MANY of the claims about hemp by HEMPEN ORGANIC sound a bit far-fetched: the seed is a superfood; hemperete is a wonder construction material; its fibre makes strong fabric and rope; the flower makes a powerful medicine; the root rebuilds and remediates depleted soils, whilst growing hemp plants in open fields is great for wildlife biodiversity.
Yet, all of this is true. So we established Hempen, a non-profit cooperative that cultivates hemp for the health of people, community and environment. In 2015, we started growing hemp for its seed as a superfood and later discovered the emergent Cannabidiol (CBD) Oil.
Here are just a few of the many practical benefits of hemp:
Health - The hemp plant produces one of the most nutritious seeds on Earth. It's an incredible source of protein, containing the optimum balance of omega fatty acids, 21 essential amino acids, minerals and vitamins for great absorption by the human body, and a crispy shell full of fibre too! The green matter holds hundreds of compounds, including a range of cannabinoids - just one being CBD - that are known to bring our bodies into a state of balance.
Industry - Today, BMW make their bodywork from hemp bio-composites that are lighter and stronger than steel. Celebrity architect Kevin Macleod (Grand Designs) claims hemp as one of his favourite ecological building materials. Scientists have even discovered that hemp can be used to make a supercapacitor that outperforms graphene to make eco-batteries.
Agroecology - Hemp grows perfectly when cultivated using organic principles. However, the UK doesn't grow enough organic produce in general to meet demand.
Hemp provides a useful crop rotation alternative, as it revitalises the soil and even removes toxins, making it a perfect natural product for bioremediation.
The problem for British farmers is that hemp requires govemment permission to be grown, even if it is low in the psychoactive compound THC. This is despite the fact that the World Health Organisation has said that it poses no public health risk and the United Nations claim that it should not be a controlled substance.
Since 2018 only a few farmers have been able to jump through the bureaucratic hoops to get a hemp cultivation licence, so unfortunately there are only about 20 licensed UK growers and their combined hemp growth totals as little as 2000 hectares.
In 2019, we at Hempen were denied the renewal of our licence midway through a growing season, forcing us to destroy a healthy crop valued at £200.000. This is when the Home Office decided that farmers could no longer cultivate it for CBD use. If we could have harvested the same field for CBD, it would have been worth £2.4 million. Shockingly, all CBD extracts in the UK now have to be imported.
We currently grow in partnership with farms across the British Isles for seed and fibre use, with continued unclear governmental guidance on hemp cultivation and processing. In fact, we struggle to meet the demand for organic UK-grown hemp, as the government hasn't given enough organic hemp farms their approval.
We've launched Overgrow the Regime', a mass direct-action campaign to grow hemp. The time to grow hemp is now, with or without a licence. We'll render the licensing regime redundant through the mass civil disobedience of openly growing hemp; in window boxes, allotments and fields, without asking for permission from government ministers with conflicted interests.
Together we will empower anyone who wants to grow hemp and learn about how to harvest it, for its myriad of benefits. A prosecution of one will be defended in court by all, demanding that the government justify its criminalisation of this plant that has so much potential.
Let's cultivate hemp together and overgrow the government's licensing regime. Get involved via our website: www.hempen.co.uk/grow-hemp-campaign
@hempenorganic