Hemp, Inc. Signs Letter of Intent with One of China's Largest Agricultural Producers, Yasheng Group

By Hemp, Inc.
Source: heraldonline.com

NEW YORK, MAY 16, 2013 — /PRNewswire/ -- Hemp, Inc. (OTC: HEMP) is pleased to announce an agreement with the Yasheng Group (OTC:HERB), one of China's largest agricultural producers. The signed agreement specifies that Yasheng Group will grow and process into finished product 637 mu (108 acres) of a specific cultivar of industrial hemp in China.  According to Hemp, Inc. executives, the cultivar will be very high in CBDs (a non-toxicating group of compounds with proven medical benefits and no serious contraindications) with less than .05% THC.  This level of THC is legal for import into the United States. Final seed products such as hulled hemp seed possess THC levels too low to have an intoxicating effect on anyone consuming it. 

The harvested crop will be processed into finished products to be comprised of approximately 75,000 kilograms of top quality hemp. Hemp, Inc. (OTC: HEMP) will have final determination of the processing of the end product as the crop progresses to maturity. CEO Bruce Perlowin stated, "Hemp seed, hulled or pressed into oil has the most monetary value at market, but the possibility of providing a quality source of protein to the Chinese population that consumes a great amount of the world's food, is something we are working on. Yasheng representatives have showcased our Herbagenix hemp protein blend to interested buyers at a recent trade show in Hong Kong that could lead to a large sales presence inside China."

Hemp, Inc.'s President, David Tobias, is thrilled with the new agreement, "Yasheng Group is one of China's leading agricultural producers. They've been in business for over 30 years. We're especially proud that we've been able to join the ranks of major corporations McDonald's, KFC, Tsingtao Beer and Pepsi, who partner with the Yasheng Group."

Yasheng Group conducts business operations in China in three major segments: agriculture, livestock, and biotechnology and specializes in developing, processing, marketing, and distributing a variety of food products processed primarily from premium specialty agriculture products grown in North West China in 6 agricultural segments: field crops, vegetables, fruits, special crops, seeds and poultry.

Hemp, Inc.'s TRIPLE BOTTOM LINE Hemp, Inc. (OTC: HEMP) seeks to benefit many constituencies, not exploit or endanger any group of them. Thus, the publicly-traded company believes in "upstreaming" of a portion of profit from the marketing of their finished hemp goods back to its originator. By Hemp, Inc. focusing on comprehensive investment results—that is, with respect to performance along the interrelated dimensions of people, planet, and profits— our triple bottom line approach can be an important tool to support sustainability goals.

Read more here: http://www.heraldonline.com/2013/05/16/4868434/hemp-inc-signs-letter-of-intent.html#storylink=cpy

Read more here: http://www.heraldonline.com/2013/05/16/4868434/hemp-inc-signs-letter-of-intent.html#storylink=cpy

Vermont Hemp Bill Passes Legislature, Heads to Governor

By Thomas H. Clarke
Source: thedailychronic.net

MONTPELIER, VT — Perhaps overshadowed by the passage of a bill decriminalizing marijuana possession in the state, another bill that would modify Vermont’s law permitting the growth of hemp by farmers was passed by both chambers of the Vermont legislature Monday just prior to the legislature adjourning for the year.

Once signed by the governor, Senate Bill 157  will modify the requirements for hemp production in the state of Vermont, which was authorized in 2008 but has not yet been implemented due to a federal ban on the cultivation of the crop.

The bill will remove language from the 2008 law which states that Vermont farmers can grow hemp “when federal regulations permit.”  Instead, the Vermont Secretary of Agriculture can begin issuing licenses to grow hemp to farmers, but will be required to inform them that the cultivation of hemp may be in violation the federal Controlled Substances Act.

Farmers would assume the risk of federal prosecution for growing hemp in violation of federal law, which could include criminal penalties, property forfeiture, and loss of federal agricultural benefits including loans, conservation programs, and insurance.

The bill also removes the wording “industrial” from all language of the law, referring to the crop as “hemp” instead of “industrial hemp”, and specifically defines “hemp” as any cannabis plant containing less than .3 percent THC.The bill gives the Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets authority over hemp licencing.  Under Vermont law, farmers must be licensed by the state to grow hemp.

Vermont is one of ten states that have made the cultivation of industrial hemp legal, but none of these states have begun to grow the crop due to resistance from the federal Drug Enforcement Administration.

Currently, the Department of Justice and Drug Enforcement Administration prohibit the growth of industrial hemp in the United States, but legislation is pending in Congress to once again allow the commercial production of hemp in the US.  Bills to allow the cultivation of hemp have been introduced in several states this year.

Hemp products can legally be sold in the United States, but the hemp must be imported from other countries.

Over thirty countries produce industrial hemp, including Australia, Austria, Canada, Chile, China, Denmark, Egypt, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Hungary, India, Italy, Japan, Korea, Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey and Ukraine.  The world’s leader in hemp production is China.

Hemp use archaeologically dates back to the Neolithic Agein China, with hemp fiber imprints found on Yangshao culture pottery dating from the 5th century BC.  Historians estimate that hemp was first cultivated by humans about 12,000 years ago.

Paul Hornback optimistic U.S. Congress will legalize hemp

By Bill Francis
Source: wdrb.com

SHELBY COUNTY, KY (WDRB) -- Will Kentucky farmers ever get to grow hemp?

The future of hemp production in the state is now in the hands of the U.S. Congress.

"It was interesting, we went to the Department of Energy and the lady that met us was wearing a hemp dress," said Kentucky State Senator Paul Hornback on his farm after a trip to Washington D.C. to urge the federal government to legalize hemp.

It was Hornback whose bill successfully made it through the Kentucky General Assembly, earlier this year.

The bill sets the regulations for the growing and production of hemp in Kentucky if the federal government lifts its ban on the crop.

Hornback is cautiously optimistic that Congress will legalize the now-forbidden crop.

"We know how slow Congress moves," said Hornback, "I think that is the biggest problem. We know how they delay things, but I think when rational people sit down and look at the issue they realize it is an economic driver, not only for Kentucky, but for the U.S. as well."

A congressional study has said hemp is contained in as many as 25,000 products, including food products, auto parts and textiles.

Says Hornback, "It will be good for farmers, it will be good for people processing and manufacturing it, it will be good for a lot of companies located here in the state that have contacted us wanting to use some of the products."

On his 700-acre farm, Hornback grows corn, soybeans, wheat and tobacco.

He says if hemp is legalized he will add that to his farm.

"I intend to, and like any other farmer, will look at the economics of it -- and we will decide if it is a good cash crop...and that will determine if we continue to grow it."

Hornback believes concerns that it will be difficult for law enforcement to distinguish marijuana from hemp are unfounded, and points out that law enforcement in Canada -- where hemp has been legal since 1998 -- does not have this problem.

Legalizing hemp has bi-partisan support.

U.S. Senator Rand Paul has introduced legislation that would allow farmers to grow it.

Congressman John Yarmuth of Louisville believes the best chance to legalize it is to have it as an amendment to the five-year farm bill now being drafted in Congress.

Mitch McConnell, the senior senator from Kentucky, also supports the legalization of hemp.

Sunshine Coast, hemp capital of Australia?

By Kathy Sundstrom

Source: brisbanetimes.com.au

Political candidate Mark McGuire says hemp should be 

cultivated on Sunshine Coast caneland Photo: Warren Lynam

A new political hopeful for Peter Slipper's seat has a plan to save the Sunshine Coast caneland and generate more jobs for the region - plant hemp.

The Australian Independents' candidate for Fisher, Mark Maguire, says he hopes the commercial cultivation of hemp for manufacturing purposes will get the green light.

"We no longer have sugarcane," Mr Maguire said. "Hemp is a sustainable industry. It can grow where sugarcane grows and provide longevity of employment."

Mr Maguire admits he has "only done a little bit of research" on hemp production and is hoping to poll the Sunshine Coast to get its view on whether it is a desirable solution.

Advertisement

But his party leader, Patricia Petersen, has been walking Gympie Terrace in Noosaville, gauging reaction.

Dr Petersen said she had polled some 500 people and "87% said yes".

Inside the Movement to Legalize Hemp

by Jonathan Miller
Source: thedailybeast.com

If drug-war crusaders would get out of the way, the harmless cannabis product could become an invaluable cash crop. Jonathan Miller on the full-court press to legalize it.

Hemp plants in Barrie, Ontario. (Jim Craigmyle/Corbis)

Its cooler cannabis cousin, marijuana, gets all the buzz—generational bards from Bob Dylan to Snoop Dogg sing Mary Jane’s praise; cancer and AIDS patients declare her glory.

And even though smoking hemp won’t make you feel high—just really stupid for trying (as well as a sharp burning sensation in the lungs)—the feds still crack down on it because they think it kinda sorta looks like the wacky weed that threatens to send our nation back into reefer madness. Just another innocent casualty in the war on drugs.

In recent weeks, however, it appears that hemp might have the last (sober) laugh. That’s because a bipartisan, blue-grassroots effort to secure federal legalization of industrial hemp production might not only prove successful, it could also provide a model for solving far more pressing issues within our hyperpartisan, dysfunctional democracy.

To understand why the hemp movement is going mainstream, consider one of its strongest advocates: first-term Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner James Comer. The GOP official shocks the hemp stereotype. He’s neither the liberal hipster nor the bow-tied libertarian, each hoping the movement will bring us a step closer to legalized marijuana. Instead, the 40-year-old, rosy-cheeked beef-cattle farmer is part and parcel of his rural, small-town, socially conservative upbringing, a culture that’s traditionally been most hostile to hemp legalization, mostly because, well, they fear it will bring us a step closer to legalized marijuana.

And Comer, a political comer who’s popular with both the Mitch McConnell GOP establishment and the Rand Paul Tea Party, is passionate about agriculture. Seeing his vocation under siege, particularly upon the decline of tobacco, Comer risked ridicule by campaigning on an issue that many lampooned and few of his constituents understood. But he stubbornly embarked on a statewide educational campaign with a simple, irrefutable message: hemp is not marijuana.

Indeed, the cousin crops are quite distinguishable, both in their appearance and how they are cultivated agriculturally. Most pertinently, industrial hemp has less than 1 percent the psychoactive THC, compared with the 5 to 20 percent THC content of recreational pot. Moreover, unlike marijuana, hemp could emerge as a prolific cash crop with more than 25,000 uses, including for rope, food, clothing, horse bedding, automotive paneling, and door installation—even clean-burning alternative fuels.

Still, in politics, facts usually don’t get in the way of a good narrative, and a handful of state law-enforcement officials—fearing the loss of millions of dollars of annual marijuana eradication funds—put up a hearty defense against a bill proposed by Comer to provide Kentucky with a head-start regulatory framework upon federal legalization. That, combined with the inertia and hyperpartisanship of a typical General Assembly session, led many political wags to mock Comer’s efforts, overand over and over and over again.

Comer employed a two-part strategy to combat the long odds. He engaged and embraced leading state Democrats (full disclosure: one of them was me), involving us both in the legislative design and political strategy. And he encouraged the unleashing of a motley, multipartisan crew of grassroots activists—including Tea Party acolytes, the state’s Chamber of Commerce, and tree-hugging environmentalists—to lobby (okay, pester) their state representatives in person, by phone, and through all of the social media.

The wear-it-on-your-sleeve bipartisan strategy worked. Democrats and Republicans alternatively stepped forward to address snags in the process, citizen armies were engaged to pressure recalcitrant legislators, and in the final minutes of the General Assembly, Comer’s hemp legislation passed overwhelmingly.

Of course, the biggest hurdle—federal legalization—remains. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency still classifies hemp as an illegal, controlled substance, despite its paltry potency. For Kentucky and other states to legalize hemp, either the president must reclassify the crop through executive order or Congress must change the law.

So now Comer is applying the same political strategy in Washington. Last week I joined him in a series of meetings with senior Obama administration officials and members of congress from both parties. Again, Comer is assembling a united, bipartisan front, building a highly unlikely coalition that features the uncomfortable alliance of Sens. McConnell and Paul, as well as dozens of Democratic standard-bearers.

Not surprisingly, we found consistent support in our meetings, which involved senior cabinet officials and even House Speaker John Boehner (who showed deep, substantive interest and appears far more tan than orange in person). Also unsurprising was the stiff arm from DEA officials who refused even to meet with us (as they’ve denied audiences with several governors). The inside-the-Beltway press, dumbfounded by the strange partisan bedfellowship, paid rapt attention.

Back home now, we’re regathering to plot next steps, most likely to seek an amendment to the pending farm bill, and to unleash our ragtag band of activists to engage in grassroots lobbying. The journey’s just begun, but we see only plowed ground before us.

Ultimately, hemp reform is as much about the process as it is the economic opportunity. Industrial hemp production is illegal today—despite overwhelming, cross-ideological public support—because a handful of bureaucrats have misled the public and gamed the legislative process to preserve their federally funded fiefdoms. It’s an archetype of our broken political process.

And fixing it will require the very best of politics: bipartisan, problem-solving leaders and an engaged populace pressuring meek and unwilling decision makers to do the public’s will.

Such a strategy wouldn’t work on highly polarizing social issues, nor in matters over which the two parties have broad ideological differences. But so many of the country’s most intractable problems—from the nation’s crumbling public infrastructure, to our energy-inefficient private building stock, to the stupefying duplication and inefficiency in government—can be addressed by the same No Labels–style approach to political action. And in so doing, hemp, the very fiber upon which the Declaration of Independence was written, could perhaps now provide a blueprint for our nation’s political future.

Mr. President: Legalize Hemp!

By Jonathan Miller
Source: huffingtonpost.com

This week, I have the honor and pleasure of joining Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner James Comer as we meet in Washington, D.C. with an impressive swath of Obama Administration officials -- from the White House to the U.S. Departments of Agriculture and Energy to the Environmental Protection Agency -- to seek their help in securing the federal legalization of industrial hemp.

Think the pairing of this proud progressive and the conservative Comer to be somewhat unusual?  Let me further blow your political assumptions:  We will be joined in our advocacy by the unlikely alliance of GOP Establishment favorite Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Tea Party poster child Senator Rand Paul, and liberal Democratic stalwart Congressman John Yarmuth.

This rare burst of No Labels-style Washington bi-partisanship is merely a reflection of the broad, deep and diverse support for hemp's legalization among Kentuckians of all political persuasions.  This March, the Kentucky General Assembly overwhelmingly passed Senate Bill 50 -- sponsored by GOP Senate Agriculture Committee Chair Paul Hornback, and strongly championed by Democratic House Minority Leader Rocky Adkins -- that establishes an administrative and law enforcement structure for hemp growers should the crop be legalized at the federal level, and would empower Kentucky to jump to the front of the line and establish itself as the national leader on the crop once federal approval was granted.

How have liberals, conservatives and everyone in between found such common ground? It's because the case for hemp legalization is so compelling:

• While support for legalizing hemp's distant cousin, marijuana, remains controversial (I support legal pot; Comer does not), hemp is not marijuana.  The two plants are quite distinct in the way that they appear physically and are cultivated agriculturally.  Moreover, smoking hemp can't get you high; it just might make you feel a little stupid that you tried.  Industrial hemp has less than one percent THC, while marijuana ranges from three to 15 percent THC content.


• Legalized industrial hemp production could emerge as a prolific cash crop that could bring hundreds of millions of dollars of revenue to Kentucky, and many billions of dollars to the United States. There are more than 25,000 uses for the crop, including rope, clothing, automotive paneling and door installation -- even makeup.


• Most exciting to me -- as a clean energy advocate -- is hemp's application as a clean-burning alternative fuel. By storing carbon during its growth, hemp can play an invaluable role in developing a more sustainable future, including in the building of 21st century, zero-carbon homes. While bio-fuels critics have raised alarms at the diversion of food products into fuel production -- causing spikes in food prices -- hemp has no such negative economic side effects. As the U.S. struggles with the dual enormous challenges of climate change and dependence on foreign oil, industrial hemp could become a powerful weapon in America's energy independence arsenal.

Only one thing stands in the way of this exciting economic and environmental progress: The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) continues to classify hemp as an illegal, controlled substance, regardless of its THC potency.

Accordingly, Comer and I -- and our bipartisan federal delegation -- will be lobbying Obama Administration officials this week to provide Kentucky a waiver from the federal regulations; or better yet, to encourage the DEA to reclassify industrial hemp as legal, regulated agricultural crop.

But while our lobbying efforts will hopefully produce some progress, the key power is in your hands.  While a majority of Americans now support legalized marijuana -- and presumably a much larger majority supports legal hemp -- only when you share your support with your elected officials will they feel the political pressure to take action.

Here are three very simple things that you can do -- right now, at your computer -- to register your support for legalized industrial hemp and pressure Washington to fulfill the people's will:

1. Contact your Senators to urge them to co-sponsor and support S. 359, the Industrial Hemp Farming Act of 2013. introduced by Sens. Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Rand Paul (R-KY) that would exclude hemp from the definition of marijuana and allow states to legalize and regulate the product.


2. Contact your Congressman and urge him or her to co-sponsor the companion bill in the House, H.R. 525, the Industrial Hemp Farming Act of 2013, introduced by Congressman Thomas Massie (R-KY).


3. Click here to sign a petition to President Obama, urging his Administration to lift the barriers to legalized hemp.

I know, I know. It is hard not to be cynical about the way Washington works. But the truth is that the power is in your hands. Take this rare burst of bi-partisanship and lend your voice for a stronger economy and a cleaner planet through hemp legalization.

Legislature lifts restrictions on growing hemp in Vermont

by Andrew Stein 
Source: vtdigger.org

The Vermont General Assembly has voted to lift a state ban on growing hemp, despite a federal prohibition on producing the low-potency form of marijuana.

If Gov. Peter Shumlin signs Senate bill 157 into law, it would replace a Vermont statute that bans the growing of industrial hemp unless federal regulation permits it. Under the new law, hemp would be defined as Cannabis sativa with a tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, concentration of 0.3 percent or less. THC is the psychoactive chemical in marijuana.

On Friday, the House overwhelmingly voted in favor of the bill, which included an amendment that relaxed the role of the Agency of Agriculture in the hemp registration process. The Senate agreed to the change Monday, and the bill is headed to the governor’s desk.

Rep. Teo Zagar, D-Barnard, said that there is widespread public support for the provision, from chicken farmers who want to use hemp seed pods to make their eggs healthier to clothing  and instrument manufacturers.

“It really is one of the most versatile plants there is. I can’t think of any more versatile that you can build with, eat and make clothes out of,” he said. “If Vermont takes the lead on this, and we have Vermont natural hemp products, it could be huge. We could have a huge export market opportunity.”

According to the Hemp Industries Association, annual retail sales for hemp products in 2012 reached $500 million.

Zagar, who pushed hard for this bill in the House Agriculture Committee, acknowledges the Drug Enforcement Administration’s opposition to hemp production, which was made clear to Sen. Patrick Leahy last month.

“We’re not condoning or allowing it,” Zagar said about growing hemp. “We’re basically removing the state prohibition so that Vermont State Police won’t be able to arrest someone for growing a harmless plant.”

Cannabis of any kind is considered a “Schedule I” drug by the DEA, and the federal administration requires registration to grow such plants. Meanwhile, less than a handful of applicants have been given the green light to grow hemp since 2000.

Both branches of Congress are entertaining hemp-legalization bills, but for now the practice of growing this crop is essentially illegal. If a Vermonter seeks to grow hemp, the registration form with the state Agency of Agriculture emphasizes that growing hemp is a violation of federal law and can result in “criminal penalties, forfeiture of property, and loss of access to federal agricultural benefits, including agricultural loans, conservation programs, and insurance programs.”

Sen. David Zuckerman, P-Chittenden, was chair of the House Agriculture Committee when the Legislature passed a bill that would legalize hemp production if the federal government did the same.

“We moved the dial then, and now we’ve basically finished the job,” he said. “We’ve basically said in Vermont you can grow hemp, but still you have to be aware that the federal government doesn’t allow that, and there are potential, serious ramifications. So, just do it with your eyes open.”