Wednesday, June 13, 2007

Soy's new competition: hemp

I'm baaaa-aaack.

At the amazing organic writers' colony, they had hemp and rice and soy milk available, and I was trying to get people to try the hemp. Hemp is an environmental crop--it grows quickly and with little need of fertilizer--and thus I try to promote its use--and in particular it's annoying because IT IS BANNED in the U.S., (although hemp seeds can be imported from Canada). Many of our nation's forefathers grew hemp because it was a smart thing to do--provided food and fiber and didn't wear out the soil (hello, George Washington?) But it's banned here because of a silly, nonsensical association with druuuuuuuuugs, i.e., marijuana. Hemp products do not contain THC, the active ingredient in marijuana.

Hemp seeds have protein, fiber, and are also a good supplemental source of vegetarian Omega-3s, missing in soy and rice milk. Here's an article from the LA Times:

Soy's new competition: hemp
Hemp foods began filtering into grocery stores about five years ago, after the 1998 legalization of industrial hemp farming in Canada. The U.S. currently prohibits commercial cultivation of industrial hemp, but allows the import of seeds, oil, flour and other byproducts to be manufactured into ready-to-eat foods in the U.S.

The plant's shelled seed, or nut, can be added to baked goods and nutritional supplements and bars, sprinkled onto other foods such as salads and yogurt, or eaten alone as a snack. The seed can also be milled into flour, which can be used for baked goods, and pressed to make oil, which can be used in salad dressings, dips, spreads and sauces. (Due to its high unsaturated fat content, hemp oil must be refrigerated and is unsuitable for frying.)

...Hemp appeals to consumers for several reasons. It can be used as an alternative to soy products such as soy milk, which some people can't tolerate. Some people find hemp foods tasty. (We'll get to that in a minute.) Others are attracted to hemp's nutritional value. This may be its strongest draw.

The runty little nut, which resembles a sesame seed, does pack some stellar nutrients.

Two tablespoons of shelled hemp seeds contains 11 grams of protein, no cholesterol and, most important, about 2 grams of the very healthful unsaturated omega-3 fatty acid, alpha-linolenic acid (ALA).

Hemp oil also contains a good ratio — roughly 3 to 1 — of omega-6 fatty acids to omega-3s, says Barry Swanson, a professor in the food science and human nutrition department at Washington State University.

"That is an exceptional ratio, as far as balance is concerned, between omega 6s and omega 3s," Swanson says.

Further, he says, hemp has other good constituents: "The gamma-linoleic acid [an omega-6] and stearidonic acid [an omega-3] in hemp are both things our body needs more of, that don't occur in very many food products."...

read more here

8 comments:

~elise said...

Welcome back! Missed your greenfertility posts while you were away!

GreenFertility said...

Thanks! Nice to be back.

Anonymous said...

I think hemp is a good substitute for soy. With it's great benefit's, it will surely be useful. Though it's availability might cause some problems.

Anonymous said...

True. Hemp has more benefits compared to soy and rice milk. However, it wouldn't be much of a competition if it's banned in the U.S.

Anonymous said...

OK, you convinced me! I stopped by my HFS yesterday and went to pick up some rice milk. They had hemp milk on sale so I decided to try it instead. It costs a little more, but does look very nutritious. Tastes similar to soy. I'll have to stock up while it's on sale this month!

GreenFertility said...

Great! Try more hemp products--get it un-banned!

Anonymous said...

Welcome back and I hope you had an amazing time away!

Yeah, too bad hemp is banned. And raw milk and a many other things that are good for you.

Ali

Anonymous said...

喝花酒
酒店喝酒
暑假打工
寒假打工
酒店小姐
酒店兼職
禮服店
酒店經紀
酒店兼差
酒店
酒店經紀人
酒店現領
酒店經紀爆米花
酒店經紀
酒店打工
酒店上班
假日打工
台北酒店經紀
酒店pt
酒店pt
酒店應酬
粉味
酒店經紀PRETTY GIRL
酒店經濟
酒店經濟
晚上兼差