How Deep the Ignorance Runs...

Late last week I sent an e-mail to the manager of my local farmers market asking about the rules for setting up a public information booth at the market. My plan is to make an effort to educate the shoppers about industrial hemp and the upcoming Hemp History Week in May. I gave the market manager a general description of what I was promoting (Hemp History Week) and asked her what rules I needed to follow. I may try to sell hemp socks or small bottles of hemp oil so people can get a real sense of the power of hemp, and I understand the rules may change significantly if you are selling a product vs. giving away free public information. I have seen information booths for political candidates at the market, information booths for entertainment events, newspaper vendors and other non-food vendors, so I know the market can accommodate such a thing.

Well it has been almost a week and I have not heard back from  her. No auto-reply on her e-mail either so I know she is not on vacation. Her e-mail address is an official city address so I know she is a professional person, but my fear is that she is completely ignorant of industrial hemp, as so many of us are, and is thinking that I want to promote medical marijuana legalization.

This problem is common and is the whole reason why I want to set up an information booth at the market. People need to learn about industrial hemp so they will encourage our politicians to change the laws and let our farmers grow hemp.

In the same vein of ignorance about industrial hemp comes the following press release:


American Health Food Exporter Speaks Out About Month Long Ordeal in Egyptian Jail for Importing Nutritious Hemp Food

Hemp Industry Asks U.S. Department of State to Help Innocent Man in Limbo

WASHINGTON, Feb. 3, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Hemp Industries Association (HIA), the nation's leading trade organization working to promote non-drug industrial hemp, learned last week of the plight of Mostafa Soliman, an America citizen who has lived in the U.S. for 40 years and was wrongly imprisoned by Egyptian authorities on December 30, 2010 for importing organic hemp seed oil used in salads, and other healthy recipes.    If convicted, he is potentially facing death by hanging.  

After almost a month in jail, Mr. Soliman was finally granted bail as protests raged across Egypt.  Just as he was about to be released on January 28th, his jail  was attacked by protesters and set on fire.  Guards and police fled leaving the prisoners to die in the burning jail, many of whom were crammed in 8-by-8-foot cells with as many as 30 people.  Eventually the protesters entered the jail and smashed the locks on the prisoner's cells amidst smoke and tear gas, releasing Mr. Soliman and others in a scene that can only be described as dangerously chaotic.

Over the next few days, Mr. Soliman, along with attorneys in the U.S. working with the HIA, asked the U.S. Embassy in Cairo to help reissue Mr. Soliman a passport so he can return to the U.S.  However, the embassy has refused to issue the new passport so far for no apparent reason except that he is facing unfounded drug charges in Egypt.

The Egyptian-born Mr. Soliman, 62, is owner of Healthy Harvest, the company which exported the hemp seed oil from Canadaand operates in Egypt.  He lives in Aventura, Florida, but was spending time in Egypt to manage the arrival of products that he exports from the U.S. and Canada.  

"This is a tragic mistake that could be solved with a simple drug test.  Mr. Soliman is being falsely accused of importing  'hash oil' when it fact it was healthy hemp food," says Eric Steenstra, Executive Director of the HIA.  "The HIA and Votehemp.com are launching a campaign to free Mostafa Soliman that will hopefully jump-start action at the U.S. State Department.  We recognize that the unrest in Egypt will make it more difficult for U.S. authorities to act, but this terrible mistake by Egyptian authorities was made well before the recent protests began and in many ways symbolizes the corruption the protestors are resisting," adds Steenstra.

SOURCE Hemp Industries Association