“Make the most of the Indian hemp seed and sow it everywhere” -George Washington, 1794.

Hemp was such an important crop in colonial America that it was mandated by law to cultivate. Even Columbus used hemp extensively in his ships that made the voyage to what would become America. Jamestown was the first colony to cultivate hemp in 1607. The U.S. constitution, the Declaration of Independence and our nation’s first flag were made from hemp.

Hemp’s importance in America was about to boom in the early 1930’s as machinery was being developed to make its industrial use widespread. It was considered to be a billion dollar crop. This came to halt, hemp was prohibited in 1937. Big Industry had just obtained patents for making nylon from coal, plastic from oil, and paper from trees.

Big Industry Implements Anti-Hemp Laws

Big Industry successfully implemented anti-hemp campaigns.  They worked on some creative lobbying and behind-the-scenes meetings. The Meetings were with oil barons and paper industry tycoons who owned enormous timber tracts. Associating hemp with marijuana and films such as Reefer Madness and Assassin of Youth caught Congress’s eye, and hemp was outlawed. Considering that the properties in marijuana that cause psychoactive effects (THC) are only found in trace amounts in hemp, hemp can’t “get you high”. This public relations campaign is historic in its success in eliminating its main competitor, the hemp industry, and deceiving the American people.

Hemp essentially disappeared in America until WWII, when our government set up programs and encouraged farmers to grow hemp for the war effort to counter other material shortages. A slogan and a film, “Hemp for Victory,” were created. When the war ended, so did Hemp’s comeback as an important industrial crop.

In the mid-1990s, Hemp’s importance was starting to be recognized again by the US government. Its multitudes of uses, environmental benefits, and ease of growing could no longer be overlooked.

Fast forward to December 2018, when the Hemp Farming Act of 2018 became law. This law removed hemp as a Schedule I controlled substance and made it an ordinary agricultural commodity. Big win for farmers, businesses, consumers, and our environment.