Pubdate: Tue, 29 Apr 2003
Source: Western Front, The (WA)
Copyright: 2003, The Western Front
Contact:  http://westernfront.wwu.edu/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/994
Author: Andy Aley
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/hemp.htm (Hemp)

COURT PERMITS BLAINE FACTORY TO MAKE HEMP PRODUCTS

A stay issued by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals will temporarily 
allow manufacturers, retailers and consumers to continue making, selling 
and eating foods containing hemp products.

The stay, granted after the Hemp Industries Association filed a motion in 
the court, prevents two new U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency rules from taking 
effect until the court can review them.

The DEA designed the rules, which would have taken effect April 21, to 
clarify which substances are legal and illegal under the Controlled 
Substances Act of 1970, DEA representative Will Glaspy said. The rules 
classify any products that contain tetrahydracannibinol, or THC, as illegal 
if they are intended for consumption, Glaspy said. THC is the primary 
psychoactive chemical in marijuana.

"THC is a controlled substance," Glaspy said. "So the act that was passed 
by Congress does not say a specific amount of THC is illegal; it says that 
THC is illegal. Therefore, any product that would cause THC to enter the 
body would be an illegal product."

While THC is a Schedule One Controlled Substance, listed with drugs such as 
heroin and Phencyclidine (PCP), organic food manufacturers and retailers 
argue that their products contain little, if any, detectable traces of THC.

David Neuman, vice president of sales and marketing for Nature's Path Foods 
in Blaine, said Nature's Path routinely tests its products to ensure that 
the THC content is lower than one part per million, which is the lowest 
amount conventional testing procedures can detect.

"This is a food," Neuman said. "This has no possibility of ever giving 
anybody a buzz. It doesn't matter how much you eat."

Nature's Path, an organic food company operating out of Blaine and Delta, 
B.C., makes granola cereal and waffles that contain hemp seeds. Neuman said 
the products are popular and generate substantial revenue for the company.

"It is a big part of our sales - in the millions of dollars of annual 
revenue," he said. "And if we lost that, it could affect jobs, it could 
affect the revenues of the company, the stability of the company."

Neuman said the health benefits of hemp seeds outweigh any potential harm 
trace amounts of THC could cause. Hemp seeds contain approximately 35 
percent protein by weight, amino acids and essential fatty acids, which 
doctors recommend eating to lower cholesterol, he said.

"Hemp seeds are about the most nutritious product behind soy beans that you 
can eat," Neuman said. "They are what are called a complete food, meaning 
they have protein, fat and carbohydrates."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom