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Hemp is a primary substance for papermaking, having been used for 2,000 years in this capacity. In the 20th century wood pulp came to replace hemp and other long fibres, and this has been an environmental disaster. Recent efforts to re-introduce hemp fibres into paper pulp are under way, with a number of writing papers having been manufactured in Europe and North America. However, most of these were done in small batches. Most papermills in southeast Asia produce 500,000 tons or more annually, whilst mills in the West tend to be small, specialty paper mills. Hemp is used rather consistently for fine papers, including cigarette paper and cosmetic tissue paper, but writing paper may continue to be made from trees until we run out and are forced to use other material. One large papermill in Germany, Gmund (which is distributed in the UK by The Hemp Shop) is starting to catch up, with a number of different papers including writing paper now being made in increasingly larger batches. A number of other companies are also offering hemp papers, ranging from writing paper to wallpaper. Part of the issue is the fact that the hurd, which is lower in cellulose content that the bast, can be used for paper, as demonstrated by the US government in the early 20th century. doi:10.1300/J237v12n02_08 [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The Czech Hemp Association (CHA) was founded to re- introduce industrial hemp to Czech fields as well as to processing plants, bringing it to various industries. The CHA aims for every region to establish small hemp industrial centers able to process 7400 to 10000 tons of hemp fiber annually. The basic prerequisite for a successful regional development is a sufficient growing area within a distance of 70 to 100 km from the functional scutching line, together with mechanisms for harvesting. In several Czech regions pilot projects of this type have been started. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Much of the hemp plant is a carbohydrate known as cellulose, found mostly in the outer bark of the stem, which is about 75% cellulose, while the core is about half that or more. This is in fact typical of plants, making cellulose the most common compound in the vegetable kingdom. It is a simple compound, utilising the three common elements of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen, and is a structure of many glucose molecules compounded together. There are slight differences in the arrangement of the glucose from plant to plant, making for different qualities in the cellulose yielded. Hemp if one of the best plants for cellulose production for the reasons that the cellulose it produces is well suited for paper manufacture and textiles, and further, it grows quickly without any great need of pesticides. Hemp use has been suppressed in recent times, but due to its usefulness and the ecological advantages in harvesting hemp over cotton and trees, there has been a call for hemp use which is growing worldwide. Businesses such as Minawear in California and Ecofibres in Australia have been working for the last several years with hemp and both have seen an increase in demand. At present most hemp is grown in China, Canada and Eastern Europe, but has in history been grown in almost every country of the world, due to the ease with which it is cultivated and the need for the cellulose fibres that it yields. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Hip Hemp Happenings highlights some of the companies and products that are successfully marketing hemp in creative and innovative ways. Ranging from colorful and practical hemp clothing to nutritious hemp nut based desserts, this article illustrates different approaches to the same problem: how to make hemp hip. It also shows how some companies are using the star power of celebrities and athletes to promote their hemp products. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this column, John E. Dvorak provides insight into some of the best industrial hemp websites on the Internet. Areas covered in detail include news portals, hemp associations, new products and research sites. Reviews relating to specific topics such as hemp food, textiles, paper and other industrial uses will also be periodically touched upon. The ever-changing nature of the world wide web will be reflected in the many different types of websites reviewed. While the focus of this column is on North America, a concerted effort is being made to incorporate as many sites from as many countries as possible. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]