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HEMP FACTS
Here are some quick facts about hemp. You can find more facts and information
by visiting the sites in our Hemp
Links section.
- Hemp has been cultivated since 2800 BC in China
and was grown by such people as Thomas Jefferson, George Washington,
and even by 4H Children in the early 40's.
- From at least the Fifth century BC until the late 19th century, 90%
of all ship sails were made from hemp. Even today hemp is used as ropes
on some ships because of its resistance to mildew and weathering and
because it remains pliable in extreme conditions where plastic based
ropes become brittle and crack.
- Clothing made from hemp is warmer, softer, more
absorbent, and significantly longer lasting than clothing made from
cotton.
- The high fiber content of hemp makes it a natural resource for building
materials, papermaking, and even biodegradable plastics. Hemp is a presently
viable environmentally sound energy source.
- In 1941 Henry Ford built a hemp fueled and
fabricated automobile that weighed only two/thirds the amount of a steel
car and could resist blows 10 times as great without denting.
- Hemp is natures longest, strongest, most durable fiber. As a fabric
it is softer, more insulating, more absorbent, more breathable, and
longer lasting than cotton.
- One acre of hemp produces as much paper as
4.1 acres of trees. Hemp is naturally archival quality and can be safely
bleached using hydrogen peroxide. The first paper was made from hemp
as well as the first draft of the Declaration of Independence, the first
draft of the U.S. Constitution, and even the first Gutenberg Bibles.
- Any products that can be made of wood or plastic can be made from
biodegradable hemp.
- In January of 1996 The American Farm Bureau
Federation, more than 4.6 million-members strong, unanimously endorsed
the researching and growing of industrial hemp.
- Farming only 6% of the continental U.S. with hemp could produce enough
energy to provide for America's energy needs and end dependence on fossil
fuels. Hemp is the number one biomass producer on earth (10 tons in
approximately 90-120 days).
- Hemp seed is a long standing favorite for birds
but was also the primary feed for livestock and domestic animals until
this century.
- The hemp seed is not actually a seed but a fruit. It is made up from
25% protein, 30% carbohydrates and 15% insoluble fiber. The hemp seed
contains calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, vitamin A, and is
our best vegetable source of the essential fatty acids, containing Omega
3 linoleic acid (55%) and Omega 6 linolenic acid (25%) in a near perfect
ratio, and even containing the rare nutrient gama linolenic acid. Essential
fatty acids are necessary for maintaining healthy life and are found
in few food sources such as fatty fish and flax oil. Hemp seeds are
used whole or crushed to make cookies, burgers, porridge or even roasted
and eaten whole (sometimes with garlic or tahini seasoning).
- Edible hemp oil contains the largest amount
of essential fatty acids of any plant known. The protein contained in
hemp seeds is the most complete and absorbable of any in the plant kingdom,
making hemp seed the most complete single human food source.
- Hemp oil is excellent in salads (like tobuli), as a salad dressing,
in hummus, in sauces, in pesto, and can be made into a butter that is
said to put peanut butter to shame in comparison of flavor and nutrition.
- Hemp oil is excellent when it is used in body
products and cosmetics. Because hemp oil is unsaturated it can be absorbed
through the skin making it a superior moisturizer and a powerful ingredient
for salves and ointments. Even the internationally known retail chain
The Body Shop has come out with a body product line that is hemp based.
- Seed oil can also be used in paints and varnishes, in soaps, as a
lamp oil, and in lubricants.
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