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MIHEMP is short for the Michigan Industrial Hemp Education and Marketing Project.
We are a dedicated group of activists from all over the state of
Michigan and we are working hard in this endeavor.
Our mission is to educate the public and state government officials about Industrial Hemp and try to clear up the myths and teach the facts through meetings and seminars and setting up booths at public events.
We also will be working to connect consumers and vendors of hemp products in Michigan and in the United States.
We are in the process of filing as a 501c (4) non profit organization and will fund it through membership dues, fund raising events, and donations.
If you are interested in helping out or becoming a member please do not hesitate to contact us.
Membership dues are $10.00 year for basic membership and $15.00 a year for enhanced membership.
Enhanced membership includes an mi-hemp.org email address and both regular and enhanced membership includes access to a discussion board.
Executive Director:
Everett Swift, Hillman, MI.
Board members Include:
Donald Barnes, Niles MI
Paul Pearson, Detroit MI
Richard Clement, Lansing MI.
Matthew Abel, Detroit, MI
Becky Fonfara, Sterling Heights MI
Jolene Fowler, Harbor Springs MI
Executive Secertary:
Nakita Swift, Hillman MI
This is a very motivated group of activist who are well educated on Industrial Hemp.
The Organization will be funded by membership dues and other fund raising activities.
Hemp and Marijuana
Myths & Realities
Myth: United States law has always treated hemp and marijuana the same.
Reality: The history of federal drug laws clearly shows that at one time the U.S. government understood and accepted the distinction between hemp and marijuana.
Myth: Smoking industrial hemp gets a person high.
Reality: The THC levels in industrial hemp are so low that no one could get high from smoking it. Moreover, hemp contains a relatively high percentage of another cannabinoid, CBD, that actually blocks the marijuana high. Hemp, it turns out, is not only not marijuana; it could be called “antimarijuana.”
Myth: Even though THC levels are low in hemp, the THC can be extracted and concentrated to produce a powerful drug.
Reality: Extracting THC from industrial hemp and further refining it to eliminate the preponderance of CBD would require such an expensive, hazardous, and time-consuming process that it is extremely unlikely anyone would ever attempt it, rather than simply obtaining high-THC marijuana instead.
Myth: Hemp fields would be used to hide marijuana plants.
Reality: Hemp is grown quite differently from marijuana. Moreover, it is harvested at a different time than marijuana. Finally, cross-pollination between hemp plants and marijuana plants would significantly reduce the potency of the marijuana plant.
Myth: Legalizing hemp while continuing the prohibition on marijuana would burden local police forces.
Reality: In countries where hemp is grown as an agricultural crop, the police have experienced no such burdens.
Myth: Feral hemp must be eradicated because it can be sold as marijuana.
Reality: Feral hemp, or ditchweed, is a remnant of the hemp once grown on more than 400,000 acres by U.S. farmers. It contains extremely low levels of THC, as low as .05 percent. It has no drug value, but does offer important environmental benefits as a nesting habitat for birds. About 99 percent of the “marijuana” being eradicated by the federal government—at great public expense—is this harmless ditchweed. Might it be that the drug enforcement agencies want to convince us that ditchweed is hemp in order to protect their large eradication budgets?
Myth: Those who want to legalize hemp are actually seeking a backdoor way to legalize marijuana.
Reality: It is true that many of the first hemp stores were started by industrial-hemp advocates who were also in favor of legalizing marijuana. However, as the hemp industry has matured, it has come to be dominated by those who see hemp as the agricultural and industrial crop that it is, and see hemp legalization as a different issue than marijuana legalization. In any case, should we oppose a very good idea simply because some of those who support it also support other ideas with which we disagree?
Myth: Hemp oil is a source of THC.
Reality: Hemp oil is an increasingly popular product, used for an expanding variety of purposes. The washed hemp seed contains no THC at all. The tiny amounts of THC contained in industrial hemp are in the glands of the plant itself. Sometimes, in the manufacturing process, some THC- and CBD-containing resin sticks to the seed, resulting in traces of THC in the oil that is produced. The concentration of these cannabinoids in the oil is infinitesimal. No one can get high from using hemp oil.
Myth: Legalizing hemp would send the wrong message to children.
Reality: It is the current refusal of the drug enforcement agencies to distinguish between an agricultural crop and a drug crop that is sending the wrong message to children.
Myth: Hemp is not economically viable, and should therefore be outlawed.
Reality: The market for hemp products is growing rapidly. But even if it were not, when has a crop ever been outlawed simply because government agencies thought it would be unprofitable to grow?
Michigan Industrial Hemp Education and Marketing Project | Advancing Michigan Farmers | MI-Hemp
http://mi-hemp.org/