban air quality. We wouldn't need bogus carbon tax legislation.
Pulping trees for paper creates more waste and consumes more energy than most enterprises. This industry consumes more water than almost all others. It is the fifth largest industry consumer of energy, and it emits a good deal of toxicity in the process.
In 1937, hemp was banned just after a machine was invented to remove hemp fibers rapidly in large quantities. Humanity suffers from the reaction of threatened industries.
Sources for moreinformationinclude:
Ocean plastic souphttp://news.nationalgeographic.com/...
Comparing hemp to tree produced paperhttp://www.hemphasis.net/Paper/pape...
Wikipedia on hemp plasticshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hemp_p...
Hemp Plasticwebsitehttp://www.hempplastic.com/
Naming names of those behind banning hemphttp://relegalize.info/hemp/competi...
How hemp as a cash crop can help our economyhttp://transformwabudget.ideascale....
Paper on the industries behind banning hemphttp://marijuana-tax-act-1937.blogs...
50,000 uses for hemphttp://www.voteindustrialhemp.com/
The decoricator machinehttp://www.erowid.org/plants/cannab...
Learn more:http://www.naturalnews.com/031926_hemp_legalizing.html#ixzz1hLyadqPY
The Industrial Hemp Farming Act of 2011 - Identify industrial hemp
(NaturalNews) Despite the proliferation of hemp products entering the green marketplace these days, there is still confusion among some consumers about the differences between industrial hemp and cannabis that's grown for recreational and medicinal marijuana. Some of that confusion may result from the Controlled Substances Act of 1937 that fails to differentiate marijuana from industrial hemp in the ban of their cultivation. While some states have legalized growing industrial hemp varieties, farmers have been cowed by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency's opposition. A bill introduced in May 2011 would amend the CSA to exclude industrial hemp.
To understand the distinctions between cannabis grown for industrial hemp purposes versus that cultivated for marijuana requires a little botanical clarification. Within the cannabis genus there are three species: Cannabis indica, Cannabis sativa and Cannabis ruderalis. Over thousands of years of cultivation, these species have naturally hybridized and have been crossbred by humans for various purposes, resulting in hundreds of strains. Those strains bred for their seeds, oil and fiber contain infinitesimal quantities of THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), the main substance responsible for the euphoric effects of recreational and medicinal marijuana. Smoking industrial hemp varieties is more likely to result in a headache than a high.
Based on standards established under the UN Narcotics Convention, a number of cannabis strains have been developed that contain minimal quantities of THC, which is further reduced during industrial processing, so that the end product contains virtually no THC. Despite this, the DEA continues to oppose industrial hemp cultivation arguing that pot proponents are really seeking a "back-door" route to getting all forms of cannabis legalized. The agency, with some justification, argues that with thousands of hemp strains confusing thepicture, enforcement of industrial-only hemp cultivation is problematic. In March 2003, the DEA issued rules permitting sale of products such as food, oil, paper and textiles that contain no THC whatsoever.
Meanwhile, industrial hemp is being grown in Europe, Australia and Canada where THC content is limited to 0.3%. In contrast, cannabis raised for recreational or medicinal pot typically contains at least 3% THC, with many of thenewand most potent strains offering THC levels of 20% and more. In Canada, the government has issued a list of low-THC cannabis varieties that may be cultivated for industrial hemp. Proponents of cultivation in the U.S. counter the DEA's arguments over enforcement difficulties, urging the U.S. to follow Canada's example by establishing a list of permitted industrial hemp varieties.
Much of the world's hemp production today caters to the increasing popularity of hemp oil that's rich in omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. Hemp textiles and apparel are also enjoying a vogue, especially among green consumers concerned about the sustainability of the clothing they choose. Because hemp requires little or no commercial fertilizers or pesticides, it has become a textile of choice among eco-friendly shoppers.
In May 2011 H.R. 1831, the Industrial Hemp Farming Act of 2011, which would amend the Controlled Substances Act to exclude industrial hemp while distinguishing it from marijuana, was introduced. The bill has been referred to the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security. Capitol Hill watchers don't give the bill much of a chance -- similar bills have died in committee in each of the last three congressional sessions.
Sources
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bil...
http://www.industrialhemp.net/#faq
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cannabis
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cannab...
http://www.justice.gov/dea/pubs/pre...
Learn more:http://www.naturalnews.com/033419_industrial_hemp_farming.html#ixzz1hLxjsANC
To understand the distinctions between cannabis grown for industrial hemp purposes versus that cultivated for marijuana requires a little botanical clarification. Within the cannabis genus there are three species: Cannabis indica, Cannabis sativa and Cannabis ruderalis. Over thousands of years of cultivation, these species have naturally hybridized and have been crossbred by humans for various purposes, resulting in hundreds of strains. Those strains bred for their seeds, oil and fiber contain infinitesimal quantities of THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), the main substance responsible for the euphoric effects of recreational and medicinal marijuana. Smoking industrial hemp varieties is more likely to result in a headache than a high.
Based on standards established under the UN Narcotics Convention, a number of cannabis strains have been developed that contain minimal quantities of THC, which is further reduced during industrial processing, so that the end product contains virtually no THC. Despite this, the DEA continues to oppose industrial hemp cultivation arguing that pot proponents are really seeking a "back-door" route to getting all forms of cannabis legalized. The agency, with some justification, argues that with thousands of hemp strains confusing thepicture, enforcement of industrial-only hemp cultivation is problematic. In March 2003, the DEA issued rules permitting sale of products such as food, oil, paper and textiles that contain no THC whatsoever.
Meanwhile, industrial hemp is being grown in Europe, Australia and Canada where THC content is limited to 0.3%. In contrast, cannabis raised for recreational or medicinal pot typically contains at least 3% THC, with many of thenewand most potent strains offering THC levels of 20% and more. In Canada, the government has issued a list of low-THC cannabis varieties that may be cultivated for industrial hemp. Proponents of cultivation in the U.S. counter the DEA's arguments over enforcement difficulties, urging the U.S. to follow Canada's example by establishing a list of permitted industrial hemp varieties.
Much of the world's hemp production today caters to the increasing popularity of hemp oil that's rich in omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. Hemp textiles and apparel are also enjoying a vogue, especially among green consumers concerned about the sustainability of the clothing they choose. Because hemp requires little or no commercial fertilizers or pesticides, it has become a textile of choice among eco-friendly shoppers.
In May 2011 H.R. 1831, the Industrial Hemp Farming Act of 2011, which would amend the Controlled Substances Act to exclude industrial hemp while distinguishing it from marijuana, was introduced. The bill has been referred to the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security. Capitol Hill watchers don't give the bill much of a chance -- similar bills have died in committee in each of the last three congressional sessions.
Sources
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bil...
http://www.industrialhemp.net/#faq
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cannabis
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cannab...
http://www.justice.gov/dea/pubs/pre...
About the author
Marty Paule is a co-owner ofSympatico Clothing, an Oregon-basedbusinesscommitted to the sustainable production of ecofriendly apparel.Learn more:http://www.naturalnews.com/033419_industrial_hemp_farming.html#ixzz1hLxjsANC
Facts & Myth
Hemp and Marijuana
Myths and Realities
The abstract below is copied in part from Dr. Dave's Industrial Hemp Archives, Hemp and Marijuana: Myths & Realities. This is a must-read for anyone who is wants to learn the facts about industrial hemp!
Abstract
Surely no member of the vegetable kingdom has ever been more misunderstood than hemp. For too many years, emotion-not reason-has guided our policy toward this crop. And nowhere have emotions run hotter than in the debate over the distinction between industrial hemp and marijuana. This paper is intended to inform that debate by offering scientific evidence, so that farmers, policymakers, manufacturers, and the general public can distinguish between myth and reality.
Botanically, the genus Cannabis is composed of several variants. Although there has been a long-standing debate among taxonomists about how to classify these variants into species, applied plant breeders generally embrace a biochemical method to classify variants along utilitarian lines. Cannabis is the only plant genus that contains the unique class of molecular compounds called cannabinoids. Many cannabinoids have been identified, but two preponderate: THC, which is the psychoactive ingredient of Cannabis, and CBD, which is an anti-psychoactive ingredient. One type of Cannabis is high in the psychoactive cannabinoid, THC, and low in the anti-psychoactive cannabinoid, CBD. This type is popularly known as marijuana. Another type is high in CBD and low in THC. Variants of this type are called Industrial Hemp. In the United States, the debate about the relationship between hemp and marijuana has been diminished by the dissemination of many statements that have little scientific support. This report examines in detail ten of the most pervasive and pernicious of these myths.
Myth: United States law has always treated hemp and marijuana the same.
Reality: The history of federal drug laws clearly shows that at one time the U.S. government understood and accepted the distinction between hemp and marijuana.
Myth: Smoking Industrial Hemp gets a person high.
Reality: The THC levels in Industrial Hemp are so low that no one could get high from smoking it. Moreover, hemp contains a relatively high percentage of another cannabinoid, CBD, that actually blocks the marijuana high. Hemp, it turns out, is not only not marijuana; it could be called "anti-marijuana".
Myth: Even though THC levels are low in hemp, the THC can be extracted and concentrated to produce a powerful drug.
Reality: Extracting THC from Industrial Hemp and further refining it to eliminate the preponderance of CBD would require such an expensive, hazardous, and time-consuming process that it is extremely unlikely anyone would ever attempt it, rather than simply obtaining high-THC marijuana instead.
Myth: Industrial Hemp fields would be used to hide marijuana plants.
Reality: Industrial Hemp is grown quite differently from marijuana. Moreover, it is harvested at a different time than marijuana. Finally, cross-pollination between hemp plants and marijuana plants would significantly reduce the potency of the marijuana plant.
Myth: Legalizing hemp while continuing the prohibition on marijuana would burden local police forces.
Reality: In countries where hemp is grown as an agricultural crop, the police have experienced no such burdens.
Myth: Feral hemp must be eradicated because it can be sold as marijuana.
Reality: Feral hemp, or ditchweed, is a remnant of the Industrial Hemp once grown on more than 400,000 acres by US farmers. It contains extremely low levels of THC, as low as .05 percent. It has no drug value, but does offer important environmental benefits as a nesting habitat for birds. About 99 percent of the "marijuana" being eradicated by the federal government-at great public expense-is this harmless ditchweed. Might it be that the drug enforcement agencies want to convince us that ditchweed is hemp in order to protect their large eradication budgets?
Myth: Those who want to legalize Industrial Hemp are actually seeking a backdoor way to legalize marijuana.
Reality: It is true that many of the first hemp stores were started by Industrial Hemp advocates who were also in favor of legalizing marijuana. However, as the hemp industry has matured, it has come to be dominated by those who see hemp as the agricultural and industrial crop that it is, and see hemp legalization as a different issue than marijuana legalization. In any case, should we oppose a very good idea simply because some of those who support it also support other ideas with which we disagree?
Myth: Hemp oil is a source of THC.
Reality: Hemp oil is an increasingly popular product, used for an expanding variety of purposes. The washed Industrial Hemp seed contains no THC at all. The tiny amounts of THC contained in Industrial Hemp are in the glands of the plant itself. Sometimes, in the manufacturing process, some THC- and CBD-containing resin sticks to the seed, resulting in traces of THC in the oil that is produced. The concentration of these cannabinoids in the oil is infinitesimal. No one can get high from using Industrial Hemp oil.
Myth: Legalizing Industrial Hemp would send the wrong message to children.
Reality: It is the current refusal of the DEA and ONDCP to distinguish between an agricultural crop and a drug crop that is sending the wrong message to children.
Myth: Industrial Hemp is not economically viable, and should therefore be outlawed.
Reality: The market for Industrial Hemp products is growing rapidly. But even if it were not, when has a crop ever been outlawed simply because government agencies thought it would be unprofitable to grow?
Written by David P. West, Ph.D.
Lead Scientist, Hawaii Industrial Hemp Research Project
Lead Scientist, Hawaii Industrial Hemp Research Project
Hemp sprouts growing at the Hawaii Industrial Hemp Research Project
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