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Hawaii Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard is among key state and federal legislators who will address the first-ever Hawaii Hemp Conference in Hilo, Hawaii June 10. Rep. Gabbard has supported the Industrial Hemp Farming Act that would allow farming industrial hemp in Hawaii and nationwide beyond its current status as a state-controlled industry, and has urged the U.S. Congress to pass bipartisan legislation to federally decriminalize marijuana.

Hemp Supporters State Senators Russell Ruderman and Mike Gabbard will also address the conference along with a lineup of hemp industry advocates and stakeholders.

“Hawaii has several good legislators who understand this, and who seem committed to doing the right thing for the people of Hawaii,” said event producer Morris Beegle, Colorado Hemp Company. “The timing couldn’t be better to push hemp across the finish line, not only for Hawaii but across the entire United States.”

The Hawaii event also marks the 8th annual Hemp History Week which runs June 5-11 and will be celebrated across the country

Hawaii, not unlike many other states, has a big need for a replacement crop for the state’s declining sugar industry that can help rejuvenate both the local economy and the environment. With sugar production all but vanished, Hawaiians are working on restoring the ecological damage the plantations inflicted on the islands.

Hawaii’s year-round warm weather has the potential or 3 harvests a year, unlike more temperate climates on the mainland that can only grow one. Its fertile volcanic soil has been harnessed for generations as the perfect medium for both small farms and large operations, such as the sugar cane plantations, Beegle noted.