WHY EVEN CONSIDER GROWING INDUSTRIAL HEMP?

Dear Editor,

I am writing in response to Boyd Holmes' letter about the possible
production of industrial hemp in Illinois. According to the research in
Canada, industrial hemp does not like to have a wet seedbed. In the low
areas of the fields, the hemp seeds planted did not germinate. On the other
end, hemp does not like dryness. Drought caused poor growth in the
seeds. Constant soil conditions are very difficult to maintain, especially
here in Illinois with the heavy flooding and drought we often face.

Most importantly, selling hemp is posing a problem for the farmers in
Canada. Farmers have been growing hemp for three years and they are
already worried about an overabundance. The Gen-X Company in Canada
reported that prices for hemp have fallen by almost 25 percent. The
farmers in Canada have such a large surplus that cultivating this year may
not be necessary.

Germany is also experiencing loss in profit. At one point, German hemp
farmers were making $520 per acre, though a year later that was
halved. Several other crops exist as alternatives for the farmers such as
kenaf and cuphea. So, the question is not whether or not grow hemp, it is
why even consider it?

Jenni Bast

Springfield