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Hemp: Some Facts By: Brian Webber on 5/16/2001; 5:09 PM Hemp is an earth friendly plant. It has many uses. It can be used as an alternative to trees and petroleum products. No, hemp is not marijuana. If you were to smoke hemp, you would not get high, you would just get a headache. Hemp looks simiilar, but it is a different plant. Hemp seeds are edible. The seed is very nutritious and easier to digest than soy products. It is high in protein, high in potassium, high in calcium and in Vitamin A. Many people are deficient in magnesium and they could get plenty from hemp seed. Phosphorous is another nutrient in hemp that is available in high quantities. FACTS-- 1. Hemp was used as far back as 4500 B.C. in China. The Chinese used it for making fishing nets and rope. 2. In 150 B.C. the Chinese made paper from hemp. Hemp paper is still available. It is known that in 1776, the first two drafts of the U.S. Declaration of Independence was writen on hemp paper. 3. Hemp was used in construction of the great pyramids. 4. Vikings used hemp and later the Puritans grew it in America. 5. At one time hemp was Russia's largest export. 6. Hemp is a highly productive crop and very useful. People learned that growing hemp meant the elimination of pesticides because of its pest resistant qualities. It is grown tightly together, so it is also good for suppressing weeds. Other agricultural advantages are its pollen isolation and soil improvement abilities. 7. The Conestoga wagons, that went to the wild west, had covers made from hemp. 8. Henry Ford came up with a vehicle that actually used fuel that was made from hemp compounds. Today we are still trying to get an alternative fuel accepted and approved. Corn is now being turned into fuel (ethanol). Why not hemp? 9. During World War 2, hemp farming was actually encouraged in the United States. It was to be used in many ways that would help the war effort. The government knew how useful hemp was. 10. Soon after World War 2 hemp farming was on its way to being a thing of the past. 11. By 1970 hemp was declared illegal. 12. It wasn't until the 1990's when people began to open their eyes about hemp once more. They realized it is not marijuana, so it is not a drug issue. It was realized that hemp could be one of our highly sustainable crops, which made it an economic issue. 13. The UK lifted it's ban on hemp, Australia and Canada permitted test plantings and in 1996 the North American Industrial Hemp Council was formed. Maybe as time passes, hemp will be accepted more by the government and the general public. Education is vital. There are many hemp products that can be found today. Hemp clothing is getting popular. To some it is considered better than cotton. Cotton is said to be so saturated with chemicals, that the pesticide free hemp appears to be a better choice. Patronize hemp businesses! SUMMARY-- Hemp is useful and it is not dangerous. Hemp is nutritious and earth friendly. It fits in with our need for sustainable living.
RE: Hemp: Some Facts By: Dorothy Marie on 5/15/2001; 6:43 PM "The seed is very nutritious and easier to digest than soy products." That is because soy is of the DEVIL! And I agree. Hemp is great! It is one of my favorite things... my parents think it is dried marijuana. Well, THEY'RE in for a surprise.
Re: Hemp: Some Facts By: Brian Carnell on 5/15/2001; 7:33 PM At 06:27 PM 5/15/2001 -0400, Brian Webber wrote: >Hemp is an earth friendly plant. It has many uses. It can be used as an >alternative to trees and petroleum products. I always hear this claim made, but I have yet to find anyone who can tell me what an earth unfriendly plant is (to be honest, I wasn't aware plants had intentions at all). Ironically, however, some environmentalists have taken up the cause against "nonnative plants" and hemp is most definitely *not* native to this part of the world but came here as part of the Columbian exchange. >6. Hemp is a highly productive crop and very useful. People learned that >growing hemp meant the elimination of pesticides because of its pest >resistant qualities. It is grown tightly together, so it is also good for >suppressing weeds. Other agricultural advantages are its pollen isolation >and soil improvement abilities. But what about its main disadvantage? Hemp growing was abandoned largely because it was so labor intensive as opposed to other fiber crops such as cotton in the 1930s and then really went downhill with the rise of synthetic fibers. Even today where hemp *is* grown, it is usually heavily subsidized by governments. >8. Henry Ford came up with a vehicle that actually used fuel that was made >from hemp compounds. Today we are still trying to get an alternative fuel >accepted and approved. Corn is now being turned into fuel (ethanol). Why >not hemp? Using corn for fuel has proven to be most uneconomical, and I'd imagine hemp would run into the same problems. There are too many far more efficient energy alternatives on the horizon to make biomass ever work (although nothing is going to happen until we get past the current world glut of oil which is unlikely to happen before the end of this century at the earliest). >11. By 1970 hemp was declared illegal. Which made absolutely no sense at all. >12. It wasn't until the 1990's when people began to open their eyes about >hemp once more. They realized it is not marijuana, so it is not a drug >issue. It was realized that hemp could be one of our highly sustainable >crops, which made it an economic issue. There definitely was a drug connection since more than a few people want hemp to be legal so that drug tests for marijuana are basically impossible (although you won't get high off of hemp, there are trace levels of THC in hemp that will likely show up on a drug test -- if hemp were legal, drug tests for marijuana go right out the window -- not that that's a bad thing). >There are many hemp products that can be found today. Hemp clothing is >getting popular. To some it is considered better than cotton. Cotton is >said to be so saturated with chemicals, that the pesticide free hemp >appears to be a better choice. Patronize hemp businesses! I would be very surprised if hemp is pesticide free. Every species of plant that I'm aware of evolved to naturally produce pesticides. The main problem with cotton are the large input requirements. Even GM cotton is still a water hog. It is difficult to tell if hemp could really compete with alternatives, but those who think it can should certainly be allowed to try.
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