Hemp bioplastics a huge American opportunity?

Made with plastic composites

When GM debuted the launch of the Chevy Volt at NAIAS a few years ago, it debuted a concept made with composites. Quite simply composites enable shapes that conventional materials cannot replicate. Still, they are too expensive for the mass market today, but most believe that will change in the near future, and many companies are already exploring this opportunity. Nonetheless, what was particularly interesting about the Volt's composites was that they were plastic composites

Hemp based plastic composites, for instance, could represent a significant, green industrial opportunity for America. Hemp, when mixed with wood-pulp based lingen, could create a "strong, nontoxic alternative to petroleum-based plastics" according to researchers.

America has a significant supply of lingen, and America's farming capabilities could bring the best out of hemp, a plant with amazing potential. Lest we forget, hemp was legalized in WWII as part of the war effort.

In addition to bioplastics, clothing, food, etc are other potential applications for hemp. Still, bioplastics alone justify the legalization of hemp, which as we've stated many times, is not a drug. Yet, hemp bioplastics could be just one tiny piece of hemp's commercial and industrial potential.

Bioplastics: Hemp v. corn

Shouldn't hemp be given a chance

Hemp is an excellent candidate for bioplastics, a growing field with huge upside potential. Yet, America's corny culture seems pent on not just making corn our top animal feedstock and source of biofuels, but also the major source of bioplastics. Unfortunately, corn is not a very environmentally friendly.

Back in the early days of Ford, hemp had already been fashioned into bioplastics by Henry himself, and hemp shows vast potential for this application. Most important, hemp is more green than corn, and is easier to produce organically, although it is not entirely pest resistant as some have claimed.

Hemp might not save the world, but it does have significant potential, probably far more potential than corn. Shouldn't America at least give hemp a shot? Let's legalize hemp farming.

Hemp has great automotive potential

Even Henry Ford loved hemp

Here is Henry Ford taking a hammer to a plastic trunk door that was reinforced with resin stiffened with soybean and hemp.

According to the paper, published via Purdue University, Hemp: A New Crop with New Uses for North America, hemp is a natural for the automotive industry because of "considerable advantages for use in conveyance: low density and weight reduction, favorable benefits (compared to glass fibers), no off-gassing of toxic compounds, and price advantages.

Hemp. It's not just about food. It's not just about clothes. It's not just about beauty products. Hemp offers amazing industrial applications. Recently, Ford has renewed its use of hemp, and other automakers, such as Mercedes, also use hemp for automobiles.

So, why is hemp illegal? Let's legalize hemp farming.