SPONSORED BY NUTIVA
“When you tell people some of the incredible facts you’ve learned, they are skeptical, amazed that a plant they’ve always been told was a national scourge has actually proved so useful to so many for so long.” ~ Rowan Robinson, Author of The Hemp Manifesto
What if we told you that what was once considered the most profitable, versatile, and functional crops on the planet, one of the first ever recorded, is banned in the United States today? A plant found in China and Eurasia 10,000 years ago – one that helped construct the Great Pyramids of Giza, carry Christopher Columbus to the New World, was the paper for the United States Constitution, and grew in the backyards of America’s earliest leaders – is illegal to grow in the very places it helped to build.
We’re talking about hemp, the miracle crop. From food to fuel, building materials to clothing, medicine to body care products, there are literally thousands of uses for hemp. Based on market sales, EcoWatch came up with “$620 Million” reasons to legalize industrial hemp. Aside from production uses, hemp can also restore damaged ecosystems: its roots aerate soil and one acre of hemp can absorb up to four times as much carbon dioxide as an acre of trees! Now, don’t get us wrong, we still need more trees, but there’s a whole range of environmental solutions waiting to be discovered with this versatile wonder crop.
But wait, isn’t hemp the same thing as ‘weed’? Nope! That’s a misconception that has been perpetuated over the past five decades with significant consequences and lost opportunity. Hemp and marijuana are the same species (cannabis), but different breeds. Hemp is the non-psychoactive relative of marijuana, and has much more important business to get done than to be used as a drug.
Hemp is fast-growing in a variety of climates, and provides immense opportunities for major industries everywhere to move toward sustainable production. Many ethical companies like today’s partner, Nutiva, already use hemp as an essential ingredient.
Unfortunately, the United States government banned the growth of any cannabis plant in 1937, making the U.S. one of the only countries in the world where growing industrial hemp is prohibited by law. However, it is perfectly legal to manufacture and sell hemp products, but in order to do so, companies must waste money and exploit resources to ship hemp harvests from places like China, one the world’s largest hemp exporters.
The good news is, the importance of hemp is finally starting to be recognized and many states and industries are taking rapid steps to advocate for and utilize industrial hemp. In the United States, over 30 states have passed hemp-related legislation and President Obama finally distinguished the difference between hemp and marijuana in the Farm Bill Act of 2013.
Because there are countless uses for industrial hemp, there is something that everyone can relate to. Today you will learn all about this crop, and how it can help save and protect our economy, environment, and people. To help get you started, check out today’s GOOD READ.
The future’s looking bright for industrial hemp, but there’s still a long way to go. Some people and governments can’t get past the stigma around hemp created from old myths. But once people know the facts, it’s hard not to be an advocate. The most important call to action is exactly that, calling for action.
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Hemp is a more sustainable alternative to just about everything, and can improve everyday life in so many ways. The future of our planet could look very different if hemp was legal.
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Hemp contains levels of THC about 500 times less than the THC levels of marijuana. That means it can’t effectively be used as a drug. It does, however, have thousands of way better uses. When you dive into the history of hemp, it seems incomprehensible that we’ve come this far with this crop banned.
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