Hemp Rescues Kentucky’s Flailing Agriculture Industry

[Purveyor]

October 11, 2015
Jessica Firger

The fallout from the tobacco industry's troubles has left many farms in Kentucky struggling to stay afloat. A few years ago, James Comer, Kentucky’s commissioner of agriculture, made a bold move: He vowed to revive Kentucky’s farms by bringing back a crop that long ago grew in abundance—industrial hemp.

Farmers haven’t cultivated industrial hemp in Kentucky since World War II, when the U.S. government needed the fiber for military supplies. Now, decades later, hemp is quite literally changing the landscape of the Bluegrass State.

Though it looks and smells—and is regulated—like the illicit cannabis sativa plant, industrial hemp certainly isn’t pot. The multipurpose crop can be used to produce a diverse assortment of products that will benefit a number of businesses, including the food, automotive, pharmaceutical and nutraceuticals industries.

“We want to be the leading state in the nation for industrial hemp,” says Comer. “We want to be the Silicon Valley for industrial hemp and we can do that because we can grow it—we have good farmers that need a new crop to grow. We have a heritage here.”

http://www.rawstory.com/2015/10/hemp-rescues-kentuckys-flailing-agriculture-industry/

[valerief]

1. Let's use it for toilet paper (fuck you, Kochs) and fuel (fuck you again, Kochs). nt

[rurallib]

3. I concur!

[valerief]

5. I wipe my butt with bamboo from Korabrand.com. BPA-free, too! nt

[Dustlawyer]

2. I hope the Texas Agriculture Commissioner is paying attention!

He probably has his head up his ass like the rest of those gerrymandered make-leg SOB's!

[blackspade]

4. KY is such a mixed bag...

Practical solutions to complex problems mixed with complete dumbassery.

[Aristus]

6. Kentucky combines the plodding, unimaginative dullness of the Midwest,

with the fiery, empty-headed fanaticism of the South.

Having said that, I lived there for five years. Three as a kid, two as an adult, all five at Fort Knox. I actually liked it there.

After I grew into my previously nebulous, unformed liberalism, I began to appreciate Louisville's colorful, liberal, and vibrant gay community.

Maybe simple practical necessity will save the state's farmers. Grow hemp, Kentucky!

[A Little Weird]

7. It will be interesting to see where this goes

James Comer's term is ending soon. He's been the primary champion of this project. He didn't run again because he ran for governor instead but lost in the primaries to a crazier republican. I hope the next administration will support the continuation of this program.