Tassie farmers hail hemp food approval

Source: examiner.com.au

TASMANIAN farmers have welcomed scientific approval of industrial hemp seed being grown in Australia as a food source.

That decision still has to be accepted or appealed against by state and federal governments within the next two months.Food Standards Australia and New Zealand yesterday announced that   it had approved the use of hemp seeds with very low psychoactive properties in food oils and to be eaten as seeds.

Tasmanian Farmers and Graziers Association chief executive Jan Davis said that if the ruling was accepted, it would allow farmers to diversify.

``There is a global demand for it as a fibre, used in rope and clothing, and as a food source although up until now it has not been allowed to be grown for food in Australia,'' she said.

``Trials in Tasmania have shown that hemp can be produced efficiently and cost-competitively here, and growers are keen to rise to the challenge. We are ready to start.''

TFGA member and Industrial Hemp Association of Tasmania president Phil Reader said that if the Council of Australian Governments approved the wider use, the hemp industry could compete with the appeal of growing poppies.

``At the moment it is worth about $3 a kilo at the farm gate. If we could get $5, with these further uses, it would make it as good as poppies for us,'' he said.

Greens primary industries spokesman Kim Booth also welcomed the food standards ruling, which he said was a step towards removing ``absurd and irrational barriers'' preventing expansion of the hemp industry.

The Greens received tripartite support in March to set up a state parliamentary inquiry into how a hemp industry could be expanded.

Hemp is already cultivated in Australia and New Zealand under strict licensing arrangements and is used to make fibre, textiles, paper and building materials.The Liberal Party had earlier flagged an inquiry, which the Greens thought did not go far enough.

About 60 hectares of industrial hemp is under cultivation in Tasmania, mainly in the North and North-West, with the seed pressed in Victoria for use in cosmetics.

Pros and Cons of Growing Hemp in Colorado

By Amanda Brandeis
Source: krextv.com

GRAND JUNCTION, Colo.- On Election Day, Colorado voters approved Amendment 64, which legalizes the use of marijuana for adults 21 and over. It also includes a provision legalizing the growth of industrial hemp. While hemp can be used for multiple products, growing the crop is still a federal crime.

"It comes in all different colors of the rainbow," said Claire Codling, a Western Slope resident. Hemp is the foundation of her business.

"I specialize in craft supplies, twine and cord. I have customers around the world that are making hemp jewelry."

Beyond what she utilizes it for, hemp can be used in a variety of ways.

"Oh, you can make anything with it. We can make construction materials, paper. It's biodegradable, it's eco-friendly," Codling said.

Bruce Talbott, the farm manager of Talbott Farms, said, "It's a great crop from the standpoint of biomass. Whether it's used for paper, whether it's used for rope, whether it's used for textiles."

While Amendment 64 includes legalizing the growth of hemp, local farmers may still stay away from the crop.

"I think most commercial growers are going to be reluctant to go there, just because we interface so much with federal regulations and federal control. Without a federal mandate or legalization, I think that would be a high risk," Talbott said.

Codling said she wishes legalizing the use marijuana was a completely separate issue from legalizing hemp.

"I cannot smoke my product. To me it is two completely separate issues; one is fiber for making things," she said.

She hopes one day she will be able to get her product locally.

"I think if we could grow it in Colorado it would produce jobs; small businesses could start. I'd love to buy a product that I import from China right here on my home turf."

Until then, she must rely on other countries' products.

Government failing sustainable construction sector - survey

Source: link2portal.com


(L to R) Prof David Gibbs, Nick Voase, Dr Kirstie O'Neill and Margot Voase, in front of 
the Voase’s farmhouse built of hemp. The Voase family are calling for more awareness 
of the potential of hemp as an environmentally friendly and sustainable building product.

Inconsistent central and local government policies, low investment and lack of support have been blamed for holding back development of the sustainable construction sector.

Research on green entrepreneurs by the University of Hull has found that the UK's sustainable construction sector is in danger of missing out on opportunities facing the larger building sector.

While output in Britain’s mainstream construction sector continues to fall, green builders are bucking the trend as homeowners take action to reduce the costs of heating their homes, creating a huge opportunity for entrepreneurs and faster growth in the sector.

But the respondents to the largest and most in-depth qualitative survey of the sector yet undertaken have called for a clear strategic view from government to enable the transition to greener building practices. They said they were facing major obstacles, including:

• a tendency for government policy to favour large businesses in the construction sector over small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs);
• wide variation in the application of planning rules across different local authority areas that stifle innovation in sustainable building;
• risk averseness by banks unwilling to invest in green businesses and;
• a shortage of skilled labour capable of using sustainable building materials coupled with a lack of knowledge to incorporate new green technologies into building.

Research by the University of Hull's Department of Geography, Environment and Earth Sciences took the form of in-depth interviews with 50 businesses and policymakers engaged in a wide range of practices aimed at reducing the environmental impact of building, from the use of straw, hemp or rammed earth as building materials, to installing cutting edge technologies to reduce energy consumption after construction.

Green construction is rapidly gaining acceptance in the mainstream. The survey found that today’s green entrepreneurs, inspired by German techniques such as the Passivhaus approach, are attempting to combine environmental and business objectives and to educate customers, suppliers and the wider building sector about green building practices.

Researchers Prof David Gibbs and Dr Kirstie O’Neill, said that they hoped their work would encourage policymakers to consider the real problems faced by green entrepreneurs in the sustainable construction sector.

Dr O’Neill said: "We've had a remarkable response from small businesses prepared to give up their time to voice their concerns. Much is made by the current government of its green credentials, but our research suggest that there is something of a gap between the rhetoric and the situation on the ground."

Prof Gibbs added: "Our research indicates that the UK could miss out on a big opportunity if comprehensive measures are not put in place to support this innovative sector."

The interim findings, published by Emerald and to be launched at the Institute for Small Business and Entrepreneurship's annual conference in Dublin today (8 November), form part of a wider University of Hull research project into green entrepreneurship.

Hemp is the solution to many of our environmental woes

By Adam Kelner
Source: straight.com

Dependency on fossil fuels? Unnecessary. Deforestation caused from the production of paper? Not anymore. Ability to replace almost all major nonrenewable raw materials? Absolutely. An excellent source of nutrition with high protein content? Of course! An opportunity to stimulate the global economy out of a global recession? Undoubtedly. Untapped potential in medicinal research and development? I think you get the point.

A brief history

The miracle product described above is no other than hemp. Unexploited, misunderstood hemp—a plant product victimized by political pressure exerted by financial tycoons in the United States in the quest for maintaining profits from various billion-dollar enterprises. Andrew Mellon appointed Harry J. Anslinger to head the Federal Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs in 1930. Using a higher level of Mexican immigrants using marijuana for recreational purposes as a scapegoat, the seemingly endless list of miraculous properties that hemp offers were lost for (at least) the next 85 years. On April 14, 1937 the Prohibitive Marihuana Tax Law was brought to the House ways and means committee. By September of 1937, all hemp production had become illegal. 

Contemporary uses

The multitude of uses hemp offers is astounding with over 25,000 uses estimated. With the potential to be used as biomass fuel with no residual sulphur released during combustion, hemp has the ability to replace our current use of fossil fuels entirely with no additional net CO2 being added to the atmosphere. Hemp fibre is more durable than any other plant-derived fibre, including cotton and wood. With deforestation occurring at roughly three percent per year, hemp paper has the ability to replace paper produced from wood, which could help curtail the current global rate of deforestation. On top of this, the production of hemp clothing could cut down on clothes miles, provide an alternative to importing cotton, and create employment. In fact, one acre of hemp can produce as much pulp for paper as 4.1 acres of trees over a 20-year period.

The length of time required for full maturity of a hemp plant to be reached is roughly 100 days, making it an incredibly renewable resource. A hemp plant can be grown virtually anywhere and doesn’t require any pesticides for growth. In fact, hemp benefits the soil in which it is grown, enriching it with nutrients as it draws minerals buried in the soil up to the surface. Hemp plants with low THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) can be grown, with no psychedelic affects on the human brain being possible.

Hemp seeds are edible, being rich in vitamins and minerals as well as containing a high protein content. The use of hemp seeds as a dietary supplement include benefits such as lowered blood pressure, better digestion, weight loss, an increased level of energy, promotion of healthy cholesterol levels, and harmonious blood-sugar levels. On top of the nutritional aspects hemp offers, it is also largely drought resistant, making it a globally valuable source of sustainable food.

Barriers to entry

How can a plant that is so beneficial with so many utilities continue to be largely unexploited as a result of past prerogatives of profit protection? After 85 years of illegality, the use of hemp for any purpose has been etched into the minds of the majority as a “dangerous” product, with the image of marijuana use predominantly influencing this train of thought. It is this ignorance, and ultimately the asymmetry of information that continues to levy itself upon the freedom on the hemp plant.

Infrastructural considerations and implications must be taken into account as well. All pulp and paper mills could easily be converted into mills for the industrial production of hemp, retaining the level of employment in that industry. However, cotton farmers are not so lucky; the inexpensive nature of hemp is sure to have a drastic effect on their levels of income and thus must be addressed when (not if) hemp production is fully legalized.

It has been 85 years since industrial hemp was made illegal. Imports of hemp products are now permitted but its production is still banned in North America. It is time for “reefer madness” to end. It is indeed madness that prevents us from utilizing a plant that provides so many solutions to our environmental woes.

1 Acre of Hemp Equals 4.1 Acres of Trees

What is Hemp?

By Lauren Cox,
Source: livescience.com

The marijuana plant has many uses apart from drug use. A distinct variety of the Cannabis sativa plant, known as hemp, can be grown to maximize the fibers in the stalk of the plant or to maximize seed production. Hemp has a minimal amount — about 1 percent — of the psychotropic chemical THC.


Rope made from hemp fiber. 

Hemp can grow about 18 feet tall. Hemp fiber from the stalk is similar to flax, the source of linen, and can be used for fabric, rope, paper and even as bedding for animals. Hemp seeds crushed for oil and flour are found in nutrition bars, chips, beer, salad dressing and other foods. Hemp oil is sold by itself as a nutrition supplement. Soaps, shampoos, moisturizers and other body care products contain hemp oil as an ingredient.

Countries that export industrial hemp to the U.S. usually have a strict limit on the percent of THC present in a sample. Anything over 1 percent THC by weight would be considered marijuana. Industrial hemp usually has less than 0.3 percent THC by weight, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Marijuana grown for drugs typically has 3 to 15 percent THC by weight. 

Hemp seeds can be made into flour, or added to chips, beer and salad dressing.

Federal law prohibits farmers from growing both marijuana and industrial hemp. But hemp products are legal in the United States. Companies that use hemp as an ingredient can legally import hemp. Bills supporting local industrial hemp in several states have aimed to undercut federal restrictions on farming.

But these bills, lawsuits, protests and formal petitions to the White House in recent years haven't changed the current federal law. In response to a formal petition to allow industrial hemp farming, a representative from the Obama administration wrote, “While most of the THC in cannabis plants is concentrated in the marijuana, all parts of the plant, including hemp, can contain THC, a Schedule I controlled substance.”

History of hemp

Some of the earliest records of people growing hemp come out of China in 2700 B.C. By the 16th century, Europeans were using hemp for food and textiles. Puritans brought hemp with them to New England in 1645, and the plant was grown even earlier than that in Chile. George Washington planted hemp at Mount Vernon, but cheaper textiles eventually pushed out hemp as a major crop in the United States.

There is an urban legend that the U.S. Constitution, the Bill of Rights and the Declaration of Independence were written on hemp paper. This is not entirely true. The documents housed in the National Archives were written on parchment, which is treated animal skin, typically sheepskin. However, it is likely that the drafts of the documents were written on hemp paper, because most paper at the time was made from hemp.

Hemp production in the United States saw a brief boom in the mid-1800s when the U.S. Navy was in high demand for the material to make ropes and sails. During World War II, the lack of available abaca and jute prompted the government to start pro-hemp farming campaigns to meet the Navy's demand for rope. Hemp demand fell after WWII and government restriction on the plant resumed.

This Week We’re Loving… The Body Shop Hemp Hand Protector

By Emily Warrilow
Source: liverpoolstudentmedia.com

Hands hate winter: fact. Whilst we may love the fashion, food and telly that the colder weather is all about, no amount of cable knit, casserole and X Factor can distract from the pain of dry, cracked hands. As students the problem is tenfold as we spend most of our time in freezing houses, wandering around uni or on nights out; we’re always exposed to the elements.

The problem is most hand creams just don’t cut it. They’re all too light to do any serious repairing, and often leave your hands feeling damp, and therefore worse.  Something more robust is needed, something strong enough to put up a real fight against the bitter British winter.

That something is The Body Shop’s Hemp Hand Protector. Its thick texture leaves no doubt that this is the solution to winter skin problems, and though admittedly it is a little greasy, the general consensus is that this product works where everything else has failed.

The concentrated formula means it lasts for ages, so £10 makes for a worthwhile investment. What’s more, knowing it’s The Body Shop means you can have a guilt-free conscience whilst soothing your hands.

Another fab beauty product and a definite student winter staple, end of.

Image source: www.thebodyshop.co.uk