Subject: Daily Post Wales, August 22
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EDNA, THE FARMER WHO REPLACED HER SHEEP WITH 28 ACRES OF CANNABIS
But police can rest easily as crop may save farms' future

Farmer Edna Jones will be harvesting her latest crop in a couple of weeks.
Twentyeight acres of cannabis or, to be precise, hemp.

She is involved in an experiment which has been backed by cash aid
from Europe and is convinced it can revolutionise agriculture on the
island. Think of hemp and thoughts, apart from drugs, turn to
historical uses such as rope or canvas but in the nottoodistant
future its fibre could well be used to make cars. Mrs Jones is
watching closely research in North Wales involving making composite
materials from legally grown cannabis sativa, which contains a very
low level of the class A drug.

It is based at the privately funded Biocomposite centre at the University of
Wales in Bangor and the entire project could lead to the setting up of a
full scale operation at Holyhead, dealing with hemp fibre.
One of only two farmers in Anglesey growing hemp, Mrs Jones says
it is vital for the farming industry to diversify.
She said: "In agriculture we have got to look at something else and
diversify. The industry has been crucified by the BSE crisis not us,
personally, as we are mainly involved with sheep.
"Whether we like it or not, we have got to be environmentally aware and
whatever else, this crop is environmentally desirable."
Mrs Jones needed Home Office approval to plant the cannabis sativa seeds on
her land.
"You can't buy the seeds unless you have a licence," she said "The plants
have a very low drug level and it has been said that somebody would have to
smoke a field full to have any effect. It is absolutely identical to the
plant associated with drug use.
"When a police inspector came here he said if he didn't know I had a licence
and what I was doing he would arrest me."
The industrial hemp, planted in may, grows to a height of about 4ft and will
be ready for harvesting early next month when the straw is sent to Essex and
the country's only processing unit.
Growers get 260peracre subsidy from the European Union. "At the moment
that's the only thing that makes it viable," says Mrs Jones, "but the way
things are going, the hope is that many more uses may be found for it and
they will be able to pay a decent price for the product.
"At the moment the people in Essex pay 50atonne for the straw and each
acre produces about two tonnes. Unless we get a factory at Holyhead, I feel
we can forget it as a crop for Anglesey. "As a financial thing, at present
it isn't a money winner, it is purely experimental. I am just looking for
something else to do.
[pictures FIELD OF DREAMS: Edna Jones among her hemp crop]

WHEN IT WAS COMPULSORY
Cannabis sativa is remarkably diseasefree and a plus factor for growing it
on Anglesey is that it is so wind resistant. Edna Jones said: "You can see
it being whipped about into all shapes but it still manages to stand tall in
conditions which could have flattened wheat or barley."
Growing cannabis was not only legal in the 16th century, it was compulsory
because Elizabeth 1 insisted that every farmer should produce hemp to
provide sail and rope for her navy. The cultivation of hemp started in China
about 3,000 years ago.