Will, found a new article today on efforts to allow US farmers to grow hemp. Text of story:
March 9, 1999
U.S. Farmers Want Hemp Ban Lifted
Farmers throughout the U.S. want the federal government to stop saying
"No" to hemp and is urging lawmakers to lift the current ban on the
plant's cultivation, U.S. News and World Report reported March 15.
Last fall, David Monson, a North Dakota farmer, realized a mere
$25-an-acre profit from his wheat, barley and canola fields. Just 20 miles
away, across the border in Canada, farmer Brian McElroy planted his first
crop of industrial hemp and earned $225 an acre.
Last year was the first time since 1930 that farmers in Canada were
permitted to grow industrial hemp. Now, U.S. farmers are urging the
federal government to follow Canada's lead and legalize the cultivation of
hemp.
Although there is a ban on hemp cultivation in the U.S., the federal
government does allow the sale of hemp products. According to Hemptech, a
California consulting company, global hemp sales rose from less than $3
million in 1993 to $75 million in 1997. Sales in the U.S. alone reached
$50 million.
Farmers say industrial hemp contains negligible amounts of THC, the
mind-altering chemical found in marijuana, but its cultivation is
lucrative. Among the products made from hemp are cosmetics, carpets, salad
oil, paper, construction materials and biodegradable auto parts.
The U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy, however, warns that
legalizing hemp cultivation could result in marijuana plants being grown
and hidden in fields of industrial hemp.
CIA Director R. James Woolsey, a proponent of hemp, said that assumption
by the Office of National Drug Control Policy is off the mark. "If you
want to get rid of marijuana, there's nothing better to do than plant a
lot of industrial hemp," said Woolsey. He explained that densely planted
hemp fields are unconducive to marijuana cultivation because when hemp
cross-pollinates with marijuana, it lowers the potency of marijuana.
Monson, who also serves in the state legislature, has sponsored three
pro-hemp bills. "We in North Dakota believe this is a legitimate crop that
can make us some money, help the environment, and maybe save some family
farms," said Monson.
Virginia's legislature recently endorsed "controlled, experimental"
cultivation of hemp, and similar pro-hemp measures are pending in 11 other
state legislatures, including Hawaii and Vermont. However, state efforts
will
fail unless President Clinton issues an executive order removing hemp from
the Drug Enforcement Administration's (DEA) controlled-substance list, or
the DEA takes action itself.
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