“STRENGTH AND VERSATILITY”
by Contributor
(Jun. 12, 2019) — All across America, farmers have been liberated by the 2018 Farm Bill signed into law by President Trump. After decades of senseless prohibition, farmers are now free to grow hemp for use in a number of new products.
Hemp has often been associated with marijuana or cannabis, but in truth, hemp has no hallucinogenic properties and is of no value to the illegal drug trade that blights our cities. Hemp is actually one of the most versatile and abundant plants found on the earth, with an incredible number of uses.
Hemp can be used as a textile for clothes and bindings, and can be made into hard wearing and strong ‘natural plastics’ that are set to revolutionize the construction and automotive industries. Hemp also has some medicinal properties, containing the compound CBD, or cannabidiol, that can offer people relief from inflammation, indigestion or even epilepsy.
Here are just a few of the ways growing hemp has begun rejuvenating rural America, giving farmers an in-demand cash crop that they can take to a market eager to begin working with this versatile plant.
Hemp Materials are Showing Up Everywhere
Hemp is a very versatile crop that can be processed into a number of materials. Hemp has been made into fibers for clothes, rope and paper for centuries. The ropes and sails of the first ships to reach America were made of hemp, and the paper that the Founding Fathers used to write our first laws and declarations was likely made from hemp.
Hempcrete has even been developed in the last decade. A concrete-like substance that can be used to construct whole buildings, ‘hempcrete’ is a an environmentally friendly solution for modern construction companies concerned about their carbon footprint.
Cannabidiol Oils are a Supplement Revolution
Cannabidiol oils, or CBD oils, have become an incredibly popular supplement for people with a number of ailments. CBD has been scientifically proven to help people suffering from a number of ailments including Irritable Bowel Syndrome, chronic inflammation, an even severe epilepsy.
There are many CBD products available today, both online and in stores, and American-made CBD hemp oil is amongst the most popular, creating even more demand for America’s new cash crop and helping farmers to continue to provide products for our country’s health and wellbeing.
Hemp Could Even Be a Fuel of the Future
Hemp can even be used as a fuel, and is set to challenge corn-produced ethanol as a fuel for the future. Hemp grows incredibly quickly and can be processed to make fuel in similar ways to corn, but much more efficiently and at a lower cost.
Since President Trump signed the 2018 Farm Bill, farmers have begun to grow industrial hemp with astonishing results. Hemp grows quickly and requires very little maintenance, and there is a lot of demand for hemp from manufacturers of a number of products who want to take advantage of hemp’s various properties, from its strength and versatility, to its medicinal compounds.