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Dr Keith Bolton, Vice-President,
Northern Rivers Hemp Inc.
2009 and 2010 have been the two most exciting years
in the NSW Hemp industry since Cannabis Prohibition with the
release of commercial licenses in 2009 by NSW Department of
Primary Industries, and the harvesting of the first commercial
hemp crops in 2010. Not surprisingly, The Northern Rivers Region
has the highest density of hemp licensees and growers in the
state, and is set to become a major centre for hemp production
and industry during the next five years. The high level of local
interest in the hemp industry has prompted the formation of
Northern Rivers Hemp Inc., a not-for-profit organization aimed
at nurturing the establishment of the Northern Rivers Hemp Industry
by maintaining a seed-bank, providing information, networking
industry participants, and lobbying for changes in the legislation
to allow hemp food production.
The rapid changes in legislation allowing commercial
hemp production could not have occurred without the input of
highly committed hemp campaigners, politicians, industry pioneers,
and the faith of the general public. Further commitment and
support is now required by innovators, manufacturers and business
leaders to establish hemp-based products, manufacturing processes,
and sustainable business. In particular, additional energy is
required to change existing legislation which still prohibits
the sale of hemp food products for human consumption. As a long-term
industry participant, I take off my hat to the leaders who have
worked together to legitimize the Australian hemp industry,
and I look forward with optimism to the future of the local
hemp industry – we have a unique opportunity to establish
a profitable, sustainable and local industry! Visit www.northernrivershemp.org
for additional information or to register for membership.
Wise Man and Useful Fibre Plant
In the last little fragment of The History of Life on Earth,
a certain hominid species evolved victorious from an era of
ice ages by growing new brain pathways, eradicating its milder
mannered cousins, and acquiring a taste for coastal property.
This species called itself Homo sapiens, which means Wise Man.
While Wise Man was busily playing with his enhanced frontal
lobe and inspecting post-glacial real estate, a small herbaceous
plant was quietly evolving in the hinterlands of Asia. When
Wise Man met this plant, he liked its strong fibres which made
good ropes and yarn; and it seeds which yielded delicious and
nutritious food. Its resinous foliage became an essential ingredient
in Wise Man’s pharmacopoeia and certain varieties were
known to tickle Wise Man’s frontal lobes in a fun kind
of way. Wise Man called this plant Cannabis sativa which means
Useful Fibre Plant. These two species brokered a mutually beneficial
agreement. Useful Fibre Plant agreed to provide Wise Man with
bountiful yields of fibre, food, pharmaceuticals and fun. In
return, Wise Man was to cultivate, adapt and disseminate Useful
Fibre Plant throughout all continents on Earth. This agreement
worked brilliantly, and for thousands of years both species
shared the benefits of the other. Wise Man forged into new habitat
using the strong fibre, nutritious food and potent medicines
from Useful Fibre Plant; in return Wise Man brought Useful Fibre
Plant everywhere he went.
Then something went terribly wrong. Perhaps the relationship
started to go sour when Wise Man began to use Useful Fibre Plant’s
strong fibres for the sails and rigging of his warships. Indeed,
wars were even fought over the control of Useful Fibre Plant’s
virtues, a point that did not sit well with peace loving Useful
Fibre Plant. Whatever the case, Wise Man become addicted to
playing with His frontal lobe, which overheated, and he sought
to own and control everything – even Mother Earth! Affected
by the stress of this new ownership and his insatiable lobe,
Wise Man started to flaunt the natural laws which hold the very
threads of Life together. Simple sorts of laws like don’t
poke holes in the ozone layer, don’t build nuclear power
plants, especially on fault lines, and certainly don’t
put the Carboniferous’s carbon back into the atmosphere.
In this altered state, one of the strangest things that Wise
Man did was to turn against his old ally Useful Fibre Plant.
On April 14, 1937, Wise Man concocted a document called the
marihuana tax bill and declared a war of total herbicide against
Useful Fibre Plant. Propaganda was distributed, friends of Useful
Fibre Plant were persecuted and jailed, and uncountable billions
of dollars have been spent on this war during the last three
quarters of a century. What could have happened to have caused
this complete turnaround? Let’s look at what was going
on 75 years ago.
Fuelled by the power of the Industrial Age, the petrochemical
industry had developed nylon and other synthetic fibres. However
the hemp industry had also undergone mechanisation, representing
the major competition. At the same time, the US Drug Enforcement
Agency was experiencing a control vacuum after alcohol prohibition
was proven to be unviable by the likes of Al Capone, and It
desperately needed a new drug to control. The 1930s was also
a time of deep paranoia, and communists, negros, jazz musicians
and other undesirables were identified as “marihuana users”.
Crusaders promoted harsh punishment for those who didn’t
fall within their moral guidelines while women and black people
had no vote and little direct influence. It was very convenient
for certain power brokers to make hemp a scapegoat in order
to expedite their plans.
They almost won. Petrochemical fibres became mainstream, fast
food replaced nutritious food, and modern pharmaceutical giants
claimed ownership over traditional medicines. A burgeoning black
market sprang from the ashes of a previously legitimate industry
while the morally righteous gloated at the suffering of the
wicked. More insidiously, global power brokers funded their
skull-and-dagger operations and dirty wars by controlling supply
and demand of the very drugs they lobbied so hard to prohibit.
During the last 75 years, humans have inflicted more environmental
and social damage than ever before in our history. Our collective
greed and consumption threatens the Earth’s fundamental
life support mechanisms – the atmosphere, oceans, forests,
groundwater and soil. Millions of human lives have been trashed
through wars, incarceration, and environmental pillaging. All
other species are affected.
Challenging Cannabis prohibition challenges the very paradigms
that perpetuate the “20th Century disease”, which
incites greed with no responsibility. We are critically in need
of Leaders who have the courage, integrity and true wisdom to
make it their primary goal to protect the liberties and prosperity
of the people and the environment, and to never make laws that
cause harm. The MardiGrass and other similar events of peaceful
mass civil disobedience are essential reminders that when injustice
becomes law, action becomes duty. Although prohibition laws
remain in the hands of the morally offended, there is increasing
recognition that prohibition aggravates rather than minimises
the harm caused by all drugs. It is time to call a truce and
broker peace with this remarkable and embattled plant so Homo
sapiens can live up to our namesake, and to again appreciate
the fibre, food, pharmaceutical and fun virtues of our old friend
Cannabis sativa.