-
Harnessing the Hemp Industry: Q&A With Chris Boucher of CannaVest
August 4th, 2014 – In 1990, Chris Boucher walked into a store selling his line of tie-dyed backpacks and wallets to chat with the owners about business matters. He left eight hours later with a new idea: make his products from hemp. “The owners asked me to sign a petition for the legalization of hemp,…
-
Farmers Are Planting the First Commercial Hemp Crops since 1970
July 23rd, 2014 – Since the passage of the Controlled Substances Act of 1970, commercial grade hemp has been considered a controlled substance by the U.S. government alongside its cousin, marijuana. However, hemp contains only the smallest amount of THC, the psychoactive component that makes marijuana a recreational drug. Instead, commercial grade hemp is a…
-
The Other Cannabis War : The Battle Over Hemp
June 3rd, 2014 – In the annals of strange bedfellow politics, the story of how, in 2014, industrial hemp emerged from Drug War purgatory is an epic one. But even for long-time hemp advocates, the sight of Rep. Thomas Massie, a conservative Republican from northern Kentucky, biting jubilantly into a hemp bar on live TV…
-
Could the U.S. Become a Hemp Powerhouse?
June 2nd, 2014 – The weed crop is becoming big business, thanks to legalization in several states. But weed has a close cousin that could also become a lucrative commodity in the United States: hemp. Hemp played a big role in the U.S. economy in the 1800s and again during World War II, and it…
-
Hemp Amendments Could Block DEA From Interfering With Programs Legalized By States
May 29th, 2014 – The U.S. House will vote on two amendments Thursday that would prohibit the Drug Enforcement Administration from interfering with industrial hemp programs and cultivation that have been legalized by states. One hemp-related amendment would prohibit the Department of Justice, including the DEA, from blocking states from importing hemp seeds to grow…
-
Hemp is having its moment. Meet the miracle plant’s biggest champion
May 6th, 2014 – We’ve heard about the promise of hemp before: Its fibers can be stronger than steel. Its seeds make for antioxidant-loaded superfood for you and your chickens. It can compete with fossil fuel as a viable alternative energy source. But ever since the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937, the U.S. has skunked…
-
Tennessee Legislature Passes Extremely Limited CBD Bill
April 24th, 2014 – A limited medical marijuana bill recently passed both the Tennessee House and Senate, and now awaits Governor Bill Haslam’s signature. SB 2531, sponsored by Sen. Todd Gardenhire, would approve a four-year study on the benefits of cannabidiol, often referred to as “CBD,” a non-psychoactive component of marijuana. Unfortunately, the many limitations…
-
Colorado – Industrial Hemp Growing Registration Now Open!
March 05. 2014 – Registration is now open for producers planning to grow industrial hemp during the 2014 growing season; registration closes May 1, 2014. “We realize there is a great deal of excitement about this history-making season but there are also regulations to follow and challenges to consider,” said Colorado Deputy Commissioner of Agriculture…
-
Why Hemp-based medicine (aka Cannabidiol) will explode – The dark side of acetaminophen
February 21, 2014 – There is a drug — probably sitting in your purse, desk drawer or medicine cabinet — that is widely considered one of the world’s safest painkillers. But over the last decade, it has killed hundreds of Canadians, hospitalized tens of thousands and cost the health-care system tens of millions, a Toronto…
-
Canadian Hemp Industry Growing like a Weed
Canada’s small hemp industry is growing like a weed, but still faces some hurdles because of its illegal and potent cousin, marijuana. This week, farmers, scientists, health food experts, retailers and fashion designers are meeting in Edmonton to celebrate hemp and discuss how to help products derived from the plant to blossom on world markets.