Hemp is Good For Indiana Neal Smith 07-28-2011 Indiana s farmers have been seriously hurt by a combination of disasters,

both natural and man-made. Spring rains have delayed planting in many areas. Hail storms have destroyed crops. Hoosier tobacco farms have dwindled. Unrelenting summer heat and drought have decimated crops throughout the state. We have before us an opportunity to save Indiana farms, produce complete new agricultural industries and create thousands of new jobs. Hemp, commonly called Industrial Hemp, could provide Indiana with an economic boom that hasn t been felt in this state for many years. Over 50,000 products can be made from Hemp, ranging from fiber, paper, plastics, building materials, food and, perhaps most importantly, biofuels. Hemp is a non-psychoactive variety of Cannabis. First, a brief history.Hemp is the oldest known cultivated plant in the history of the world. The Chinese began growing Hemp in roughly 10,000 B.C. Hemp in Indiana goes back to 1821 when escaped slaves came north and established the first commercial Hemp operations in Kouts and North Liberty. As the State settled, Hemp mills sprang up throughout the state in places like Shelbyville, Greencastle, New Albany and Conner Prairie in Hamilton County. Eli Lilly, in conjunction with Parke-Davis developed a strain of Cannabis called Cannabis Americana at their research farm in Greenfield in 1903. By the 1930 s, most Hoosier farms had at least one Hemp patch. My father, born and raised in Hancock County, told me his family had two Hemp patches: One they grew for their clothes, the other, what was called Sweet Hemp was for, as he put it, the men to smoke after a day working the fields. Hemp was made de facto illegal in 1937 with the passage of the Marihuana Tax Act that required farmers to purchase a tax stamp. Tax stamps were very rarely issued. By World War II, when America needed Hemp for the war effort, Hoosier farmers stepped up and delivered. Jasper County won an award from the United States Department of Agriculture for their productivity. After the war, Hemp was shelved. Now we face danger in the areas of economics and energy. Hemp will grow in marginal soil. It requires little in the manner of fertilizer to grow on a commercial scale, though using organic fertilizers will increase yields. Hemp can withstand the heat and drought of Hoosier summers. The soil composition in Indiana is perfect for Hemp. Hemp interplants well with corn and soybeans, being symbiotic with those plants. Hemp produces one of the strongest fibers known to man; the fiber is found in the outer sheath of the stalk. The pulp, called Hurds, contains 77% cellulose from which we get paper, plastics, components of building materials and ethanol fuels. The seeds yield cake, which is a highly nutritious food source for animals or humans. The oil provides either and edible food oil. When processed differently, Hemp seed oil makes an excellent light lubricating oil. When processed still differently, Hemp seed oil makes a high quality diesel fuel, providing at worst mileage comparable to petroleum and is considerably safer to handle and transport.

Hemp is not Marijuana. Hemp contains between .01% and .03% of the class of chemicals known as Cannabinols the psychoactive ingredients. One can not get high on Industrial Hemp. Some have expressed concern that an industrial Hemp crop can hide psychoactive Marijuana. The Hemp Industries Association (HIA) puts it this way: Varieties of Cannabis that are high in THC and low in CBD, when grown for their flowering tops and leaves as a drug, is a horticultural crop. There is a lot of tending and hand-work in the fields. Other varieties of Cannabis that are low in THC and high in CBD, when grown for their seeds or fiber, is an agricultural crop. Agricultural hemp if you were. Drug-type varieties grown as a drug crop will get you drugs. Fiber-type varieties grown as a fiber crop will get you fiber. Oilseed-type varieties grown as an oilseed crop will get you oilseed. Dual purpose oilseed/fiber-type varieties grown as a dual purpose crop will get you oilseed and fiber. If you grow an oilseed-type variety, fiber-type variety, and/or a dual purpose oilseed/fiber-type variety as you would a drug crop you won't get drugs. It's a simple agronomic fact. It's all about growing the correct variety in the manner needed to produce the end product that you are trying to get. Those preferring to grow Marijuana do not want their crop anywhere near Hemp. Cross pollination would ruin the Marijuana. Hemp plants are grown much more closely together than Marijuana. Seeding rates for Hemp are measured in pounds of seed per acre, whereas seeding rates for Marijuana is measured in ounces per acre. Hemp is often grown between 200 and 800 plants per square yard to promote stalk and/or seed growth. Marijuana, which should be planted a minimum of four feet apart, is grown to promote flowers. The best psychoactive crops have the male plants removed. That is not necessary for Hemp. Hemp s economic impact is being felt in Canada, which has permitted Hemp since 1999. A variety of U.S. companies have started importing Hemp fiber, pulp and seeds to produce a variety of products. It is legal, of course, to import Hemp products or components. Two Indiana companies already utilize Hemp. Foods Alive in Northwestern Indiana produces Hemp and Flax crackers, oils and other Hemp foods and cosmetics. Flexform Technologies in Elkhart, Indiana, produces automobile interior parts and other plastics from Hemp and other natural fibers. The HIA estimates the total retail value of North American hemp food, vitamin and body care product sales to be in the range of $121-142 million for 2010. The Canadian government reports nearly doubled in 2010 with total acreage of 26,815 acres. By growing Hemp on 6% of this nation s marginal farmland would supply 100% of our energy needs, based on current levels. In 2001, an organization called Hemp Car drove a Mercedes Benz diesel powered car on Hemp fuel only. They achieved 12% better mileage than conventional diesel. The fuel was made from imported, sterile Hempseed by Appal Energy, in Marysville, Ohio. The process of producing diesel fuel, once the oil is extracted from the seed, is the same as producing fuel from petroleum or soy. Ethanol fuel comes from the hurds and uses a similar process as producing petroleum based gasoline. As a building material, Hemp is superior to wood and conventional concrete products. Hemp fiberboard is lighter, stronger and more water resistant than wood. Hemcrete is produced from the fiber and pulp of the plant mixed with water and lime. Hemcrete is lighter and stronger than traditional concrete plus

is self-insulative. Indiana is rich in lime. Cementville, Indiana, was once the concrete capital of the world. Hemp could revitalize that southern Indiana community as well as all of our cities and towns with locally produced products, keeping our money and our jobs here in Indiana. It is rare that a state could find a brand new, yet ancient, crop to bolster the health and well being of its farmers, yet we have that opportunity with Hemp. Complete new industries, new tax bases and thousands of new jobs would be created right here in Indiana from Hemp and associated suppliers and industries. It s time Indiana relegalize Hemp, for the economic benefits of the State and its people.