GANJA (HEMP) FACTS . Hemp is the number 1 biomass producer on earth: 10 tonnes per acre in about 4 months. * Hemp can be made into fine quality paper: 1 acre of hemp in annual rotation over a 20-year period would produce as much pulp for paper as 4.1 acres of trees being cut down over the same 20-year period. Also the long fibres in hemp allow paper made form it to be recycled several times more than wood-based paper. It grows well in a variety of climates and soil types.

It is naturally resilient to most pests precluding the need for pesticides. It grows tightly spaced, out-competing any weeds, so herbicides are not necessary. It is also a perfect rotational crop as it leaves the field weed free and puts nutrients into the soil where it is grown.

Hemp has been grown for at least 12,000 years for fibre (textiles and paper) and food all over the world. In the UK there is evidence that hemp was grown from at least 800AD to the 19th century – details of crops were entered into parish records and fragments of hemp material have been found dating back thousands of years. Think of Hemel Hempstead, Hempton, Hemp Hill The products that can be made from hemp number over 25,000. these include building materials for houses such as particle board, pressed board, core concrete construction moulds, paints, varnishes, anything made with plastic, … the list is so long I can’t go on!

Henry Ford experimented with hemp to build car bodies circa 1940, Rudolph Diesel designed his engine to run on hemp oil and BMW is currently experimenting with hemp materials in automobiles as part of an effort to make cars more recyclable. Hemp fibres are longer, stronger and more absorbent and mildew-resistant than cotton. Hemp fabric is around 7/10 times stronger than cotton and gets softer and stronger as it gets older. Another advantage is that it is not water or chemical thirsty in the same way that cotton is - which currently accounts for 3% of the worlds arable land, 25% of the worlds pesticides and 7% of it’s fertilisers. It is thought to be UVB protective. Hemp fibre paper can be recycled upto 50 times in comparison to wood pulp which is only 5 at most.

Hemel Hempstead was names after a Home Stead. BMW have used hemp fibre in their cars for over 5 years. Hemp fibre has a tensile strength that is only 5 times stronger than cotton and 5 times more durable. Hemp uses 5 times less water than cotton. ecoavila 2008.8.2 12:35 As noted by Joseph Campbell over a century ago, in his epic 1894 study for the Indian Hemp Drugs Commission, On The Religion of Hemp: "To the follower of Islam the holy spirit in bhang... is the spirit of the great prophet Khizr, or Elijah." That bhang should be sacred to Khizr is natural, as Khizr means green, the revered color of the cooling water of bhang. So the Urdu poet sings "When I quaff fresh bhang I liken its color to the fresh light down of thy youthful beard." ecoavila go your own way.

From Persia to China, Eastern Europe to Australia, cultures worldwide have celebrated this crop as a staple food. The seed and oil contain a unique combination of many essential nutrients vital for good health – complete protein, essential fatty acids (the “good” fats), minerals, vitamins, fibre and carbohydrate making hemp seed nature’s most nutritionally complete food. Research has shown that hemp oil can boost the natural ability to heal and boost our immune systems. Cosmetics and bodycare made with hemp seed oil as its base is excellent for most skins and dry skin conditions such as eczema and psoriasis.

Hemp was a vital ingredient for the natural apothecaries of the middle ages - it was grown in hospital gardens, and was used by healers such as Hildegard von Bingen (12th century) and the father of natural medicines, Paracelus (16th century)   The Hemp plant stores carbon dioxide and is a sustainable alternative to all petro-chemicals.Due to it’s high cellulose content, hemp is an excellent crop from which to make ethanol and methanol fuels. Through a more complete combustion of hydrocarbons, they provide higher octane than petrol with less carbon monoxide…so, a clean burning fuel that cleans your engine whilst it works. It sounds like we'll be hearing more and more about this exciting plant in the coming years.