The unique versatility of the Cannabis plant

Perhaps the most interesting fact about industrial hemp, especially when compared to trees or to other fibre crops, is its amazing versatility.

Cannabis as a food source.

Cannabis can provide a cheap, renewable and abundant food source for the planet. Hemp seeds are one of the most nutritious grains on Earth, rich in high quality protein, very low in saturated fats and containing all of the essential fatty acids required by human beings.

Cannabis grows almost anywhere and its cultivation does not require farmers in developing countries to purchase pesticides, herbicides and artificial fertilisers from agricultural corporations.

Cannabis as a medicine.

The medicinal value of cannabis is widely accepted by medical professionals all over the world. It is interesting to note that opposition to the therapeutic benefits of cannabis comes almost exclusively from law-making groups rather than those with expertise in medicine or pharmacology.

The best-known medical applications of cannabis are in treating pain, asthma, glaucoma, muscle spasm and epilepsy. Cannabis is also extremely useful in combating the nausea, loss of appetite and general discomfort associated with the synthetic drugs used in chemotherapy and HIV treatment.

The various cannabinoids produced by cannabis have numerous other medical applications and more are discovered every year as legal obstacles to cannabis research are slowly overcome.

Cannabis textiles.

Industrial hemp remains one of the best sources for long fibres and textiles of all kinds. Hemp cloth can be every bit as soft and versatile as cotton and is stronger, more durable and more water absorbent.

The same is true of hemp textiles versus synthetics such as nylon and its derivatives. Hemp textiles are both superior in quality and less ecologically damaging to produce.

Furthermore, Hemp cultivation does not degrade the land upon which it is practiced as cotton cultivation does. Hemp cultivation, properly practiced, maintains or improves the quality of the land. Industrial cotton production requires enormous amounts of chemicals to grow and process the crop.

Cannabis paper.

Hemp pulp is by far the most efficient, rational choice for paper production. A hectare of fibre hemp can yield over four times the pulp produced by traditional timber-pulp trees. Hemp can also compete with any of the faster growing trees (such as eucalypts) that are currently being considered as a source for pulp.

Processing hemp pulp requires only a fraction of the chemicals necessary to process wood fibre into paper. Where they are required, the chemicals used in hemp papermaking are far less pollutive than those used to make paper from trees

On its own, pulp from hurds may be turned into high-quality paper. With the addition of long hemp fibres, the highest quality of paper is produced. This paper is still used for banknotes, official documents and in other situations where paper from tree pulp is simply not strong or durable enough.

A hectare of industrial hemp can easily compete with a hectare of trees for pulp production. In addition, that same hectare can simultaneously produce a large amount of high quality long fibres with numerous industrial applications.

Hemp as a bio fuel.

Hemp is a viable, renewable alternative to petrochemical and other fossil resources. It can supply oils for fuel or lubrication, plastics, paints and varnishes. It is also the most productive and efficient known source of biomass.

The term ‘biomass’ is used to describe all biologically produced matter. Burning biomass to produce energy or processing it into ‘bio-fuels’ such as methane and methanol is seen by many as the best alternative for future fuel sources. Turning biomass into various forms of energy is far cleaner than any fossil equivalent and may be practiced anywhere that biological matter is produced. Hemp, with its speed of growth and ability to flourish almost anywhere is perhaps the only plant that can fulfill the vision of a world run on bio-energy.

All the characteristics mentioned above make the cannabis plant unique in its versatility, productivity and eco-friendliness. All byproducts have useful applications; all stages of growing and processing have either a low impact or a decidedly beneficial effect upon the environment.

Why is it that our society is not using this environmentally friendly, versatile and abundant resource? What interest are at stake?

Medicinal use of the Cannabis plant

An old solution for new problems.

The qualities that made cannabis one of our ancestors’ most useful and valuable resources are no less important in the 21^st century. Considering the sorry state of our planet’s ecosystem and endless political turmoil over the control of finite, fossil-based energy resources, we might conclude that hemp is of even greater importance to us than to our forbears.

The medicinal value of cannabis is widely accepted by medical professionals all over the world. It is interesting to note that opposition to the therapeutic benefits of cannabis comes almost exclusively from law-making groups rather than those with expertise in medicine or pharmacology.

The best-known medical applications of cannabis are in treating pain, asthma, glaucoma, muscle spasm and epilepsy. Cannabis is also extremely useful in combating the nausea, loss of appetite and general discomfort associated with the synthetic drugs used in chemotherapy and HIV treatment.

The various cannabinoids produced by cannabis have numerous other medical applications and more are discovered every year as legal obstacles to cannabis research are slowly overcome.

In the Netherlands, as of September 1^st 2003, government-supplied cannabis is available on prescription through the nation’s pharmacies. Other European countries are likely to follow the Dutch example.

Cannabis can provide a cheap, renewable and abundant food source for the planet, as it grows almost anywhere and its cultivation does not require farmers in developing countries to purchase pesticides, herbicides and artificial fertilisers from agricultural corporations.

Introduction into cannabis

Humankind’s close relationship with cannabis stretches back to prehistoric times. Since then, cannabis has been an essential precursor to several key stages of human development. Given our planet’s unquestioned need for a sustainable future, our relationship with this most versatile of crops needs to be re-examined and renewed for the 21^st Century.

Cannabis sativa L. is the scientific name given to theccccc cannabis or hemp plant in 1753 by the Swedish botanist Carolus Linneaeus. The botanical term sativa simply means ‘sown’ and is applied to the cultivated or common form of many agricultural crops. As a botanical name Cannabis sativa L. is used as a blanket term to cover the wide spectrum of regional and breeding variations within the cannabis family.

Fibre-producing ‘industrial hemp’ and medicinally active ‘marijuana’ are both points within the spectrum and both may be referred to as Cannabis Sativa L., or simply cannabis.

The term ‘hemp’ may also be used interchangeably with ‘cannabis’ to refer to all plants in the family. However, in modern usage, ‘hemp’ usually refers to cannabis grown for its fibre.

Similarly, it is important to note that within the spectrum of cannabis, the term ‘Sativa’ also has meaning pertaining to a particular type of plant with certain characteristics.

Cannabis grows in its fibre, medicinal and psychoactive forms, cultivated or wild, on every inhabited continent. Almost every culture in history has made use of one or more of these forms and many have also used hemp seed as a highly nutritious food source.

The geographical origin of wild cannabis is unclear. In all probability wild hemp was widely distributed throughout Asia, Europe and Africa before humankind ever existed.

The value of cannabis as an ecologically sound, renewable resource is almost impossible to overstate. It is and always has been one of the most valuable crops on Earth.

How Cannabis can save the day.

Why criminalising industrial cannabis is criminal

The cannabis plant is being rediscovered for it environmental friendly applicability. As you might know hemp is one of the oldest crops domesticated by man. The history of cultivating hemp goes back for thousands of years. Cannabis cultivation appears to have evolved simultaneously in separate civilisations across Eurasia.

Humankind’s earliest utilisation of cannabis was most likely in eating the seeds of the plant. Hemp seeds are among the most healthiest of grains on this planet. These seeds are low in saturated fats and full of high quality protein.

Hemp is one of the most valuable and versatile resources known to man. The manifold advantages of fibre hemp as a primary agricultural resource are apparent from the very outset of cultivation. Apart from hemp’s natural resilience, the fibre for which the plant is prized for is not a viable food source for pests. Therefore, industrial cannabis requires no insecticides. Hemp outgrows any competing plant which removes the need for herbicides, and even weeding.

Furthermore, the fibre hemp root system is highly beneficial to the structure of the soil in which it grows. Hemp requires no artificial fertilisers and, vitally does not deplenish its soil of essential nutrients in the way of many cash crops (such as cotton, corn and tobacco which can ruin for decades the land upon which they grow). This is due in part to the outstanding self-composting properties of hemp.

The stalk of the hemp plant produces one of the world’s strongest natural fibres and can be used to make things like rope, textile and paper. Hemp pulp is by far the most efficient, rational choice for paper production. Hemp also competes with the other fast growing plants that are presently a resource for pulp.

Most of these products can be recycled several times. For example, after being used, hemp textiles can be processed into paper; paper converted into building material which on its turn may ultimately be used as an energy source. Also the seed of the hemp plant contains high grade food oil that can be used as a bio-fuel and in the manufacturing of paint and soap.

Equally important is that in the treatment and processing of hemp fibres, wood and seeds, no chemicals are necessary – only mechanical methods and natural decomposition. Therefore, hemp does not only benefit the environment, but also human beings, animals and plants because the final products do not contain any harmful chemical residues.

These are just a few of the solutions offered by hemp to the various environmental problems faced today. The qualities that made cannabis one of our ancestors’ most useful and valuable resources are no less important in the 21^st century. Considering the sorry state of our planet’s ecosystem and endless political turmoil over the control of finite, fossil-based energy resources, we might conclude that hemp is of even greater importance to us than to our forbears.

Dismissing these arguments just because of the fact that cannabis is an illegal substance is not only short-sighted but flat-out criminal.