Hemp is a very important, natural growing plant that could create a new economic sector within agriculture.
Hemp grows in abundance without the use of herbicides or pesticides and is therefore very environmentally friendly. Moreover, it uses 1/20th the amount of water in growing and processing than does cotton. The processing method is organic as there is no need to use caustic soda or the like to break down the hemp fibers. Hemp fibers can be processed to make paper. As with wood, the processing method creates some 2,000 chlorinated compounds whereas hemp processing creates none of these. Hemp paper can also last up to 1,500 years compared to the 25-100 year span of wood-based paper. Hemp can be harvested 120 days after seed while trees take nearly 100 years to grow.