POLICY TALK, COMMERCE TAKE CENTER STAGE AT HEMP EXPO

State Assemblywoman Virginia Strom-Martin said Saturday that her bill aimed
at legalizing hemp production in the Golden State has a "60-40" chance of
passing.

"I'm feeling pretty good about it," Strom-Martin, D-Santa Rosa, said at the
fourth annual Santa Cruz Industrial Hemp Expo. "I'd say it has a pretty
good chance at this point in time."

The expo continues today from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Santa Cruz Civic
Auditorium.

Strom-Martin's bill is now before the state Assembly's agriculture committee.

Her positive outlook for the bill's passage would be considered hopeful
news to the more than 75 vendors who were at the expo offering their wares
of hemp food, hemp pants, hemp shirts, hemp rugs, hemp wallets, hemp shoes
and, yes, even hemp underwear.

To make those products in the United States means manufacturers have to
import the hemp from another country because of this country's ban on hemp
cultivation. Often that means importing the hemp from places like Canada,
Germany, France and China.

Some vendors said that sometimes made it hard to find suppliers.

"It does make it difficult," said James Breech of Eugene, Ore., who was
selling woven goods at his booth. "It's a small cottage industry. There is
a lot higher start-up to buy yarns."

Hemp advocates are hoping that the prohibition on hemp cultivation will
end. Advocates say that hemp wrongly gets lumped with its cousin marijuana
when it comes to changing policy.

"There's no logical reason why hemp remains illegal," said expo organizer
Bob Lamonica.

Seventeen states have passed or are considering legislation related to hemp
production. However, only Hawaii has permission from the federal government
to grow hemp and that is on a one-quarter of an acre test plot.

While this weekend's expo featured a series of panel discussions about
policy, there was plenty of festivity to be had as well.

Live music sounded down Church Street, where vendors set up booths and
people danced in the street in between viewing the array of goods for sale.

Lamonica said attendance has dwindled since the inaugural year of the
festival, when about 3,500 attended. This year he expected about 2,000.

Still, the show is internationally known among hemp advocates. Vendors this
year came as far away as Vietnam and Nepal.

Lamonica said the fact the show has continued this long is significant. He
hopes to return next year.

"I think it will survive," he said. "There's nothing like it."