In April, North Dakota became the first state since 1937 to
legalize and set production guidelines for growing
industrial hemp, despite a longstanding ban on the crop by
the Drug Enforcement Agency. According the DEA, hemp is
marijuana and thus illegal regardless of the fact that hemp
contains less than 1% of the psychoactive ingredient, Tetra
hydrocannabinol (THC). By comparison, marijuana usually
contains 5% to 20% of THC.
But under pressure from farmers eager for alternative
crops, the DEA ban is showing signs of collapse—and
not just in North Dakota. Twelve states have passed or are
considering pro-hemp legislation. Minnesota, Illinois and
Hawaii will grow hemp experimentally, while New Mexico is
researching hemp farming. Hemp legislation is pending in
Tennessee, Vermont, New Hampshire, Iowa and Maryland, while
Montana and Virginia have requested an end to the federal
ban. On the West Coast, the California Democratic Party has
added legalization of industrial hemp to its
platform.
Meanwhile, organizations like the Kentucky Hemp Growers
Cooperative Association and the North American Industrial
Hemp Council are pressuring the DEA with a law suit filed
after actor Woody Harrelson was arrested in 1996 for
planting hemp seeds. The Kentucky Supreme Court is
reviewing the suit.
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"Sending this kind of message to the federal government
will get them to address the issue," says Rep. David
Monson, a sponsor of the North Dakota bill. "Their problems
and fears [about hemp] are unfounded."
Hemp can be made into food, soap, ink, textiles, paper and
fuel. It can grow almost anywhere and requires little water
or pesticides to flourish, while naturally controlling
surrounding weeds. Hemp is produced in 33 countries,
including Canada, and while U.S. manufacturers import it,
many say growing it domestically could help boost the
economy and farmers' incomes. "Farmers are going broke,"
Monson says. "We need hemp to stop this cycle.''
-Cheryl Maday