Hemp: Tip Of The Iceberg
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The number of licensed hemp producers in the top ten hemp producing states increased from 609 in 2016 to 1,211 in 2017. The resultant impact on acreage over the same time-frame was 250% growth from 16,000 acres of production in 2016 to 40,000 in 2017. The number of hemp producers in Oregon, Tennessee and Vermont more than tripled in 2017 while Minnesota, New York and North Dakota saw growth of 533%, 425% and 600% respectively.
Hemp impacts:
Food: Hemp seeds are an excellent source of fiber, iron, potassium, zinc, amino acids and essential fatty acids for humans. Healthy proteins are also excellent for cats, dogs, pigs, cows and horses. Hemp milk is nutritious and causes no known allergies, while hemp tea can help with insomnia, anxiety, stress and chronic pain.
Personal Care: Hemp-oil is non-toxic and is effectively used in candles, paint, body oil, cooking oil and other essential oils. With a fatty acid profile better than that of flaxseed and fish oil, hempoil is excellent for promoting skin elasticity and hair sheen and strength.
Plastics: Plastics made from hemp are bio-degradable and can have a positive net impact on landfills. Hemp cellulose extract is used to make cellophane, rayon, celluloid and a range of related plastics. Due to their high strength, hemp composite bioplastics are currently used in products ranging from cars and boats to blenders and laptops.
Paper: Paper made from hemp is more economical with a large environmental impact due to the reduction of cotton – the ‘world’s dirtiest crop‘, grown on 2.4% of global agricultural land yet user of 24% of global insecticides. An acre of hemp provides more paper than 4.1 acres of cotton; the word ‘canvas’ is itself a derivative of the word ‘cannabis’.
Textiles: Textiles made from hemp are durable, versatile and biodegradable. Hemp fibers are also more resistant to weather and ultraviolet rays than cotton and silk, and can be mixed with other materials to create clothing hybrids that are both comfortable and fashionable
Construction Materials: A single residence can save 5,000-10,000 lbs of CO2 emissions using hempcrete instead of cement. Hempcrete is strong, lightweight, breathable, non-toxic, energy efficient and provides excellent insulation while being water and flame resistant.
Hemp-derived CBD Products: US CBD sales alone are projected to reach $2.1 billion by 2020. This segment will continue to grow as consumers better understand and experience the benefits of CBD, much of which is derived from hemp.
What can Hemp not do? While hemp has over 50,000 uses in our society, one thing it simply cannot do is get you ‘high’. That is a role only played by the cannabinoid THC in the cannabis plant.
We are witnessing the very beginnings of what is destined to become a multi-billion dollar market. The implications that industrial hemp use has on so many aspects of our lives are best understood in the context of the combined industrial-governmental influence that has kept it out of American society despite a 175 year period (1631-1800s) of the government accepting tax payments in the form of hemp. The hemp market may well exceed the cannabis market as regulation, information and transparency work to drive greater adoption. Investors and entrepreneurs alike are well-served to pay attention to this opportunity.
Higher than the law of government is the law of conscience.