Industrial Hemp for the Future

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Industrial Hemp is an ancient crop, which has a multitude of diverse uses. The earliest uses of Hemp can be traced back to the Sumerians and probably even earlier in man’s unrecorded history. Industrial Hemp is not Marijuana though the two plants are of the same family and have passing resemblance to one another. Industrial Hemp’s myriad uses are being rediscovered and at the forefront of research in diverse fields. I will be attempting to dispel some of the myth, and providing history and proven uses of this amazing plant.

The scientific name for industrial hemp is Cannabis sativa; which, is one of the strains of marijuana (Cannabis sativa, Cannabis indica, and Cannabis ruderalis). The major difference in the different strains is the almost complete lack of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in the industrial hemp strain. Another prominent feature is the industrial hemp grows tall and narrow whereas the psychoactive and medicinal strains grow short and bushy with large flowering buds. Many governments worldwide recognize this difference and allow the cultivation of industrial hemp even where marijuana is not legal. Unfortunately the United States of America is not one of those countries yet. But many in roads to legal cultivation are being made. (Andrews 10)

Historically industrial hemp has been grown on every continent with the exceptions of Antarctica and Greenland due to the harshness of their respective climates. Hemp usage has been archeologically dated to the Neolithic Era; with, pottery imprinted with hemp fiber found dating to the fifth millennium B.C. Hemp is believed to have been cultivated by man for over 12,000 years. The earliest hemp paper that survives to the present day is from the Western Han Dynasty in China. Hemp...

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...2014.
Martino, Joe. "Hemp Makes Big Strides: It’s Now Legal To Grow In Certain States." CollectiveEvolution RSS. N.p., 14 Feb. 2014. Web. 21 Feb. 2014.
Mist, Kali. "One More Way That Hemp Plastic Could Save Our Lives." One More Way That Hemp Plastic Could Save Our Lives. Soft Secrets USA, 14 Oct. 2011. Web. 19 Mar. 2014.
""NEW BILLION-DOLLAR CROP"" Popular Mechanics Magazine 1938th ser. Feb (1938): n. pag. Web. 18 Feb. 2014. .
Robinson, Rowan. The Great Book of Hemp: The Complete Guide to the Environmental, Commercial, and Medicinal Uses of the World's Most Extraordinary Plant. Rochester, VT: Park Street, 1995. Google Books. Inner Traditions / Bear & Co, 1996. Web. 15 Mar. 2014.
Roulac, John. Hemp Horizons: The Comeback of the World's Most Promising Plant. White River Junction, VT: Chelsea Green Pub., 1997. Print.

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