Michelle Slater

Gippsland industrial hemp manufacturer Darren Christie with one of hos processing machines. photograph: michelle slater.
 
Gippsland farmers are being encouraged to jump on board a burgeoning local industrial hemp co-operative to be launched in Morwell next month.
The co-op aims to get locals growing what is a sustainable and high-return crop to create building materials and other value-added products in a Morwell factory.
Australian hemp manufacturer Darren Christie said the co-op is teaming with Morwell solar hot water manufacturers Earthworker to look at expanding products, pooling ideas and resources.
“At this factory, we will produce building materials from the farm-gate. It’s about creating local jobs at our processing plant and creating a sustainable product,” he said.
“As a building material, it’s non-toxic and doesn’t rot. Farmers can get good returns on their crops. They don’t need to use pesticides and all parts of the plant are used.”
 
Full Article:
http://www.latrobevalleyexpress.com.au/story/5250270/high-hopes-for-hemp-harvesters/
 

By Kristen Nichols

 
Far from the flashy marijuana dispensaries in Las Vegas, hemp farms in rural northern and southern Nevada can’t keep up with booming demand for flower for CBD production.
The result is a blazing-hot wholesale market for hemp flower, with growers reporting prices of up to $350 a pound for quality, high-CBD varieties.
That’s almost 10 times what midgrade hemp flower is selling for in Colorado, and it’s prompting a super-heated hemp market.
Can the good times last for this young market?
Nevada growers are taking the gamble, adding acreage and processing equipment and hoping their luck doesn’t run out before hemp growers in states with better water supply and milder temperatures overtake them.
“There’s huge demand, and we can’t keep up,” said Michael Whalen, who is growing 142 acres of hemp near Death Valley, where he gets less than 2 inches of rain a year but has a thriving operation thanks to a hemp cultivar native to arid Afghanistan.
“You can’t import finished flower into Nevada, so even though we’re right by California, the demand is just insane,” said Whalen, who is president of the Nevada Hemp Association.
 
Full Article:
https://mjbizdaily.com/hemp-state-highlight-nevada-enjoying-sky-high-prices-can-farmers-luck-last/

Saskia Adysti | Albany Advertiser

DecoHousing community liaison manager Pam Rumble and her partner and DecoHousing project manager Paul Llewellyn holding a hempcrete block.Picture: Laurie Benson
 

Denmark will soon have the first ecovillage in regional Australia completely made out of hemp.

DecoHousing managing director Donald Clarke said the ecovillage, capable of holding 12 family units on 6000sqm of land, had just reached a milestone at construction lock-up stage.

The houses are built with environmentally sustainable designs, including solar power systems and recycled water tanks.

For the project to have minimal waste and a zero carbon footprint, Mr Clarke and project manager Paul Llewellyn have chosen industrial hemp as their main building material.

Full Article:

https://thewest.com.au/news/regional/hemp-housespave-way-for-future-living-ng-b88736399z

By James McClure

 
Nebraska could become the hemp capital of America if Republican candidate Krystal Gabel becomes the next governor of the Cornhusker State.
Gabel — a resident of Omaha — has pledged to usher in major marijuana reforms in the midwest state if she wins the 2018 gubernatorial election. Her campaign promises include decriminalizing marijuana, pardoning non-violent cannabis offenders and legalizing medical marijuana as well as industrial hemp production.
If Nebraska embraced hemp legalization, it could become “the country’s primary manufacturer of hemp bioethanol and biodiesel,” Gabel said, adding that the crop could “generate billions in property, sales and income taxes via industrial hemp production.”
 
Full Article: 
https://www.civilized.life/articles/republican-candidate-nebraska-hemp-capital-of-america/

By Bibi Farber

 
Hemp
Exciting developments are on the horizon for one of the strongest fibers known to man. Plastic can now be derived from plant cellulose. At least 16 U.S. states have legalized industrial hemp production for commercial purposes and 20 states have passed laws allowing research and pilot programs. Hemp is an extremely efficient crop that grows up to 60 feet in just 90 days. It requires few pesticides and no herbicides.
The company Hemp Plastic has a composite material that can be molded for any number of plastic items. Hemp plastic is said to be 5 times stiffer and 2.5 times stronger than polypropylene plastic, which is used in everything from packaging, to lab equipment and textiles. There are thousands of plastic replacement hemp products on the market right now, including for furniture, electronics, fiberglass and other construction materials. Even door panels of some BMW’s, Mercedes and Bugatti are manufactured using a hemp fiber basis.
 
Full Article: 
https://www.ecowatch.com/toward-a-plastic-free-future-2519406874.html

Rob Hoffman

 
Weed edibles are fun to eat, but not so much to make. You have to be a virtual chemist to get the temperature right: hot enough to decarboxylate, but not hot enough to burn the bud. Then, half of the product gets stuck on the spoon. Until you perfect the technique, the result is almost always sad and uninviting.
A new product called LEVO believes it can eliminate the struggle of making cannabutter and weed-infused oils altogether.
 
Full Article: 
https://herb.co/2017/12/25/weed-infuser-cannabutter-easily-levo/

By Neetu Garcha

 
A unique home that generates more energy than it uses, is rising above the trees on a hillside property in Sooke, just outside of Victoria.
“We tried to create the most sustainable, safest, most energy-efficient and least toxic home possible,” owner Arno Keinonen said.
The walls are being built using Lego-like building blocks made essentially of hemp, lime and water.
 
Article/Video: 
https://globalnews.ca/news/3784330/sooke-home-lego-green-fireproof/

By Chris Bennett  Farm Journal  Technology and Issues Editor

Gayle Ong

 
In Upstate New York, some farmers believe that they’ve found the state’s next big cash crop – hemp.
Other farmers are saying hemp may be the next super food like kale.
 
Full Article: 
http://www.mytwintiers.com/news/local-news/special-report-is-hemp-the-new-kale/854225217

David Davis

Image courtesy of Boo Williams
 
Eddie “Boo” Williams, formerly a tight end with the New Orleans Saints, is sitting on a bench and pulling on a blunt not far from his home in San Diego. He is describing the moment, back in 2011, when he decided to take his own life. “I was in a dark place,” he said. “I thought I was a small person in a big person’s body. I felt like I had no purpose.”
 
Full Article: 
https://sports.vice.com/en_us/article/78nkmq/after-the-nfl-pot-saved-boo-williams-life-hes-trying-to-return-the-favor