Capitol News Online  (November 28, 2008)

Green with envy 

 
 Manitoba Harvest co-owner Mike Fata explains how to harvest hemp. 

Commercial hemp production has been illegal in the U.S. since 1938 – a fact that has two litigious farmers south of the border wondering what the Drug Enforcement Administration has been smoking.

The United States prides itself on being the "home of the free," but when it comes to growing hemp — otherwise known as marijuana's harmless cousin — Canada comes out at least 10 years ahead of its southern neighbour.

Two North Dakota farmers are taking their federal government to court in an effort to gain the same freedom that Canadian farmers have enjoyed for the past decade. The case has hemp industry insiders on this side of the border hoping for a brighter, more profitable future.

Canadian farmers have been able to grow hemp since 1998, and industry research here has been ongoing since 1994. Gordon Scheifele, the executive director of the Canadian Hemp Trade Alliance, says that even if the U.S. changes its hemp laws, it will be a long time before growers down south can match Canada's level of production expertise.

"They have huge potential, but it also has to be economic," says Scheifele. "Hemp just doesn't grow and make you money. It takes some very high level management to do this and they have to gain that experience."

Not pot

Hemp looks, smells and feels just like marijuana, except for one huge difference — it contains far less THC, the active drug in pot. It can't get you stoned, but it does have many other marketable uses. Hemp products can feed you, clothe you, insulate your house, moisturize your skin, and be converted to ethanol to fuel cars that could also feature door panels made from hemp fibers.

 
 Freshly harvested hemp seeds from Manitoba Harvest.

But hemp also contains trace amounts of THC, so the DEA won't allow it to be grown in the U.S.

The farmers, Wayne Hauge and David Monson, along with their lawyers Joe Sandler and Tim Purdon, have brought their case to a federal appeals court after losing in a federal district court last year. The original ruling sided with the DEA's long-standing contention that there is no difference between marijuana and hemp.

Growing hemp is not only a good idea, it's also very American, says Lynn Gordon, the president of French Meadow Bakery, a Minnesota-based establishment that uses hemp in its baking.

"George Washington grew hemp. Thomas Jefferson grew hemp," says Gordon. "There's no reason why American farmers shouldn't be allowed to grow it now."

Gordon already testified on the positive attributes of hemp in Hauge and Monson's appeal trial. Hemp is more nutritious than flax and more profitable for farmers, she says.

"It's a very good crop. It can make four times more profit per bushel than corn or soy," she says.

Made in Canada

'George Washington grew hemp. Thomas Jefferson grew hemp. There's no reason why American farmers shouldn't be allowed to grow it now.'

Although she is hopeful, Gordon says she can't predict the outcome of the court case. Currently, because of the restrictions on growing hemp in the U.S., any hemp that is used in that country, mainly as an ingredient in various foods, is usually imported from Canada. In 2007, about 92 per cent of Canadian hemp fibre, oil and seed exports, valued around $3.5 million, were sent to the U.S.

Gordon says she would rather buy hemp from American farmers, and not just because it could mean lower prices.

"I'm American and I support American business," she says. "And the more locally you buy, the better. It's more sustainable."

One might assume that Canadian hemp growers would like the U.S. hemp laws to stay in place because they would rather not have to share the market with American competitors. However, in the case of the international hemp industry, like one big happy family, it seems that the more your neighbor wins, the more you win as well. That's why Canadian hemp businesses are hoping the North Dakota farmers will win their case.

"I think that would be very good for the hemp industry," says Mike Fata, president and co-founder of Manitoba Harvest, a Winnipeg-based hemp foods company. "It would make hemp mainstream a lot faster in the U.S, like it did in Canada."

Fata says his company already has a warehouse in the U.S., and he also has friends and family in North Dakota interested in growing hemp. If hemp were to become mainstream south of the border, says Fata, it would widen the market there, leaving enough room for Canadian hemp to flourish.

Anndrea Hermann, the director of the Canadian Hemp Trade Alliance, agrees. She says that if the U.S. approves hemp production, it could open up new opportunities for mass marketing.

"If you can get (hemp) in granola bars that are produced by Kelloggs then you know, we don't really care if it's called a hemp granola bar," says Hermann. "The whole purpose is just to have the hemp nut in there."

The U.S. is the most prominent international exception in its insistence on prohibiting hemp production. Hemp is grown in countries around the world, including Australia, Egypt, Chile, Russia, Japan, India and most of Europe.

If the U.S. joins those countries in allowing the production of hemp, Hermann says it will benefit everyone.

"I see it as only adding to the global expansion of hemp," says Hermann. "Absolutely it's a positive thing."

By the numbers: hemp in Canada

0.3 – maximum percentage of of the weight of leaves and flowers of industrial hemp that is allowed to be composed of THC

5 – percentage of THC in the leaves and flowers of marijuana

60 – number of years hemp production was banned in Canada, from 1938 to 1998

800 – number of kilograms of grain yielded by one hectare of hemp

876 – amount of hemp product, in tonnes, that Canada exported in 2007

3,454,149 – value, in dollars, of Canada's 2007 hemp exports

Source: Agriculture and Agri-food Canada

Nutritional breakdown

Two tablespoons of shelled hemp seed provides:

Calories – 160

Total Fat – 9.8 g (15 per cent of daily value)
Saturated Fat – 0.7 g (3 per cent of daily value)
Trans Fat – 0 g

Omega-3 – 2 g
Omega-6 – 6.2 g
Omega-9 – 0.8 g

Cholesterol – 0 mg

Sodium – 10 mg

Total Carbohydrates – 7 g (2 per cent of daily value)
Dietary Fibre – 1 g (6 per cent of daily value)

Protein – 11 g

Iron – 20 per cent of daily value

Source: Manitoba Harvest