TASMANIA WANTS INDUSTRIAL HEMP LEGALISED

By Jessica Burke 
Source: foodmag.com.au

The Tasmanian government has confirmed its support for growing industrial hemp in the state.

Minister for Health, Michelle O’Byrne said the government is fully behind moves to remove the prohibition on using low THC hemp products including food.

The move would open new markets for industrial hemp growers, she said.

“We have supported such moves in the past only to be blocked by the Howard Liberal Government,” O’Byrne said.

The Health Minister was quick to stress, however, that there would be licensing restrictions on growing the approved hemp.

“But even if this latest attempt succeeds, it must be remembered that cannabis sativa is a schedule 9 drug in all states and territories, so the only way to allow growing of low THC crops is to licence them” she said.

Cannabis is the most commonly used illicit drug in Australia, and O’Byrne said licensing systems are important to protect communities.

“This doesn’t mean that regulation is too strict for legitimate growers – rather than restricting the development of the industry, the licence system enables the growing of industrial hemp.

“There is no charge for the issue of a licence and to date, all legitimate applicants have been granted licences.

“The poppy industry, where licensing arrangements are also required under the Poisons Act, has developed into a major source of the world’s licit opioid alkaloids with an annual farm gate value of about $100 million.

“There is no reason why the hemp industry would be any different.”

The campaign to legalise industrial hemp has been going on for some time, and in December last year it was revealed that eating the processed hemp seed, containing the active cannabis ingredient delta 9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), could become common practice, if an application made to Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) is approved.


O’Byrne has met with Tasmania Farmers and Grazers Association (TFGA) and representatives from the industry to discuss the issue.

Manitoba Harvest Hemp Foods & Oils Secures New Round of Financing

Source: techfinance.ca

Fresh Hemp Foods Ltd., dba Manitoba Harvest Hemp Foods & Oils has secured a new round of growth and working capital financing from White Road Investments and Avrio Ventures. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Manitoba Harvest will use the funds to strengthen all aspects of the supply chain to better meet the growing demand for hemp foods.

Founded in 1998, Manitoba Harvest Hemp Foods & Oils is the world’s largest vertically-integrated hemp food manufacturer and the only HACCP certified hemp food manufacturer.

In April 2009, Manitoba Harvest closed a Series A round of financing with Avrio and raised additional Capital from Avrio in 2010.

Source: politifact.com

The Truth-O-Meter Says:

Federal law prohibits the growing of industrial hemp in the United States.

Suzanne Bonamici on Tuesday, January 10th, 2012 in a debate

Can't grow hemp in the United States?

Share this story:

In response to a viewer question about marijuana, Democrat Suzanne Bonamici said: "Industrial hemp is something that right now is used in products and people with businesses right here in Oregon have to buy it from Canada because there’s a federal law that says it can’t be grown."

We know that industrial hemp has been an issue in the Oregon Legislature. Didn’t the Senate pass something allowing farmers to grow hemp for food, health care products and clothing?

Our hunch was right. In 2009, state lawmakers approved Senate Bill 676, which authorizes farmers to grow hemp, subject to regulation by the Oregon Department of Agriculture. Oregon became the seventh state to do so, joining Maine and Hawaii.

But we can’t grow industrial hemp yet because the federal government has yet to authorize it.

"Until there is some change at the federal level, we are poised to begin the process of establishing rules for production," said Bruce Pokarney, spokesman for Oregon’s Agriculture Department.

The federal government does not allow the growing of industrial hemp in the United States. We rate the statement True.

Groceries: Making Organic Basics the Standard

GROCERY DELIVERY: Groceries Apparel co-founders Rob Lohman (left) and Matthew 
Boelk stand in front of the van they drove to deliver their first shipment of apparel to 
their Canadian distributor.


by Rhea Cortado
Source: apparelnews.net

Groceries Apparel co-founders Matthew Boelk and Rob Lohman, both 29, have high aspirations for their label, hoping it will become a leading branded basics supplier and private-label supplier of organic knits for specialty retailers. 

“Our goal is to price stuff and compete not with other organic companies but with other conventional companies,” Lohman said. 

“That’s one of our big ethos—to bridge the gap to be a price point,” Boelk said.

In 2011, the Groceries label used 100,000 yards of organic fabric and produced $1 million in goods that shipped to more than 200 doors worldwide, including Fred Segal stores in Los Angeles and Holt Renfrew in Canada. The two entrepreneurs project they will reach $4 million to $5 million in sales this year.  

Wholesale price points for a basic crew-neck men’s pocket tee range from $10.50 to $16.50, depending on the fabric and order quantity, and $10 to $20 for fashion bodies. 

“Basically, [we’re] sacrificing our margins to make organic the status quo and cause a shift in the organic-fabric industry and the demand for organic fabric,” Boelk said. 


The co-founders examined elements from companies that they admired—the vertical production of American Apparel, the eco-friendly ethos and full transparency of production practices of Patagonia, and local sourcing by Whole Foods—and hope to employ them.  

They source yarns from North Carolina, South Carolina, California and India. The rest of the production chain (knitting into fabric, cutting, sewing, garment dying and packaging) is done in their Los Angeles headquarters. 

“We’ve developed a product, and the next day it’s in Planet Blue,” Boelk said. 

The fit on the men’s basic crew necks features a lower-profile collar, slightly longer length and slim width. The women’s styles cover the key trends and fashion bodies such as racer-back tanks, cropped tees and slouchy V-necks. Each style is available in 100 percent organic cotton, organic cotton/recycled poly or a hemp/viscose blend.

Convert, a small specialty store in Berkeley, Calif., has been using Groceries since 2010 for its private-label shirts. The philosophy behind Convert is to promote products that use eco-friendly practices. 

“[Basics is] something that I have to have in my store, and I’d rather do my own than carry [a branded collection], if I can,” Convert owner Randy Brewer said. “[Groceries is] what I’m all about—it’s organic; it’s made in the U.S.”  

Brewer said he sold about 300 of the shirts in December. “We have guys who come back and buy four or five at a time after they buy one,” he said. “They wash well, they don’t lose their shape, and they’re sturdy.” 


For Keyvan Behnia of the Nomads store in San Francisco, the flexible terms and large variety of colors, fabrics and bodies were huge incentives for him to replace his previous basics supplier with Groceries. 

“I can have a private line that is a little bit wider than white, gray and black. … They have given me a lot of choice and no minimums,” Behnia said. He said his customer weighs the fashion, price and production practices equally when making a purchase. 

“We tell everybody when they see our basics that it is organic cotton. That makes a big difference,” Behnia said. 

The co-founders are betting that their simple business model of a quality product made by responsible methods will resonate with consumers. They plan to say on their website where the materials were sourced, how it was made, and the environmental pros and cons associated with some of the fabrics. For example, although hemp is a fast-growing plant that requires little water to grow, the process of converting the fiber into yarn is energy intensive. 

“It’s the best [fiber] at achieving this feel, which is what retail wants. It’s a means to an end. I’m fully transparent with that,” Boelk said. 

Lohman added, “We want to be open and show our processes to the public so they see where it’s made, how it’s made and by [whom]. We’re not taking advantage of anybody. Everybody here is an American working hard and making a fair wage.”

A Moment on the Lips: DIY Honey and Hemp Lip Balm

By Marion Poerio

Source: theupcoming.co.uk

Get your pout on good and proper this January with this lip-smacking easy to make recipe. Quick and easy, organic fantastic and wallet friendly, this honey and hemp lip balm spells all-round beauty goodness!

Picture: www.dailyglow.com

With all natural ingredients including soothing and smoothing beeswax, nourishing hemp and almond oils, and beautiful shea butter, your lips will be happily hydrated and silky soft. A dash of pure honey adds a calorie free lip treat and a natural sheen that will leave you looking and feeling poutastic.

Picture: www.methodsofhealing.com

Hemp and Honey Lip Balm:

(Makes 4 jars- for you and your friends!)

Ingredients:

10g beeswax

10g cocoa butter

15 g shea butter

4 tsp. almond oil

1 tsp. hemp oil

2 tsp. honey

Method:

1. Melt the beeswax, cocoa and shea butters, and almond oil in a double boiler (a bain marie).

2. Add the hemp oil and honey and stir gently until the mixture becomes a liquid. (Don’t worry if the honey is not totally dissolved at this stage.)

3. Remove from heat and pour the hot mixture into a jug. Blend with a milk frother until the honey is totally mixed in and the consistency is thicker but still pourable.

4. Divide mixture between the four small jars and leave to set.

Picture: www.dailycandy.com

For containers, you either can reuse lip balm pots or if you’re going for the professional look, buy some small clear plastic or glass jars from cosmetic retailers like Boots. It’s as simple as that!

Picture: www.webmd.com

If you’re feeling really fancy, add a hint of pink by adding half a teaspoon of red lipstick to the mix, then design your own vintage style labels and decorate with candy cane ribbon. Ta dah!

This DIY balm comes from natural skincare expert, Karen Gilbert’s collection of home-made recipes, entitled ‘A Green Guide to Natural Beauty’. You can find it on Amazon, for £9.

Marion Poerio

Tom Bihn Little Swift (hemp) Bag Review

by JANET CLONINGER
Source: the-gadgeteer.com

When I think of Tom Bihn bags, I think of laptop and gear bags.  There are several Tom Bihn bags in my house, including an 8 or 9 year old Empire Builder that has been used every day since its purchase and still looks almost like new.  I don’t typically think of knitting or purses when I think of Tom Bihn, but that’s exactly where my thoughts were when I was checking out their website recently.  Tom Bihn had actually designed a bag for knitters some time ago.  He worked in conjunction with the readers of Knitty magazine to design the Swift tote bag that could carry around a knitter’s work-in-progress, yarns, needles, and other supplies.  I’m not a knitter, so I didn’t really give it much thought when I first saw it.  They’ve recently introduced a smaller version of the Swift, called the Little Swift, which is exactly the same design but only 80% of the Swift’s size.  They also had the bag in a new fabric that caught my eye.  The Little Swift in Vulcana Hemp/Recycled Rubber was on its way to my house as quickly as I could get my credit card out of my wallet.

The Little Swift, like all Tom Bihn bags and gear, is made in the US in their Seattle location.  The bag measures 13″ at the widest point X about 11″ tall (not including handles) X about 5″ thick fully loaded up with my stuff.  It weighs about 1 pound when empty.  The bag has no Velcro nor magnets for closures.  Instead, it buttons with a metal button like the ones used on button-fly jeans and a belting tab.  This tab is made from a 0.5″ strap that’s been folded in half and sewn, as seen in the picture above, to leave button holes.  Even fully loaded with my daily-carry stuff, I can close the bag at the tightest position.  I don’t need to worry as much about things falling out or someone sticking their hand in to pilfer from my bag with this tight closure.

The bags were originally available in the ballistic nylon that Tom Bihn uses in many of their bags, but the line has expanded to include a cork bag and the Vulcana Hemp/Recycled Rubber bag that I purchased.  I love the look of the hemp bag.  It reminds me of the look of some “straw” purses, and someone on the Tom Bihn blog had remarked this hemp fabric looked a bit like raw silk.  I loved the look, but the recycled rubber scared me.  I was afraid it would smell like the new-tires section of Sam’s Club, but the blog also said the fabric has only a very faint scent when new.  I decided I’d take a chance, knowing I could return it if I couldn’t tolerate the smell.  They can also send you a sample of the hemp/rubber fabric so you can smell it before you buy, if you’d prefer.

I was very pleased when the bag came.  It was as beautiful in person as the pictures looked.  It really doesn’t have a smell unless I put my nose right against the bag.  The smell is no stronger than any other new bag I’ve owned.  The hemp has a rough texture, but it’s not as prickly and scratchy as I feared.  I had never seen a hemp fabric before, so I was afraid it would feel like a burlap sack or hemp rope.  This fabric has a really open weave, but it’s been adhered to the rubber to form a solid surface.  You won’t have to worry about snagging loose threads.

There are no external pockets or decorations on the Little Swift.  There’s only a small Tom Bihn logo ribbon sewn into the binding on the front of the bag (seen in the top photo).

The body of my Little Swift is made of the hemp/rubber fabric, and the bottom of the bag, the straps, and the edge bindings appear to be made of ballistic nylon.  Apparently all colors of the bags are trimmed with black.  There’s no stiffening or padding in the bag itself.  The seam around the bottom of my bag is a bit puckery.  I think this is because of the stiffness of the ballistic nylon used for the bottom and the rounded shape of the bottom.  The bag can sit on its bottom, but that depends on the contents of the bag, too.  If you have an uneven layer in the bottom of the bag, it can tip over.

The straps are about 22.5″ long and have about a 9.5″ drop, so they fit comfortably on your shoulder, or you can hand-carry the bag.  The center portion of each strap is padded with Poron® foam, and they are very comfortable on my shoulder, even with the bag fully loaded.

And load it I do.  These are the things I’m carrying in my Little Swift.  Starting at the top and continuing clockwise, I have a Sony PRS-T1 ebook reader in the lighted case, the small Stuff Sack included with the Little Swift, the Dooney & Bourke wallet with my iPhone 4 inside, a card case with the extra cards that don’t fit in my Dooney, a checkbook cover, two x-small Eagle Creek Pack-It Sacs loaded up with toiletries, pens, iPod nano and earbuds, etc., and finally my fleece gloves.  My keyring is in the center of the picture.

The interior of the bag is lined with gray Dyneema/nylon ripstop fabric made for Tom Bihn in Japan.  Combined with the black bottom, the interior of the bag is a bit dark, but it’s not impossible to find things in there.  It’s a bit difficult to see in the picture, but both front and back sides of the bags have clear polyurethane zippered pockets.  The polyurethane is very flexible, so it shouldn’t crack or tear easily.  The zippers extend the full width of the pocket, so it’s easy to fit things inside.

There are several rings sewn inside the bag where you can clip the Stuff bag or your Key Strap that was included with the bag.  Red arrows point out three of the four rings.  The one at the top of the picture is for the Key Strap; there’s another ring in the same position on the other side of the bag.  The two rings located in the middle of the bag are for the Stuff Sack or for any of the other small organizer bags and pouches made by Tom Bihn.

I love the Tom Bihn Little Swift bag.  I think the bag is very pretty in the Vulcana Hemp/Recycled Rubber.  It looks more like a lady’s handbaginstead of a gear bag.  The bag is organized inside, so it’s easy to find my things.  The Stuff Sack holds all my small things that I don’t have in other pouches, so I don’t have to worry they’ll fall out.  And the button-closure keeps the rest of my contents securely inside the Little Swift.  I can’t speak for how it performs as a knitter’s bag, but I think it works beautifully as a handbag.  Now I need to start thinking about the cork version…

Liberal party to smoke joint in parliament

By: PAP
Source: thenews.pl

Liberal MP Janusz Palikot has announced plans to share a joint in a room in the parliament building this Friday as part of a campaign to completely decriminalize the use of marijuana in Poland.

The liberal Palikot Movement party will be testing laws introduced in December last year that gave prosecutors the choice as to whether to charge someone, or not, who is found to be in possession of soft drugs for personal use.

“We want to invite representatives of the Free Hemp society, a group that we are on friendly terms with, to smoke a joint in this room, to see whether the law that already decriminalised [personal use] really did do so: or whether there is a need for the amendment that we are presenting on Friday,” MP Janusz Palikot has said.

However, Palikot, who wants total decriminalization, faces an uphill struggle in his bid for more lenient laws.

Prior to the 9 October general election, Prime Minister Donald Tusk declared that he was against the legalisation of soft drugs.

Following this reasoning, he ruled out any possible coalition with the recently formed Palikot's Movement, which won a surprise ten percent share of the vote in the election. (nh/pg)