"Notoriety obscures the history and value of hemp. Hemp has a long history in America, from the first plantings in Jamestown, where growing hemp was mandatory, to the hemp sails of 19th-century clipper ships and the hemp canvas covers of pioneer wagons, to World War II's massive "Hemp for Victory" program. Hemp is a major part of humanity's agricultural and commercial heritage, having been used extensively for millennia in cultures around the world.

Beginning with the passage of the "Marihuana Tax Act" of 1937 and continuing after the World War II "Hemp for Victory" program, misplaced fears that industrial hemp is marijuana and harassment by law enforcement discouraged farmers from growing hemp. The last crop was grown in Wisconsin in 1958, and the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) of 1970 formally prohibited cultivation.

Today, driven by entrepreneurial spirit and the desire to build a new industry for a new age, hemp has reemerged. A diverse but increasingly unified and politically influential group of interests supports the commercial growing of hemp, including farmers, businesses, nutritionists, activists, and green consumers."

The Hemp Industries Association www.thehia.org/hemp_is_hip.html