Panel to discuss economic and sustainability benefits of hemp
Hemp for Performance, Profit and the Planet
Today, 7 p.m.
Broad Art Center, Patio and Room 2160E
By Crystal Hsing
March 29, 2011 1:21 a.m.
Hemp is not marijuana.
At least, that’s what UCLA Sustainability hopes to address in tonight’s discussion panel “Hemp for Performance, Profit and the Planet.”
The panel will discuss the benefits of hemp and how it can promote a more sustainable future.
“Part of the focus will be on how hemp can be used in many industrial uses, such as food and clothing,” said Nurit Katz, UCLA Sustainability coordinator and moderator of the panel. “It’s a really relevant topic for sustainability.”
Hemp is a variety of the cannabis sativa plant, the same plant that produces marijuana. However, hemp is the non-psychoactive fiber variety of the plant and has a very low level of tetrahydrocannabinol, the hallucinogenic that causes marijuana’s effects. Hemp therefore has no value as a recreational drug. A clear distinction exists between the two that is often confused, said Ryan Fletcher, media coordinator of Hemp History Week.
“Industrial hemp is completely separate from the cannabis plants that produce drugs,” Fletcher said. “Part of the purpose of this panel is to clarify this distinction and give people the opportunity to learn what hemp actually is.”
In addition to hearing from the panelists, audience members will have the chance to interact with them in a question-and-answer section and sample products made from hemp.
Hemp seed is gluten-free and also includes essential fatty acids.
As the trend toward greener living has increased, people have become more and more aware of the health benefits of hemp, Fletcher said.
“Hemp as a health food is … a category that is growing tremendously because people are looking for ways to improve their diets and nutrition,” he said.
Next month’s Hemp History Week is a grassroots, single-issue campaign aimed at showcasing the health benefits and sustainable nature of hemp products. Industrial hemp farming is illegal in California. If passed, SB 676, a bill recently introduced in February, would allow the commercial farming of hemp.
Industrial hemp farming has been banned since the 1930s. In 2005, a report presented to Congress by the Congressional Research Service attributes the ban on hemp farming to the Drug Enforcement Administration’s belief that the legalization of hemp farming would lead to increased production of marijuana. In addition, legalized hemp farming would make it more difficult for the DEA to enforce marijuana laws.
Currently, all the hemp used to produce hemp products must be imported from Canada, Europe or China, Fletcher said. One argument for the legalization of hemp farming is the economic benefit to producers as the amount of money Canadian farmers make per acre for hemp is significantly more than similar crops such as soy and corn in the United States, he said.
“Hemp farming and processing jobs are very lucrative in Canada and other countries, and we’re missing out on a lot of economic opportunities,” Fletcher said.
