INDUSTRIAL HEMP INVESTIGATED FOR POSSIBLE STATE "CASH CROP'
By MICHAEL FINN, Free Press Staff Writer
Copyright (c) 1997, Chattanooga NewsFree Press Company

NASHVILLE The crackdown on tobacco products by federal
regulators could leave Tennessee farmers searching for a
new cash crop to replace revenues and why not
"industrial hemp, " says the vice chairwoman of the House
Agriculture Committee.

"We need to take a look to see exactly what we could
do," said Rep. Kathryn Bowers, DMemphis. "It appears to me
that this (industrial hemp production) could have
tremendous benefits for Tennessee farmers," said Rep.
Bowers, who added that she might introduce a House
resolution to create a study committee to examine the
potential for hemp farming in the Volunteer State.

She said that 20,000 Tennessee families "make a living
off tobacco. I think this would be a real good issue to
study."

The Agriculture Committee held an hourlong hearing on
industrial hemp production on Tuesday.

Boyd Vancil, vice president of Missouribased Industrial
Ag Innovations Inc., said there is an untapped market for
industrial hemp in the United States.

But he said current federal law prevents any hemp
production, except under stringent constraints.

There is a great difference between the potency of
industrial hemp and the potency of the marijuana sold
illegally in the United States, he said.

Industrial hemp has less than 1 percent THC, whereas
some potent grades of marijuana contain up to 30 percent
THC. THC is the psychogenic ingredient that produces the
"high" when marijuana is smoked, he said.

When industrial hemp is smoked, "You just get a
screaming headache and nothing more," he said.

"Industrial hemp can enhance the economic well being
of Tennessee," said Steve Nelson of Galloway Fields Co. in
Cordoba, Tenn. "To my knowledge, we're the only country in
the world that can't grow hemp.

"Pretty much, every industrialized nation is looking at
this (industrial hemp production) right now," Mr. Nelson
said.

Mr. Vancil, who wore a tie of 60 percent hemp and 40
percent silk and handed out business cards printed on 100
percent hemp, said that many products from paper to
clothing to desktops can be made of industrial hemp.

Hemp products are biodegradable, he said.

Specialized machinery is being used in Europe to harvest
such hemp, he said. "The sails on Columbus' ships were
made of hemp, " he said.

"Under GATT (Global Alliance on Tariffs and Trade), my
competitors in Europe get grants for production of hemp, "
Mr. Vancil said.

"This is a crop our competitors are already raising and
using," he said.

Law enforcement agencies are the main obstacle to
industrial hemp production in the United States, he said.
The best way to alleviate the opposition is education about
the economic benefits of such hemp, he said.

"We look at this as an agricultural issue," Mr. Vancil
said. "I hope the Agriculture Committee would take a look
at what we can do in Tennessee.

"The first step would be to allow the University of
Tennessee to have meaningful tests for research purposes,"
he said.

Such tests could determine if Tennessee soil would be
good for hemp production and what types of crops could be
rotated with hemp to keep soil nutrients from being
depleted, he said. There is currently a $50 million retail
sales market for hemp products in the United States, said
Mr. Vancil, adding that hemp used to be produced for
industrial purposes in the United States.

"Many of the covers on the covered wagons were hemp, "
said Mr. Vancil, adding that a major blue jeans
manufacturer in America made its first products out of
hemp.