History of Hemp Production

I was browsing YouTube for a video that would give me some history about why mass production of hemp became illegal in the United States and I came across the video below. For a short video, it has some great information about what role hemp has played in American history. It even has the nostalgia of a documentary you might have seen in high school, if you lived in the 1950's that is.



I also found one that goes into more detail about production and the benefits of it. This video feels somewhat long, but I think that is because the guy speaks in a monotone. Some of the key points he makes is that an acres of hemp produces three times the amount of biodiesel fuel then something like corn. He also says that hemp does not require pesticides and after the seeds are collected for oil production, it would still leave all those leaves for clothes, food, soap, etc.



The benefits of hemp seem overwhelming and it is incomprehensible to me that mass production of the plant is illegal only due to the fact that the counterpart is the main villain in this country's "war on drugs."

States are beginning to change this, but the federal government stands strong in opposition. North Dakota became the first state to allow industrial hemp production back in 1999.

I find it very odd, after watching the above videos about how quickly the governmental love of hemp changed so quickly. The first video was produced by the the Department of Agriculture in 1942 to encourage farmers to grow during the war, but once the war was over, cultivation became illegal. I want to look into this a lot more as the semester goes on. I emailed Ron Paul's campaign, asking to talk to me about why he thinks it is important for this crop to become industrialized, and hopefully he will get back to me.