LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION commending the Hemp Industries Association upon
the occasion of holdings its Seventh Annual Hemp History Week from June
6-12, 2016

WHEREAS, The agricultural industry is part of the foundation upon which
our distinct American heritage is built; and
WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body to commend the Hemp
Industries Association upon the occasion of holding its Seventh Annual
Hemp History Week from June 6-12, 2016; and
WHEREAS, Now in its seventh year, Hemp History Week is an industry-
wide effort made possible by the support of the leading natural product
brands known for manufacturing the highest quality hemp products; and
WHEREAS, The American market for hemp products remains the largest
worldwide, and continues to expand with 10.4% market growth achieved in
2015, according to estimates from the Hemp Industries Association; and
WHEREAS, At least 3,900 acres of United States soil were planted with
industrial hemp in 2015, across Colorado, Hawaii, Indiana, Kentucky,
Oregon, Tennessee and Vermont; and
WHEREAS, Industrial hemp has the potential to have a synergistic
impact on a wide range of economies in New York from textiles to build-
ing materials to paper, food, body products and environmental products
such as biofuel; and
WHEREAS, Hemp farming is an important step toward creating raw materi-
als, finished products, and innovative technologies to catalyze a
sustainable future in which every-day products are renewable and grown
using regenerative agriculture; and
WHEREAS, Hemp is a renewable resource which can help reduce market
dependency on synthetics, lumber, cotton, and other non-sustainable
industrial materials; hemp contributes to environmentally responsible
food and fiber production, forest conservation, reduction in agricul-
tural pesticide use, and soil remediation; and
WHEREAS, Furthermore, Hemp sequesters carbon from the atmosphere, thus
mitigating the rise of CO2 levels responsible for climate change, and
pollinators thrive on the proliferous pollen created by hemp plants; and
WHEREAS, 2016 marks the year when the first licenses will be issued to
New York colleges and universities to study industrial hemp growth; and
WHEREAS, Universities will work with New York farmers to study local
methods for growth, harvesting, storage, transportation, and marketing
of crops, helping to secure New York's position at the forefront of the
industry and helping to diversify New York's agricultural economy; and
WHEREAS, On Earth Day 2016, grassroots organizers hosted events across
the country to advocate for hemp farming as part of a larger dialogue on
agriculture and sustainability; from hemp batteries to efficient hemp
homes, industrial hemp is a crop that can grow our future; and
WHEREAS, A renewable resource offering a long list of health and
nutritional benefits, hemp is one of the fastest-growing categories in
the natural foods industry; hemp seed is a rich source of Omega-3 and
Omega-6 essential fatty acids (EFAs), providing both SDA and GLA, high-
ly-digestible protein and naturally-occurring vitamins and minerals,
such as vitamin E and iron, while being a good source of dietary fiber;
and
WHEREAS, In addition, hemp is a complete protein, containing all 10
essential amino acids, with no enzyme inhibitors, making it more digest-
ible by the human body; hemp seed is gluten-free and has no known aller-
gens; and
WHEREAS, The mission of the Hemp Industries Association, a member-
ship-based non-profit trade group, is to represent the interests of the

hemp industry and to encourage the research and development of new
products made from industrial hemp; and
WHEREAS, The Hemp Industries Association strives to educate the public
about the exceptional attributes of hemp products; facilitate the
exchange of information and technology between hemp agriculturists,
processors, manufacturers, distributors and retailers; maintain and
defend the integrity of hemp products; and advocate and support socially
responsible and environmentally sound business practices; now, there-
fore, be it
RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
commend the Hemp Industries Association upon the occasion of holdings
its Seventh Annual Hemp History Week from June 6-12, 2016; and be it
further
RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be tran-
smitted to the Hemp Industries Association.