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posted by martyb on Friday April 12 2019, @10:55PM   Printer-friendly
from the how-do-you-make-gin-from-hemp? dept.

Phys.org:

Richard Evans is on a mission to save the world with hemp.
...
Richard says hemp is "renewable, sustainable and clean" and can be used to "create foods, proteins, fibres and medicines".

If that wasn't enough, Richard also says the plant would be useful for decontaminating soil, storing carbon and could even be a contender to replace the oil industry.

The diverse potential of hemp is why Mirreco created its specialised machine—a world-first invention capable of processing hemp in a new way.

"I realised a few years ago that the bottleneck in the global hemp industry is processing," says Richard.

The machine allows for processing at farms, with rapid conversion into numerous materials that can be used for many purposes.

Eli Whitney's Cotton Gin saved cotton farming in the American South. Perhaps Mirreco's machine could do the same for hemp?


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  • (Score: 2, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 12 2019, @10:58PM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 12 2019, @10:58PM (#828779)

    Clearly this missionary has been smoking his own product.

  • (Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 12 2019, @11:01PM (3 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 12 2019, @11:01PM (#828783)

    ... perpetuated the slavery of African Americans. Is Richard Evans proposing that we repeal the 13th Amendment and put all the uppity negroes back to work on hemp farms? Because that would be unacceptably racist in this day and age.

    • (Score: 2) by krishnoid on Friday April 12 2019, @11:14PM (2 children)

      by krishnoid (1156) on Friday April 12 2019, @11:14PM (#828787)

      I say we run a contest between a human hemp-picker and a mechanical one. Unfortunately, without universal healthcare that includes field workers, even if the human wins, s/he may still not live to see their reward. Just make sure you bring along a portable defibrillator.

      • (Score: 2, Interesting) by khallow on Saturday April 13 2019, @01:10PM

        by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Saturday April 13 2019, @01:10PM (#828947) Journal
        So we have to add the cost of universal health care to the cost of the worker, right?
      • (Score: 2) by srobert on Saturday April 13 2019, @05:27PM

        by srobert (4803) on Saturday April 13 2019, @05:27PM (#829011)

        ... and before I let your picker beat me down,
        I'll die with a hemp stalk in my hand.
        I'll die with a hemp stalk in my hand.
                                                                                                    the Ballad of John "Hemp" Henry

  • (Score: 2) by MostCynical on Friday April 12 2019, @11:24PM (8 children)

    by MostCynical (2589) on Friday April 12 2019, @11:24PM (#828789) Journal

    Calling Betteridge!
    Betteridge?

    I hope people do embrace hemp. Requires less water than cotton, grows faster, requires less fertiliser.

    --
    "I guess once you start doubting, there's no end to it." -Batou, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
    • (Score: 2) by bob_super on Friday April 12 2019, @11:52PM

      by bob_super (1357) on Friday April 12 2019, @11:52PM (#828795)

      Betteridge gets summoned by the word "the", before you event reach the "?" at the end.

      Like for green energy, there is no such thing as the key.
      "A major contributor as part of a broad spectrum of solutions" doesn't make for an attractive headline, though.

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @12:10AM (3 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @12:10AM (#828798)

      The more complex processing and legal issues are what are holding hemp back. Without the legal issues, processing isn't so much an issue. Plus, hemp has so many uses grows in a much wider range of climates.

      • (Score: 2) by Immerman on Saturday April 13 2019, @02:17PM (2 children)

        by Immerman (3985) on Saturday April 13 2019, @02:17PM (#828958)

        Perhaps - but without the processing, hemp would be more profitable, which would increase the pressure on lawmakers to remove the legal issues.

        • (Score: 3, Informative) by NotSanguine on Saturday April 13 2019, @02:40PM (1 child)

          by NotSanguine (285) <NotSanguineNO@SPAMSoylentNews.Org> on Saturday April 13 2019, @02:40PM (#828962) Homepage Journal

          While it is true that recreational cannabis is the largest cash crop in the US [drugscience.org] by dollar value, cannabis grown for its psychoactive properties is not as useful for fibers and industrial use as hemp, which has minimal amounts of psychoactive chemicals.

          This is because the psychoactive chemicals are concentrated in the buds and flowering tops of the cannabis plant.

          Growers of recreational cannabis grow strains that have been bred to maximize the buds, flowering tops and cannabinoid content, while hemp grown for industrial use is bred to maximize the stems and roots, as that's where the bulk of the fibrous materials are.

          As such, it's not really a good comparison between recreational cannabis and cotton crops.

          --
          No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
          • (Score: 2) by Immerman on Saturday April 13 2019, @03:02PM

            by Immerman (3985) on Saturday April 13 2019, @03:02PM (#828975)

            I'm talking about industrial hemp, not marijuana. Lots of legal hurdles for hemp, though it's getting better. If you look at the history, cannabis (of all kinds) was made illegal in the US thanks to an alliance of those who wanted to undermine the anti-war movement with the lumber and pharmaceutical industries. And industry was more interested in shutting down industrial hemp.

    • (Score: 4, Interesting) by Runaway1956 on Saturday April 13 2019, @01:44AM

      by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Saturday April 13 2019, @01:44AM (#828828) Journal

      You didn't take that fertilizer bit far enough. It requires almost no fertilizer, true, but it actually adds to the soil. Cotton and corn are the two crops that deplete the fertility of the soil the worst. All other crops tend to put something good back into the soil, and hemp is almost as good as a legume crop in that respect. Hemp was an important part of crop rotation when it was commonly grown.

    • (Score: 0, Disagree) by Anonymous Coward on Monday April 15 2019, @11:15AM (1 child)

      by Anonymous Coward on Monday April 15 2019, @11:15AM (#829757)

      It's fibers are coarse and the fabric made from it is itchy. Cotton > flax > hemp. Flax fabric is somewhat tolerable, but wrinkles too easily. Hemp ... is good only for sacks, ropes, and mats.

      • (Score: 2) by jasassin on Monday April 15 2019, @08:46PM

        by jasassin (3566) <jasassin@gmail.com> on Monday April 15 2019, @08:46PM (#830040) Homepage Journal

        It's fibers are coarse and the fabric made from it is itchy. Cotton > flax > hemp.

        Nothing could be farther from the truth. My 80% hemp 20% cotton t-shirt was super slinky and smooth like silk.

        --
        jasassin@gmail.com GPG Key ID: 0xE6462C68A9A3DB5A
  • (Score: 0, Troll) by Appalbarry on Friday April 12 2019, @11:28PM (2 children)

    by Appalbarry (66) on Friday April 12 2019, @11:28PM (#828790) Journal

    Seriously, just no.

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @08:31AM (1 child)

      by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @08:31AM (#828908)

      Wow, that's a real impressive argument you got there. I'm so convinced!

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @11:04AM

        by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @11:04AM (#828934)

        Seriously, thanks.

  • (Score: 5, Interesting) by ilPapa on Friday April 12 2019, @11:34PM (29 children)

    by ilPapa (2366) on Friday April 12 2019, @11:34PM (#828791) Journal

    I'm old enough to remember when the same people saying this is unpossible said that solar and wind energy could never work because of cloudy days and "sometimes the wind don't blow, herp derp." Then they tried to tell us that "windmills cause cancer".

    So maybe shut up and let the hemp researchers do their thing. Who fucking knows what they might be able to do? Certainly not you all.

    --
    You are still welcome on my lawn.
    • (Score: -1, Troll) by khallow on Saturday April 13 2019, @12:13AM (27 children)

      by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Saturday April 13 2019, @12:13AM (#828800) Journal

      I'm old enough to remember when the same people saying this is unpossible said that solar and wind energy could never work because of cloudy days and "sometimes the wind don't blow, herp derp." Then they tried to tell us that "windmills cause cancer".

      Did they try to tell you straw men were made of windmills? Why didn't you listen!?!

      So maybe shut up and let the hemp researchers do their thing. Who fucking knows what they might be able to do? Certainly not you all.

      Because we've never had someone sell us a vaporware product before. Maybe it'll be different this time.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @01:14AM (11 children)

        by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @01:14AM (#828813)

        What's you shtick on this one? Hemp is a gateway drug? Do you have something against letting people grow the stuff?

        • (Score: -1, Troll) by khallow on Saturday April 13 2019, @01:20AM (10 children)

          by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Saturday April 13 2019, @01:20AM (#828816) Journal

          What's you shtick on this one?

          Trolling for the AC vibes.

          • (Score: 2, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @01:28AM (4 children)

            by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @01:28AM (#828817)

            We expect nothing less from the intellectually bankrupt. Pissing people off is all you've got left. Well, there is always the last box option if you really can't take your horrible existence.

            • (Score: 1) by khallow on Saturday April 13 2019, @02:21AM (3 children)

              by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Saturday April 13 2019, @02:21AM (#828846) Journal
              That's pretty sanctimonious coming from someone who didn't add anything to the conversation. Here's what the conversation looked like [soylentnews.org] when I talked to a grown up. He got a respectful reply explaining my earlier post. He also got thoughtful posts from two other people.
              • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @03:15PM (2 children)

                by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @03:15PM (#828980)

                You started the shitty reply chain, take yer own high minded advice huh?

                • (Score: 1) by khallow on Saturday April 13 2019, @03:22PM (1 child)

                  by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Saturday April 13 2019, @03:22PM (#828982) Journal
                  The grown ups didn't have a problem working with that.

                  high minded advice

                  No pun intended, amirite?

                  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 14 2019, @03:47AM

                    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 14 2019, @03:47AM (#829226)

                    I imagine you're a Libertarian, Republicans are pretty big on the whole "personal responsibility" trope.

          • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @02:17AM (4 children)

            by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @02:17AM (#828842)

            :-) I can dig, man! I'll give ya credit, you catch some good ones, and the regulars always come back for more too. A lot of them got a mouth full of hooks. It must be some "piercing" fashion thing. Keep on playin'

            • (Score: 1) by khallow on Saturday April 13 2019, @02:31AM (3 children)

              by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Saturday April 13 2019, @02:31AM (#828849) Journal
              Thanks, someone has to fight the good fight. While I tend more to bait the negative nancies, they have a point here. Way too often we get a technology advance advertised only to have it disappear from sight like a submarine with a gaping hole in the side. I think it's telling that we don't much about this hemp processing machine except that it needs investors.
              • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @05:08AM (2 children)

                by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @05:08AM (#828877)

                someone has to fight the good fight.

                Yeah, well, as the good doctor said, *Don't bury yourself in the part*

                • (Score: 1) by khallow on Saturday April 13 2019, @12:53PM (1 child)

                  by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Saturday April 13 2019, @12:53PM (#828945) Journal
                  No worries here. I don't have to try hard.
                  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 14 2019, @12:33AM

                    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 14 2019, @12:33AM (#829185)

                    Well dude, I would not call THAT a good thing! I mean, being a dick comes natural to ya?? You really ARE one? Damn, I guess we have you to think for Trump/Clinton then, huh?

      • (Score: 5, Informative) by Runaway1956 on Saturday April 13 2019, @01:49AM (14 children)

        by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Saturday April 13 2019, @01:49AM (#828831) Journal

        Except, hemp isn't vaporware. Hemp has a long history in agriculture. It was commonly grown throughout the world, right up until DuPont created their nylon to replace it. Prior to the prohibition of this common plant, ships carried tons of hemp, in the form of cordage and/or sails.

        No, hemp isn't the end-all and be-all of sustainability. But hemp is a very important part of sustainability.

        • (Score: 4, Informative) by ilPapa on Saturday April 13 2019, @02:03AM (1 child)

          by ilPapa (2366) on Saturday April 13 2019, @02:03AM (#828837) Journal

          Plus, (and you probably already know this), there are tasty snacks made from hemp. The toasted hemp hearts are delicious, high in protein and delicious on snacks, salads etc. I picked up a bag of salted, roasted hemp seeds at the Grocery Outlet the other day, and I've been snacking on them while watching baseball.

          Hemp oil is good stuff for the skin and can even be used as fuel, and CBD oil works great on the little bursitis in my shoulder from an old injury. You can make flour from hemp that bakes into a very tasty bread and it's a fuck of a lot healthier than wheat flour.

          The only reason it's not a big cash crop in the US is because of our puritanical laws against pot. I wish the hemp industry well.

          --
          You are still welcome on my lawn.
          • (Score: 5, Informative) by dry on Saturday April 13 2019, @05:02AM

            by dry (223) on Saturday April 13 2019, @05:02AM (#828872) Journal

            Hemp seed also contains all the proteins needed by people as well as all the essential oils. With some greens, you could live a long time on a hemp seed diet.
            Hemp oil was also heavily used in industry, the paint industry by itself used a shit ton.
            What killed it was when someone invented a machine to separate the fibers and started making cheap high quality paper. Hearst had just heavily invested in pulp paper and between having his son-in-law in government and a huge publishing empire to put out fake news, he removed the competition and made the government that more powerful.

        • (Score: 3, Informative) by MostCynical on Saturday April 13 2019, @02:05AM (3 children)

          by MostCynical (2589) on Saturday April 13 2019, @02:05AM (#828838) Journal
          --
          "I guess once you start doubting, there's no end to it." -Batou, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
          • (Score: 2) by jasassin on Sunday April 14 2019, @01:25AM (2 children)

            by jasassin (3566) <jasassin@gmail.com> on Sunday April 14 2019, @01:25AM (#829201) Homepage Journal

            I came to give props to the clothes. I had a hemp (80% hemp 20% cotton by law) t-shirt. It was super slinky like silk. They are expensive now, but hopefully that will change as more people are accepting hemp. They are really missing out on the ultimate fabric!

            --
            jasassin@gmail.com GPG Key ID: 0xE6462C68A9A3DB5A
            • (Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Sunday April 14 2019, @03:33AM (1 child)

              by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Sunday April 14 2019, @03:33AM (#829223) Journal

              I've read many times that hemp outlasts cotton fabric of the same weight about 7 times. What was your experience with your hemp shirt?

        • (Score: 2, Interesting) by khallow on Saturday April 13 2019, @02:10AM (7 children)

          by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Saturday April 13 2019, @02:10AM (#828839) Journal
          The issue is not the hemp, but rather the utility of a harvesting machine with a rather vague description. I did a web search and the only details that I can find is that it does something with hemp, and they're seeking investors. That sends up warning flags for me.
          • (Score: 4, Informative) by dry on Saturday April 13 2019, @05:07AM (6 children)

            by dry (223) on Saturday April 13 2019, @05:07AM (#828876) Journal

            You need to find the 1930's era Popular Mechanics that had the article about the machine that separated the fiber which made hemp much more competitive. Capitalism killed it though, media mogul published lots of fake news to protect his pulp paper investments as well as influencing government by offering to put all those G-MEN back to work after prohibition ended.

            • (Score: 1) by khallow on Saturday April 13 2019, @01:06PM (5 children)

              by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Saturday April 13 2019, @01:06PM (#828946) Journal
              Just because someone had a working design 80 years ago doesn't mean that this business has a working machine today.
              • (Score: 2) by dry on Saturday April 13 2019, @03:42PM (4 children)

                by dry (223) on Saturday April 13 2019, @03:42PM (#828985) Journal

                It shows the possibility.

                • (Score: 1) by khallow on Saturday April 13 2019, @07:35PM (3 children)

                  by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Saturday April 13 2019, @07:35PM (#829044) Journal
                  The possibility would still exist even if that 80 year old design didn't exist. What gets me is the lack of details about which I've already spoken.
                  • (Score: 2) by dry on Saturday April 13 2019, @07:46PM (2 children)

                    by dry (223) on Saturday April 13 2019, @07:46PM (#829050) Journal

                    What is there to do? Separating the fibre from the balst (sp?) was the labour intensive part of the process. Separating the oil from the seeds is simple and has been done for a long time.
                    Perhaps they're doing something with the cellulose that is left over after removing the fibre?

                    • (Score: 1) by khallow on Saturday April 13 2019, @08:03PM (1 child)

                      by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Saturday April 13 2019, @08:03PM (#829067) Journal
                      I gather that they're throwing the whole plant in and getting this stuff mostly separated at the other end. One machine that would do everything would be rather nice.
                      • (Score: 2) by dry on Sunday April 14 2019, @12:17AM

                        by dry (223) on Sunday April 14 2019, @12:17AM (#829181) Journal

                        Shouldn't be hard to do. Have to separate the seeds first, which must be well established tech, then the fibres.

    • (Score: 1, Troll) by takyon on Saturday April 13 2019, @12:16AM

      by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Saturday April 13 2019, @12:16AM (#828802) Journal

      We should illegalize solar and wind.

      --
      [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
  • (Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @01:47AM (2 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @01:47AM (#828830)

    Hemp, or the other more common name: weed, grow super well. It's weed after all. And since it grow so well, it means it has a good CO2 conversion which would be good for environment, right?
    Back the it was super common, I remember my dad talking about how a friend would just bring weed and cook it after a walk, other uses is textile and since it was used for sails, it must have been already pretty good.

    For some reason, it's pretty much underused, not sure why.

    • (Score: 2, Informative) by khallow on Saturday April 13 2019, @02:11AM (1 child)

      by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Saturday April 13 2019, @02:11AM (#828840) Journal

      For some reason, it's pretty much underused, not sure why.

      Casualty of the Reefer Madness.

      • (Score: 2) by Immerman on Saturday April 13 2019, @03:06PM

        by Immerman (3985) on Saturday April 13 2019, @03:06PM (#828977)

        *Cause* of the reefer madness, along with undermining the anti-war effort.

        The lumber and pharmaceutical industries were happy to help shut down an extremely cost-effective competitor. Not that hemp makes good lumber - but lumber would be a lot less profitable without being able to cash in on the byproducts like paper.

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @03:41AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @03:41AM (#828857)
    No hope in rope.
  • (Score: 2) by CZB on Saturday April 13 2019, @04:49AM (4 children)

    by CZB (6457) on Saturday April 13 2019, @04:49AM (#828868)

    Hemp is a great opportunity for someone with several billion dollars to restart the complex production, and win market share from tree and plastic products. I'll grow it - when there is a market buying it, harvesting equipment available to rent, and agronomic advisers who can recommend varieties, fertilizers and pesticides.
    hopefully sometime in the next 50 years.

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @06:26AM (3 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @06:26AM (#828893)

      You hit the reality of it.

      When the market demands it. It will start to be there.

      This story is the same kind of story the stoners like to trout out all the time to justify getting high.

      When the market needs it we will see it come back. I do not think people quite realize exactly how cheap oil/coal is. It is wildly cheaper than growing.

      • (Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @08:42AM

        by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @08:42AM (#828910)

        I do not think people quite realize exactly how cheap oil/coal is. It is wildly cheaper than growing.

        That's only true as long as you don't pay for the externalities and keep getting massive subsidies. Both are likely to change in near future.

      • (Score: 3, Informative) by Spamalope on Saturday April 13 2019, @10:20AM

        by Spamalope (5233) on Saturday April 13 2019, @10:20AM (#828923) Homepage

        What's that got to do with a primarily fiber product? It'll be financially justified based on that.
        It'd be like wood pulp. If you're already running a sawmill, you've got the sawdust from the profitable lumber business. The costs to make wood pulp by itself are irrelevant because it's never done that way.
        Using byproducts from hemp fiber production would be the same.
        FYI: Good hemp rope feels great in the hand, looks great dyed and makes better knots than dacron. (its 'bite' is better despite feeling soft - many classic knots fail with modern ropes as they're too slippery) If it were made in volume so it's cost competitive it'd be viable, certainly for everything jute rope is used for and many indoor applications where dacron is used but stretch isn't a problem.

        I wonder how hemp clothing compares if it's made with the same level of refinement that goes into cotton cloth. The small run cloth I've felt seemed nice enough that cost is likely the limiting factor. You might use it in crop rotation with cotton and do both though.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @07:41PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @07:41PM (#829049)

        the market demand is already there. only pigs and corps preventing it from being met.

  • (Score: 2) by PinkyGigglebrain on Saturday April 13 2019, @05:13PM (1 child)

    by PinkyGigglebrain (4458) on Saturday April 13 2019, @05:13PM (#829010)

    These claim are nothing new, all the benefits and advantages to using Hemp were laid out by Jack Herer when he published The Emperor Wears No Cloths [jackherer.com] (currently in it's 12th printing)

    A friend loaned me a copy way back when and it completely changed my views on the plant. I went from a staunch supporter of the "War on Drugs" and "Just say No" to a major critic after reading, and actually thinking about, the history of Hemp and it's myriad of uses.that go beyond just recreation.

    Its a good read and I recommend it to anyone who wants get some real and honest facts about Hemp as opposed to the FUD they have been getting from new sources and political publications.

    --
    "Beware those who would deny you Knowledge, For in their hearts they dream themselves your Master."
    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @08:38PM

      by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 13 2019, @08:38PM (#829097)

      Thanks, added to my to-read list.

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