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 Hemp is a relative of
marijuana and has suffered from this nefarious distinction. Until
the first half of the 20th century, hemp was grown across the world
and used for everything from food products (from the seed) to
clothing production (from the fiber) to building materials (using
the fiber in compressed form or as an addition to concrete) to
insulation for buildings.
Every day industry was finding new uses for hemp, and then the
industry came to a screeching immediate halt when in 1937, hemp was
banned because of its relationship to its narcotic cousin. Although
industrial hemp contains only 0.3% of the psychoactive ingredient
THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), rendering it incapable of producing a
high when smoked or ingested like it's notorious cousin, hemp
production was banned at the beginning of the international drug
wars as an overreaction to imagined detrimental societal effects.
Thus began the dark ages of hemp production, when all but small
research projects continued.
It was because of the results of these small research projects that
congress reconsidered and reversed itself at least in part in 2017
when it undertook a new look at industrial hemp production and its
amazing benefits. The list of possible products that would make the
world much better environmentally began to spark the imaginations of
even conservative lawmakers, and in 2018 congress allowed the
reopening of the commercial production of hemp on a limited and
licensed basis. Producers could not be licensed if they had been
convicted of any felony within the last 10 years. In 2018 production
was limited to a small acreage (less than 36,000 acres nationwide),
and then in 2021 the USDA issued final guidance on the production of
industrial hemp, encouraging its licensed production and use. But
banks and financial institutions continued to enforce a prejudice
against hemp production by restricting loans for its growth and
processing.
Hemp grows fast and easy, producing a large crop on small acreage.
At an estimated two tons of finished hemp plant material for each
acre planted, hemp outperforms every other crop grown on a per acre
basis. Seeds planted in early to mid April require three to four
months (90-120 days) before maturation and harvest. Harvest is
different than with the traditional crops of corn and soybeans. Hemp
needs to be cut, laid over on the hemp stubble and allowed to dry
naturally. Most producers then allow it to "ferment" with natural
dew over a thirty-day period, after which the hemp is taken in for
processing. The current production of hemp is being hampered by the
scarcity of hemp processing facilities across the U.S.
As previously stated, hemp products are environmentally friendly
even on a conservative scale. Paper produced from hemp fibers don't
need to be bleached like paper from trees, so streams and rivers are
not polluted by bleaching agents or dioxin used to produce paper
towels, toilet paper, and the myriad of other paper products.
Since hemp production is so high per acre planted, the land use and
fertilizer needs are also reduced. Hemp is very disease and pest
resistant, requiring little fungicide and pesticide use. As it grows
fast and tall, it shades out weed crops naturally and does not
require herbicides to keep weeds from stealing nutrients and water.
Hemp is an ideal crop.
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Perhaps the greatest
environmental impact from hemp is also an exciting technological
leap forward. The current green doctrine in the west is to drive all
electric vehicles (ev) by 2035, but is hampered by the high cost,
weight, and inefficiency of current battery technology to propel
these new ev cars and trucks. The countryside is being destroyed by
deep pit lithium mining, requiring some 12.5 raw tons of lithium
brine to produce one finished automotive battery. Lithium batteries
also require many costly rare earth components, and the use of very
expensive graphene to deliver electricity to the ev for fast stops
and starts. The need for advanced battery technology is hampering
the development of next generation of electric vehicles, as well as
limiting the range of current vehicles. Replacing a lithium battery
in an ev is a very expensive undertaking. And lithium batteries are
developing a reputation for catching fire at the most inopportune
times.
In 2012, researchers undertook a side experiment with some leftover
hemp fibers after noticing the high carbon content of hemp plant
pith. They refined the pith in an inexpensive process and found that
the carbon from hemp outperformed the efficiency of even graphene,
which is the gold standard of electrical capacitive storage and
speed of electrical transference, by more than 10x. Hemp batteries
could outperform lithium batteries at one one-hundredth the cost,
with less weight, less rare earth elements, and performing at a much
higher efficiency.
Social, economic, legal, and ethical barriers continue to restrict
the development of hemp batteries and many other useful hemp
products. Soon though, it is projected that hemp production will
increase and become a high value crop alternative in the U.S Hemp
products will be highly prized for having widespread and amazing
attributes. To the consuming public, be on the lookout for some
alternative, inexpensive products from hemp in the near future which
are environmentally friendly. For producers, consider hemp
production for a possible future high value crop alternative with an
exciting future.
[Jim Youngquist]
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