The industrial uses and possible uses for Hemp

Everybody is talking about hemp. When we recently attended a family gathering in Vermont we talked to three of my young cousins, Heidi, Tammy and Debby, who had planted hemp. A change in the Vermont laws now makes it legal to plant hemp. Four-hundred-fifty or so farms are now doing just that. Dairy farming is not as profitable as it was, and hemp is now in demand. Please remember, industrial hemp does not contain THC, the compound in marijuana that makes you get high.

My cousins got their start with a friend who gave them about 1,900 baby cannabis plants in the spring. They had rototilled one and a half fertile acres of the old family farm. Then they set to planting in early May. There had been rain and their soil had good drainage.

The plants were very tiny with a tiny root base. They said each of them used a teaspoon for putting them in the ground. My cousins have day jobs and so it took three weekends to get them all planted, carefully providing at least six feet of space between each plant, which can reach a height of eight feet.

There is more to raising hemp than getting tiny plants in the ground. At some point, the hemp plants will decide if they want to be male or female. They have no gender when the seeds sprout unless they have been feminized. My cousins did invest in paying for enough femininized hemp to fill two rows.

I got in touch with Heather Darby, a professor at the University of Vermont, and she explained feminizing.

“Young plants are sprayed with colloidal silver, and this triggers them to produce ‘male flowers’ that only produce female pollen. Hence, if this crosses with the female flowers you should end up with female seeds,” she said in an email. 

Professor Darby said she did not know of any Vermont production companies that treated hemp for anything other than CBD oil. 

My cousins did know it is only the female buds that can make CBD oil, which has medicinal uses. All male buds have to be removed. If the male buds are allowed to open and spread their pollen, the male pollen will infect all the females and ruin them — no CBD oil.

This is a real learning experience for them — and many others in Vermont and other states.

Last week, I was on my way through Buckland to Goshen and was stunned to see three big fields of hemp plants.

I used to buy great corn from a farm on Route 112. While corn is still available, two fields on either side of the farmhouse, and a third field surrounding the Wilder Homestead are filled with industrial hemp plants. This is a much more serious operation than my cousins have. It is an indication of the increasing interest in hemp.

For myself, I am interested in hemp being grown for more reasons than CBD oil. It is the fibers of the plant that can be used in many ways, for textiles, paper, insulation, biodegradable plastics and bio-fuel, to name a few uses. Forbes Magazine said 25,000 products can be made from hemp.

Industrial hemp has an environmental benefit, in that it can be grown in every state of our nation. In addition, last December, President Donald Trump signed a bill that removes hemp from the controlled substances list and redefines it as an agricultural product.

Cotton requires southern weather, more water, more fertilizer and pesticides per acre than hemp. Hemp requires much less water, grows very quickly and uses minimal soil nutrients. Hemp roots aerate the soil, leaving it rich for future crops. It can produce 1,500 pounds of fiber per acre, whereas cotton will only produce 500 pounds per acre.

Since growing marijuana and industrial hemp has been illegal since 1937, there is a lag in how quickly production machines can be put in place. This is particularly true for hemp because people have forgotten its advantages. However, change is coming.

Carl Lehrburg of PureHemp Technology in Fort Lupton, Colo., said “Most of the hemp plant is underutilized and wasted today in the U.S.”

His company is developing traditional hemp stalk processing equipment that separates long and short fibers from the tough stem for processing into pulp, sugars and lignins, a process called “decorticating.” Processing hemp in the CCR (countercurrent reactor) results in the production of pulp as one product and the extract liquor is further refined into lignin and sugar co-products. I like to think his company is only one among many.

Hemp fiber can be a little scratchy but it is often used with other fibers like cotton. Some companies like Patagonia are using hemp with other fibers like cotton and polyester.  Levi Strauss and Co., has a new line of Outerknown clothing made of what they call ‘cottonized’ hemp, another combination of hemp and cotton.

Hemp has only been legal for a couple of years, but already there are 115 licensed growers and processors in Massachusetts. I can almost see the hemp clothes I want.

Pat Leuchtman has been writing and gardening in Heath at End of the Road Farm since 1980. She now lives in Greenfield. Readers can leave comments at her website: commonweeder.com

As states legalize marijuana, pesticides may be a blind spot

The EPA would ordinarily evaluate pesticide safety, but it has never done so for marijuana because the plant is illegal under federal law. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

People who consume marijuana medically or recreationally may be exposing themselves to unknown health risks from toxic pesticides.

The EPA would ordinarily evaluate pesticide safety but has never done so for marijuana because the plant is illegal under federal law. So, states with legalized marijuana industries have been tasking newly created cannabis regulators, health officials and others with setting testing standards for pesticide residues present on the plant.

Now, state pesticide officials, who normally assure that EPA guidance is followed, as well as former career EPA staff, academics and environmental groups, say that without the federal guidance, marijuana users could be exposed to unknown harms.

“Frankly, we don’t know,” said Rose Kachadoorian, president of the Association of American Pesticide Control Officials and pesticide program manager for the Oregon Department of Agriculture. “We don’t have the data. That’s why you have to have pesticide regulators step back and find out what might be a level that is not constituting risk.”

The federal government should be doing more to make it clear that these standards, sometimes referred to as “action levels,” may not be protective and ask states to convey that information to the public, they say.

“If you talk to any pesticide regulator and they would look at those action levels … I don’t think you would find one person that thinks they would be protective of public health,” Kachadoorian said.

Whether marijuana products are safe for consumption has become a national concern, as federal regulators investigate whether a recent outbreak of lung disease tied to vaping of THC — the psychoactive chemical in marijuana — is being caused by contaminants.

The industry, transitioning from operating in the shadows toward various stages of legality across the U.S., says that growers go to great lengths to protect consumers.

Morgan Fox, a spokesman for the National Cannabis Industry Association, said in a Sept. 4 email that his group hasn’t seen “any data suggesting that existing pesticide regulations are creating any widespread public health issues after years of regulated markets existing in a number of states.”

“States are doing their best to implement strict rules for pesticide use and make sure that licensed cultivators are abiding by them,” Fox said. “There is also an increasing drive among cultivators to avoid pesticides where possible.”

But the state pesticide officials and others say it’s concerning that other state regulators are setting quality standards without sufficient health data. Jon Jacobs, a former career EPA attorney who worked in the agency’s criminal enforcement division and recently started a cannabis industry consulting firm, said illicit growers likely used “massive amounts of pesticides to grow their illegal cannabis crops, but because it was black market, nobody was paying attention.”

Use of these pesticides probably continues with little oversight, he said.

“No one’s going to pay attention until we start having more consumers injured, either through smoking or ingestion or dermal exposure,” Jacobs said.

Multiple paths

Like any other agricultural sector, the marijuana industry has to deal with mold, insects and other pests. Pesticides are a common tool used by farmers to address that issue, but products commonly used in commercial agriculture can be toxic if consumed in certain amounts and there is little study on what amount, if any, can be present on marijuana products without harming consumers.

Part of the issue is that marijuana is consumed in many ways. Users ingest concentrated edibles, apply topical creams or heat and inhale it in smoke or vapor form. And the EPA has little experience studying the impact of pesticides on health when consumed in these myriad methods.

“We see there is a giant gaping hole inside of what we would all need to know for setting action limits,” said Jeffrey C. Raber, former executive director of the Association of Commercial Cannabis Labs and current operator of a marijuana research firm based in California. “If I’m going to use it for inhalation, that bypasses the liver, goes straight into my bloodstream … I’ve got very different toxicological concerns.”

“EPA would have to add a whole lot of new exposure scenarios in order to figure out the best ways to assess the risks of potential exposures,” said Tina Levine, who previously managed the health effects division within the EPA’s Office of Pesticide Programs.

“Many states don’t have a very developed pesticide infrastructure within their government, and they rely on EPA. In this case, since the federal EPA doesn’t have a role, they can’t do that,” she said.

In the EPA’s absence, state pesticide officials have tried to educate the industry and the public that no pesticide is legal to use on marijuana. Some have released lists of products that are generally low risk and that EPA has approved for a broad range of uses.

Setting standards

But in states like Oregon, Colorado, California, Nevada, Washington and others, agencies that don’t typically regulate pesticides are setting standards for labs that test marijuana for contaminants. Pesticide regulators like Kachadoorian say that some of those pesticides may be unsafe at any level.

“We’re concerned about these levels, that there would be something termed ‘action level’ and how it might be misconstrued,” Kachadoorian said.

Those regulators, as well as industry groups, say these standards are an improvement from having black-market products without any testing at all.

Brian Smith, a spokesman for the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board, which regulates the state’s marijuana industry, said “anyone that’s been in the industry … can tell you that marijuana’s been lathered in pesticides for decades.”

Smith said approving pesticides for growers without help from the federal government has been a major challenge for the agency.

“Doing something that is illegal at the federal level and not having the kind of support that the EPA would provide on something like this has been very challenging,” he said.

State pesticide officials recently elevated their concerns to EPA’s leadership. An EPA-funded working group overseen by the Association of American Pesticide Control Officials, sent a letter in July stating that tolerable pesticide residues were being set higher than what was allowable on other crops, with little input from the state agencies experienced in pesticides.

Though the standards were not designed to give growers permission to use pesticides illegally, they were being misinterpreted as such, creating a potential threat to consumers. The EPA should tell states they’re setting testing standards in conflict with federal pesticide law and should put pesticide regulators fully in charge of regulating the chemicals’ use on agriculture, the group said.

An EPA spokesman declined to comment on the letter. While the agency recently began the process of approving pesticides for use on hemp, a crop derived from the same plant as marijuana but with virtually no THC, spokesman Robert Daguillard said in an Aug. 21 email the agency’s policy on marijuana hasn’t changed.

“Marijuana remains subject to the Controlled Substances Act,” he wrote. “EPA is not offering a list of pesticides for use on marijuana.”

Marijuana is stronger than ever, but don’t get too excited

Surgeon General Jerome Adams raised eyebrows when he warned that cannabis was getting stronger two weeks ago. He added that, as a result, developing adolescents and pregnant mothers should avoid using today’s cannabis, due to the possible long-term damage. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar went as far to call cannabis “a dangerous drug.”

“This ain’t your mother’s marijuana,” Adams added. “Not enough people know that today’s marijuana is far more potent than in days’ past.”

In some circles, it could be easy to dismiss Adams’ comments. They recalled similar language used by FOX News host Tucker Carlson when he tried to link mass shootings with marijuana usage. Or it reminded others of Alex Berenson’s Tell Your Children book, which connected weed use with psychosis and reinvigorate the “Reefer Madness” movement. (Most scientists and researchers have discredited Berenson’s work.) But was Adams comments so hyperbolic? Studies have linked adolescent cannabis use with memory problems later in life. The science remains mixed at best about using marijuana while pregnant, with researchers suggesting not doing so until we know more.

The truth is marijuana is getting stronger. You don’t think almost a decade of legal marijuana growing being conducted under optimal settings wouldn’t improve the plant’s potency? What matters, of course, is the degrees of its increased potency. This is where comments like the Surgeon General’s can get out of hand. Canadian author and marijuana advocate Dana Larsen recently analyzed on Twitter how, if you used statements from public health officials, you’d arrive at cannabis being 12,600 times stronger than it was 60-70 years ago.

But the problem, as VICE columnist Maia Szalavitz astutely points out, is marijuana’s chemical balances have changed. We know that THC is responsible for marijuana’s psychoactive component, and that CBD, in addition to other wellness benefits, tends to mellow out THC’s buzz. Somewhere between 1994 and 2005, the typical ratios of CBD to THC became out of whack. Researchers discovered that whereas marijuana strains previously had 14 times the amount of THC as CBD, cannabis found on the street today has 80 times the amount of THC.

One Dutch study found that first time admissions for cannabis use disorder were more likely when consuming higher THC marijuana. Meanwhile, Dr. Julie Holland, The Pot Book: A Complete Guide to Cannabis as well as a psychiatrist, told VICE, “Higher THC strains are more likely to cause problems in people at risk for psychotic illness.”

This is yet another argument for marijuana legalization. Just like with the vape crisis, these problems are the direct result of allowing the market to decide how marijuana will be crafted and marketed, instead of policy and regulations. Black market retailers are driven to mess with THC:CBD ratios to ensure their product makes stoners say “they got the good shit, man.” But that attitude ultimately creates more problems than it solves. Bring marijuana out from the dark and we might soon be instead saying, today’s cannabis is more balanced, healthy, and safe for consumers than your momma’s marijuana. Who doesn’t want that?

Top Israeli marijuana Firm to be bought out as owner faces legal battle

Medical marijuana company Cannabit is slated to buy out competitor Tikun Olam, after the two firms signed principles of agreement, which were revealed on Monday. Cannabit saw its valuation jump 13%, to 271 million shekels ($76.4 million), on the news.

Tikun Olam, in comparison, is one of Israel’s biggest, most respected medical marijuana companies, with some 15,000 customers and a well-regarded product. Patients view Tikun Olam’s cannabis strains as particularly high quality, according to interviews.

Buyers started pursuing Tikun Olam when it emerged that the Israel Police and the Health Ministry would not let the company’s founder, Tzachi Cohen, to continue working in Israel’s medical marijuana industry after a police probe raised suspicions that Cohen had underworld ties, although the information was kept confidential and even Cohen has not been apprised of it.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Channel 13 in an interview that his government had halted cannabis exports because “we feared that criminal elements would take over the medical marijuana field.”

As uncertainty rose regarding Tikun Olam, several prospective buyers submitted offers. Three companies reached the final stage – Intercure, whose chairman is former Prime Minister Ehud Barak, now one of the leaders of the Democratic Union party, and which has farms in northern and southern Israel; privately held Bazelet Pharma, which has a processing plant and a cannabis farm at Sdot Yam; and Cannabit, led by chairman Eitan Ben Eliyahu, which has a farm near the Dead Sea.

Barak Rozen, who controls Cannabit indirectly, went to Los Angeles to meet Cohen. Rozen spent several days trying to convince him to sell; Cohen asked for $100 million. Ultimately, on September 12, the two signed principles of agreement that called for $10 million to be paid immediately, $32 million to be paid once the deal closes, and another $18 million to be paid should Cannabit’s valuation top 1 billion shekels within five years. Cohen will also receive 4.99% of Cannabit’s shares and 5% of Tikun Olam’s future sales.

In exchange, Cannabit is receiving the company’s Israeli operations and a permit to use Tikun Olam’s intellectual property. Cohen himself is keeping the company’s medical marijuana varieties, which limits Cannabit’s ability to export Tikun Olam products.

Cannabit has only about $16 million in cash, and will need to issue bonds in order to make the payment.

A source close to another potential buyer stated that Cannabit had offered significantly more than the others, but questioned whether it was a good deal for the company to have bought what was essentially 5% of Tikun Olam’s global operations.

“Cohen saw that there was a buyer who would pay full price and leave most of the operations in his hands, so he cut a deal with Cannabit,” said the source.

A source close to Cannabit countered that the company saw the deal as the acquisition of a major brand such as Nike or Coca-Cola. The source added that the company plans to keep most Tikun Olam employees, and to go on selling Tikun Olam’s marijuana varieties under Health Ministry supervision.