After decades of being misinterpreted, industrial hemp is staging a comeback in Renfrew County.
Municipal leaders and county officials saw firsthand some of the byproducts and benefits that can be yielded from a hemp plant during a demonstration at a township farm near Micksburg this week.
Farmer and entrepreneur Reuben Stone saw the opportunity after being approached by the Ontario Hemp Alliance to become a major grower of commercial hemp grain.
He is currently growing 100 acres making him the largest single grower in Ontario.
"It's got a lot of potential here," said Mr. Stone, owner/operator of Stone Farms and Valley Bio Ltd. "The development of it should be worth something."
Hemp production has replaced corn and soybean crops at his farm.
Having researched hemp, which has a history going back to the construction of the Great Wall of China, Mr. Stone contended Renfrew County has great potential to produce the crop as Canada is becoming a leading world producer.
Hemp was a significant crop for eastern Ontario and western Quebec back in the 1800s and early 1900s when it was used as material for sails, ropes, clothing, sacks and as an oil grain for human consumption.
Douglas in Admaston/ Bromley Township was the home for a major hemp rope manufacturing operation for decades.
Today, hemp production is predominantly in western Canada, accounting for 15,000 acres this season and tens of millions in sales.
The industry has experienced 30 per cent annual growth since hemp's production was decriminalized in Canada in the late 1990s.
News Hawk- Ganjarden 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: The Daily Observer
Author: SEAN CHASE
Contact: The Daily Observer
Copyright: 2009 Sun Media
Website: Hemp On The Comeback
Municipal leaders and county officials saw firsthand some of the byproducts and benefits that can be yielded from a hemp plant during a demonstration at a township farm near Micksburg this week.
Farmer and entrepreneur Reuben Stone saw the opportunity after being approached by the Ontario Hemp Alliance to become a major grower of commercial hemp grain.
He is currently growing 100 acres making him the largest single grower in Ontario.
"It's got a lot of potential here," said Mr. Stone, owner/operator of Stone Farms and Valley Bio Ltd. "The development of it should be worth something."
Hemp production has replaced corn and soybean crops at his farm.
Having researched hemp, which has a history going back to the construction of the Great Wall of China, Mr. Stone contended Renfrew County has great potential to produce the crop as Canada is becoming a leading world producer.
Hemp was a significant crop for eastern Ontario and western Quebec back in the 1800s and early 1900s when it was used as material for sails, ropes, clothing, sacks and as an oil grain for human consumption.
Douglas in Admaston/ Bromley Township was the home for a major hemp rope manufacturing operation for decades.
Today, hemp production is predominantly in western Canada, accounting for 15,000 acres this season and tens of millions in sales.
The industry has experienced 30 per cent annual growth since hemp's production was decriminalized in Canada in the late 1990s.
News Hawk- Ganjarden 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: The Daily Observer
Author: SEAN CHASE
Contact: The Daily Observer
Copyright: 2009 Sun Media
Website: Hemp On The Comeback
