In most of the informative articles or stories, the contrast between Hemp and CBD (cannabinoids) crops is explained inadequately. These days, the market value of CBD has touched the sky and the industry is independent with all its uniqueness. But some difficulties are still hampering the industry. Due to the shifting legalities of marijuana and also its controversial reputation, the CBD users are having to confront several complications and confusions.
So, understanding the difference between Hemp and the CBD crops has become immensely necessary. We are here to discuss the characteristics of marijuana and hemp, and how they are linked to cannabis.
Differences between CBD & Hemp
CBD (cannabis) is a genus from the flowering plants, which belongs to the Cannabaceae family. It is made up of three species, which are Cannabis indica, Cannabis sativa, and Cannabis ruderalis.
Hemp/Marijuana is the strain of cannabis. In fact, they can’t be considered as plants.
Both CBD and Hemp are groupings of cannabis. Let’s clarify the smoke on the misinformed facts regarding the subject.
What is CBD?
It classifies the varieties of cannabis that contain much more THC than the Hemp compounds. The CBD compounds induce euphoric or psychotropic effects on its users.
What is Hemp?
It’s only a term that classifies the assortments of Cannabis containing 0.3% or less THC (dry weight). During the earliest innovations of humans, the hemp fibers were used to produce rope, paper, clothing, food, housing material, etc.
The confusion that Hemp & CBD Create
If we go through the context that describes both Hemp and CBD, we discover that the characterizing trademark among hemp and marijuana depends on a single factor.The factor is the measure of THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol),that decides whether the consumer gets high or not.
In short, the intoxicating properties present in each of the plants create the basic differences between the two. So, we can undoubtedly say that sorting cannabis as either CBD or Hemp is like classifying all the products of the citrus class as either harsh or sweet, without understanding the various attributes between any two of the organic products.
Besides all these arguments, another reality may appear quite ironic to all the facts and researches; sometimes CBD and hemp may appear indistinguishable from each other.
Now, let’s discuss some of their key differences
You may still get confused with the different effects, usages, and contrasting legal regulations of the two. To understand the differences with utter clarity, let’s consider some of the key differences between hemp and CBD. Here’s how they follow:
Differences of Their Compositions:-
The chemical compositions contained with each plant are separately defining. Hemp contains less than 0.3%THC, while CBD contains around 30% of that.
Differences in Legalities:-
The rules and regulations between the two vary a lot for a reason that is quite obvious. The difference between the THC levels of CBD and Hemp brings the difference between their legalities.
Hemp had been regulated as an unlawful substance long back, under the Controlled Substance Act of 1970. Afterward, under the Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018, hemp was federally authorized in light of the fact that the hemp-inferred items don’t contain over 0.3% THC.
On the other hand, CBD with the presence of its high level of THC compounds is banned at most of the places and treated as a controlled substance. Even if a few states legalize the substance for some medicinal and recreational purposes, it’s still federally banned everywhere.
Differences between the Cultivating Processes:-
CBD and Hemp require different conditions for their growth, as they are harvested for contrasting purposes.
CBD needs controlled environments so that female plants producing yield budding flowers can be cultivated. For growing CBD, a grower must take proper care of each stage of the plants’ life cycle and carefully maintain the environmental conditions (lighting, temperature, humidity) that the plants need.
On the contrary, Hemp is grown outdoors most of the time. It grows to its maximized size and yield naturally, without any attention and control.
Differences of Their Usages:-
Both CBD and Hemp present a vast range of usages, unique according to their compositions. In the CBD compounds, THC works as a powerful psychoactive agent, which induces the euphoric effects of being ‘high’. Hemp, with its therapeutic applications, is popular for recreational usages. In addition to that, hemp is popular for manufacturing a wide variety of products (industrial, medicinal, and food products).
Concluding Thoughts
We hopefully have successfully clarified all of your complexions and confusion and the differences have been elucidated to you properly. Despite the use of the terms “CBD” and “Hemp”, there is a huge necessity of making people understand the differences between the two.
Because, in a legal context, everyone must understand what the two terms mean, what makes them different from each other, and how they relate to the marijuana plants. Knowing all these will make the people understand their rights on the particular usages and stay away from the legal complications that he/she may confront while using cannabis products.
