Hemp - The Little Crop that Could

HEMP The Little Crop that Could 25,000 Presented by: ELECTRUM Products Can Be Made from Industrial Hemp PART NERS "A change in federal policy to once again allow hemp farming would mean instant job creation, among many other economic and environmental benefits," In the mid 1600's Hemp fiber was so important to the young Republic that farmers were compelled by patriotic duty to grow it, and were allowed to pay taxes with it. Tom Murphy, the National Outreach Coordinator of Vote Hemp A DECLARATION Hemp was used in everything from 19th century clipper ship sails to the covers of pioneer wagons. The Declaration of Independence was drafted on hemp paper So Why Did We Stop Growing Hemp? – 1937 Marihuana Tax Act HEMP -1958- Growing Hemp Comes to an End VICTORY Despite the U.S. govt's "Hemp for Victory campaign during World War II, misplaced fears that industrial hemp is the same as marijuana combined with targeted harassment by law enforcement discouraged farmers from growing hemp. DEPARTMENT JUSTICE US The last crop was grown in Wisconsin and by 1970 the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) formally prohibited cultivation DRUG ENEORCEMENT -Import Forced to Import TODAY Who Uses Hemp? Fords HEMP CAR n he Most hemp product manufacturers are forced to import hemp seed, oil and fiber from growers in Canada, Europe, and China because American farmers are prohibited by law from growing this low- input sustainable crop. Sustainable hemp seed, fiber & oil are still used in raw materials by major companies, including Ford, Patagonia, & The Body Shop, to make a wide variety of products. -2012 $500 Million Dollars Still llegal?- Hemp is Not Marijuana In 2012 the U.S. hemp industry was valued at an estimated $500 million in annual retail sales and growing for all hemp products, according to the Hemp Industries Association, a non- profit trade organization consisting of hundreds of hemp businesses. Hemp is erroneously confounded with marijuana, and many policymakers believe that by legalizing hemp they are legalizing marijuana, which is not true. -25+ Countries Grow Hemp Canada, Britain, France, Germany, and Spain, along with over twenty other countries, cultivate and process industrial hemp without affecting the enforcement of marijuana laws -2013 The Industrial Hemp Farming Act (H.R. 525) was recently introduced in the House with 28 original co- sponsors. It was quickly joined by a companion bill (S. 359) with strong bipartisan support around the hemp issue. Farmers The Front Line Farmers still risk raids by federal agents, prison time, & property and civil asset forfeiture if they plant the crop due to the failure of federal policy to distinguish non-drug oilseed & fiber varieties of Cannabis (i.e., industrial hemp) from psychoactive drug varieties (i.e., "marihuana"). 31 US Pro-Hemp States SPECIAL To date, 31 states have introduced pro- hemp legislation and 19 have passed such legislation. The Future Sustainable Agriculture Educate Tell a Friend With focused and sustained research and development, hemp could spur dramatic positive ecological and economic benefits. There is much misconception about Industrial Hemp. Educate yourself and others on the history, uses and benefits of the "Miraculous" crop. Sources Sources http://www.famcollector.com/fam- life/strategic-fibers. aspx http://www.ers. usda gowpublications/ag es/ages001e.aspx http://www.forbes.com/sites/ashoka/201 3/05/29/industrial-hemp-a-win-win-for the-economy-and-the-environment/ http://www2.ca.uky.edu/cmspubsclass/fil es EconomicConsiderationsforGrowingl ndustrialHemp pdf MARIJUANA INFOGRAPHICS http://www.naihc org/hemp_information/ hemp_facts.htm QUNBISININ NOLLIS ADMINISTRA