Hemp is a variety of the Cannabis, and is possibly one of the earliest plants to be cultivated, dating back to about 8000 BC. The hemp plant and seeds have many uses including rope, clothes, food, paper, textiles, plastics, insulation, biofuel, hemp oil, moisturizing creams, cooking oil, hempcrete building materials, bird feed and as a protein source in human foods. In addition, Hemp is also claimed to require few pesticides and no herbicides, and it has been called a carbon negative raw material (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hemp).

New York State has recently made big financial commitments to building a vital Hemp Industry in NY. Growth includes, a multi-million dollar hemp processing facility in the Greater Binghamton Area, Seed development at Cornel University, Research at Morrisville State College and thousands of acres growing Hemp (https://esd.ny.gov/industrial-hemp).