Canadian Hemp Growers Blast
Back At Reefer Madness Study from Health Canada
See
Reefer Madness About
Hemp-Seed Oil From Health CanadaJuly 28, 1999
From The Globe and Mail
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By Anne McIlroy, The Globe and Mail
HEMP IS HARMLESS, ANGRY GROWERS SAY
Report Done For Health Canada That Warns Of Health Risk Called Alarmist
Ottawa—Cheeseburgers pose more of a danger to humans than hemp burgers, say
Canadian hemp growers who are furious at a report done for Health Canada that says their
products may pose a health risk.
Ruth Shamai, who owns R & D Hemp Inc. in Toronto, said
yesterday that the study done for Health Canada shows that there is still a prejudice
against hemp because it is the same species of plant that produces marijuana.
She said the federal government should be more worried about the fatty foods many
Canadians eat that lead to heart attacks and other health problems. Hemp, on the other
hand, is a healthy substitute for animal protein such as beef and chicken and can lead to
lower cholesterol levels, she said.
"The hospitals are full of all kinds of people who have been
eating the kind of crap Health Canada allows people to eat," an angry Ms. Shamai
said. "What are consumers going to do, go back to their awful fatty burgers?"
Hemp is the same plant as marijuana, but is bred to be low in
delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, the active ingredient in dope that makes people high
when they smoke it.
Hemp as a crop was legalized last year, and foods made from
hemp— including oil, seeds and even pasta, brownies and ice cream—by law can
contain only 10 parts of THC per million. They are starting to become available in
Canada.
But the report carried out for Health Canada, which has not been reviewed by other
scientists to see if its conclusions are valid, said that even the small levels of hemp in
food and cosmetics may cause developmental problems, especially in babies and teenagers.
It was based on a review of the scientific literature regarding exposure to THC. The Body
Shop and other purveyors of hemp products say the study is speculative, unsubstantiated
and alarmist.
Yesterday, hemp growers were furious at The Globe and Mail for
running a story on a scientific study before it had been peer reviewed. It was obtained
under access-to-information legislation. Health Canada says it won’t consider any
warnings or other measures until it is sure its conclusions are valid.
Eric Hughes, a spokesman for the Canadian Industrial Hemp Council, said there are
several studies, including one carried out in the Netherlands and another in Jamaica, that
found no long-term effects from smoking marijuana.
Hemp products contain such minuscule amounts of THC, there is no way they would pose
any kind of serious threat, he said.
Copyright: 1999, The Globe and Mail Company
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