Industrial Hemp

Industrial hemp is currently illegal to grow in the United States. This plant is commonly confused with marijuana, but is in fact a different plant which lacks the large amount of the psychoactive THC found in marijuana (Stanaway). If someone was to smoke industrialized hemp, the only thing that would result would be a headache (Kelly). This plant can greatly help the economy and the environment if it was allowed to be grown in the United States.

History/ Background

The hemp plant was used very commonly in the early, foundational period of American history (Stanaway). Even such men as George Washington, Ben Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson grew hemp crops for commercial purposes (Stanaway). The hemp plant was used more commonly than cotton until the cotton gin was invented, which was around the time of the Civil War (Stanaway). Even after cotton became more popular due to the fact that it was now cheaper, hemp was still cultivated in great quantity in the United States (Stanaway). After the Civil War the hemp plant's popularity sharply declined, but technology finally arrived in the 1930's to enable the large scale cultivation of this industrialized crop to compete with cotton (Stanaway). At this time, however, the nation was going through a period of exaggerated worry over marijuana (Stanaway). The federal government, which had strongly supported the growth of industrialized hemp for 150 years, turned its back on the crop and formed the Marijuana Tax Act in 1937. (Stanaway) This act made it virtually impossible to grow hemp due to the questionable legal boundaries one could be crossing. In 1970 the government created the Controlled Substance Act which repealed the Marijuana Tax Act, but included the exact same definition of marijuana, which defines marijuana as any part of the Cannabis plant (West). This act therefore made any material containing any amount of THC illegal, except when a special permit is issued by the DEA (West). Due to the fact that industrialized hemp contains a trace amount of THC (less than 1 %) it is illegal to grow, even though the THC in industrialized hemp could never have psychoactive effects on a person (Kane).

Current Situation

Industrialized hemp is currently gaining more support in America, with greater awareness spreading about the truth of the plant and how it is a different plant than marijuana. Sales are increasing by about fifty percent a year in the United States (Leinwand). The hemp industry is currently a 150 million dollar a year industry in the United States alone, and this is only using imported hemp (Williams). The Controlled Substance Act is still intact, making any product containing THC illegal to grow in the United States, although it is legal to import products made from industrialized hemp. The DEA attempted to make illegal many food products that were made with hemp, but hemp agencies fought back in the courtroom and defeated the DEA regarding this issue in 2002. ("Media Coverage")

Current Practices

The main objective for people who support the legalization of the growth of industrialized hemp is to have the laws changed. Hemp companies and concerned citizens are making good progress on this issue and influencing legislators and legislation. Twenty six states have currently introduced hemp legislation, while fourteen of these states have passed legislation. Six states have amended laws that allow for production and research, these states being; Maine, Montana, North Dakota, West Virginia, Hawaii, and Kentucky. Small fields are currently being grown in Hawaii as state government research. A good deal of the support for hemp is through grassroots organizations and online websites, such as votehemp.com, among others. ("Legislation")

Recommendation

The solution to the problem of not being able to legally grow hemp in the United States is easy: enact legislation to make this a legal practice. Such legislation is being passed in six states, as shown previously ("Legislation"). Around the world the full legalization of industrialized hemp is a common occurrence, with about 30 industrialized nations commercially growing it ("About NORML") "The European Union subsidizes farmers to grow the crop, which is legally recognized as a commercial crop by the United Nations Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). ("About NORML") Many American lawmakers and drug enforcement agencies are against this idea because they believe it would be easy to hide marijuana in hemp fields without being detected. This does not however, seem to be a problem in any of the industrialized nations that currently allow the growth of hemp (Stanaway). The main reason why industrialized hemp is illegal however, is due to the fact that it does contain THC, although only a very small amount (Stanaway). The majority of people agree with the no legalized marijuana laws and the DEA paints industrialized hemp to be the same thing as marijuana, since it contains THC. The first step to successfully legalizing the crop would be setting up programs to inform the people of the country the differences between industrialized hemp and marijuana, along with the outstanding benefits that industrialized hemp have (Stanaway). After the nation is much more educated on the subject than they currently are, the people can have a better influence on their legislators, and the legislators themselves will know more about the issue and can now cast their vote with more information on the topic. One problem that can also halt the process is that big business would like it if industrial hemp never became legal, because if it did it would take away from the sales of the other materials (Stanaway). The simple solution to overcome this would be to prove to big business that American grown hemp will be a very profitable investment. Once industrial hemp was legalized, it would have federal regulations by the FDA, just as all other foods and crops have. These regulations would test the product in fields to make sure no more THC is in the plant than the allocated amount, and will also test the final product if it is made into a food product. The plan to successfully legalize industrial hemp is a straightforward one that simply needs more support and time.

Conclusion

The positive aspects of legalizing the growth of industrial hemp in America are much greater than any possible drawbacks. This plant is one of the most sustainable in the world and can produce any estimated 50, 000 different materials, ranging from paper to food to clothes. Industrialized hemp can produce anything that comes from cotton, petroleum, or timber. The legal reasons why this plant is not currently legal are pure and simply silly, and with enough information provided to the people, the laws should be able to change.