T
The420Guy
Guest
There is no doubt in John Roulac's mind that industrial hemp cultivation would be a money-maker.
He has the canceled checks to prove it.
Each year, the Sebastopol health food distributor spends hundreds of thousands of dollars importing hemp seed nutritional bars and skin oils from Canada.
The U.S. government prohibits the harvesting of hemp because it contains trace amounts of the active ingredient in marijuana, forcing Roulac and others to spend money overseas.
"We would love to write those checks to California farmers instead," said Roulac, founder and president of Nutiva. "The ban is ludicrous."
A bill awaiting Gov. Gray Davis' signature would put a dollar sign on the problem.
It would authorize the University of California to study the profitability of growing hemp and other fibrous crops if the government lifts its ban.
The bill's author, Assemblywoman Virginia Strom-Martin, D-Duncans Mills, said California is missing out on a potential gold mine.
Fibers from hemp are used in making such items as car parts and clothing. The seed is rich in vitamin E and is used in numerous health foods.
Supporters say hemp's use is on the rise.
In 1999, worldwide sales of hemp-based products was $250 million. Americans purchased about 60 percent of that amount, she said.
If hemp were grown in California, farmers would reap a considerable amount of that business, Strom-Martin said.
Industrial hemp contains only minuscule amounts of tetrahydocannabinol, or THC, and should not be labeled a drug, she said.
"This is a new opportunity to revitalize our agricultural industry by studying developing markets for industrial hemp," said Strom-Martin.
Strom-Martin said she received partisan resistance to the bill, but no organized opposition.
Davis spokesman Russ Lopez said the governor has not taken a position on the bill.
If Assembly Bill 388 is signed, California will join a growing number of states looking into the economic benefits of growing hemp.
In recent years, Arkansas, Hawaii, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, Minnesota, Montana and North Dakota have passed legislation legalizing the cultivation of industrial hemp.
The UC study would be due to the Legislature by Jan. 1, 2004.
Strom-Martin's bill was lauded by Sonoma County hemp products retailers, who said cultivation would help reduce the prices of items ranging from hemp twine to lingerie.
Jan Pinney, co-owner of Hemp & Chocolat, a Guerneville boutique, said the popularity of hemp is soaring.
"It's becoming mainstream," Pinney said. "People come into my store and say, 'Oh, my two loves.'"
Candi Penn of the Occidental-based Hemp Industries Association said 33 counties grow hemp for use in paper, alternative fuels and building materials.
Hemp seeds shipped from Canada contain less than 10 parts per million of THC, an amount that could not produce the "high" of marijuana.
She has lobbied to remove the oversight of hemp from the Drug Enforcement Agency to the Department of Agriculture.
"The DEA doesn't distinguish between marijuana and hemp," Penn said. "They are the same species but contain very different levels of THC."
That difference didn't stop the DEA from attempting to seize hemp-seed nutritional bars from Roulac's company in a 1999 crackdown.
The agency said trace amounts of THC violated American zero-tolerance policies and U.S. Customs officials ordered a major Canadian importer to recall dozens of shipments.
But Roulac refused to hand over his stock and sued the DEA in federal court. He was granted a stay until the court rules on DEA policies about hemp, sometime in the next six months.
He said a study of hemp markets will find a great need for the plant among carmakers and the building industry. Industrial hemp fills car interiors and can be made into a wood substitute to build houses.
Also, he said hemp food sales have risen 50 percent a year.
"With the current economic climate, there's no reason California would turn its back on a multimillion dollar market," Roulac said. "The potential is excellent."
News Researchers Vonnie Matthews and Teresa Meikle contributed to this report. You can reach Staff Writer Paul Payne at (707) 521-5250 or ppayne@pressdemocrat.com.
Copyright © 2002, The Press Democrat. All rights reserved.
He has the canceled checks to prove it.
Each year, the Sebastopol health food distributor spends hundreds of thousands of dollars importing hemp seed nutritional bars and skin oils from Canada.
The U.S. government prohibits the harvesting of hemp because it contains trace amounts of the active ingredient in marijuana, forcing Roulac and others to spend money overseas.
"We would love to write those checks to California farmers instead," said Roulac, founder and president of Nutiva. "The ban is ludicrous."
A bill awaiting Gov. Gray Davis' signature would put a dollar sign on the problem.
It would authorize the University of California to study the profitability of growing hemp and other fibrous crops if the government lifts its ban.
The bill's author, Assemblywoman Virginia Strom-Martin, D-Duncans Mills, said California is missing out on a potential gold mine.
Fibers from hemp are used in making such items as car parts and clothing. The seed is rich in vitamin E and is used in numerous health foods.
Supporters say hemp's use is on the rise.
In 1999, worldwide sales of hemp-based products was $250 million. Americans purchased about 60 percent of that amount, she said.
If hemp were grown in California, farmers would reap a considerable amount of that business, Strom-Martin said.
Industrial hemp contains only minuscule amounts of tetrahydocannabinol, or THC, and should not be labeled a drug, she said.
"This is a new opportunity to revitalize our agricultural industry by studying developing markets for industrial hemp," said Strom-Martin.
Strom-Martin said she received partisan resistance to the bill, but no organized opposition.
Davis spokesman Russ Lopez said the governor has not taken a position on the bill.
If Assembly Bill 388 is signed, California will join a growing number of states looking into the economic benefits of growing hemp.
In recent years, Arkansas, Hawaii, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, Minnesota, Montana and North Dakota have passed legislation legalizing the cultivation of industrial hemp.
The UC study would be due to the Legislature by Jan. 1, 2004.
Strom-Martin's bill was lauded by Sonoma County hemp products retailers, who said cultivation would help reduce the prices of items ranging from hemp twine to lingerie.
Jan Pinney, co-owner of Hemp & Chocolat, a Guerneville boutique, said the popularity of hemp is soaring.
"It's becoming mainstream," Pinney said. "People come into my store and say, 'Oh, my two loves.'"
Candi Penn of the Occidental-based Hemp Industries Association said 33 counties grow hemp for use in paper, alternative fuels and building materials.
Hemp seeds shipped from Canada contain less than 10 parts per million of THC, an amount that could not produce the "high" of marijuana.
She has lobbied to remove the oversight of hemp from the Drug Enforcement Agency to the Department of Agriculture.
"The DEA doesn't distinguish between marijuana and hemp," Penn said. "They are the same species but contain very different levels of THC."
That difference didn't stop the DEA from attempting to seize hemp-seed nutritional bars from Roulac's company in a 1999 crackdown.
The agency said trace amounts of THC violated American zero-tolerance policies and U.S. Customs officials ordered a major Canadian importer to recall dozens of shipments.
But Roulac refused to hand over his stock and sued the DEA in federal court. He was granted a stay until the court rules on DEA policies about hemp, sometime in the next six months.
He said a study of hemp markets will find a great need for the plant among carmakers and the building industry. Industrial hemp fills car interiors and can be made into a wood substitute to build houses.
Also, he said hemp food sales have risen 50 percent a year.
"With the current economic climate, there's no reason California would turn its back on a multimillion dollar market," Roulac said. "The potential is excellent."
News Researchers Vonnie Matthews and Teresa Meikle contributed to this report. You can reach Staff Writer Paul Payne at (707) 521-5250 or ppayne@pressdemocrat.com.
Copyright © 2002, The Press Democrat. All rights reserved.