Interestingly, tomatoes, hemp, and hydrogen have one thing in common. They are all victims of misinformation that put a bn on their use. Such is the contradiction, harmless products that could have played a positive role for the economy and society were shunned for generations.
Unbelievably, for almost 200 years, Europe believed tomatoes were poisonous. So much so, the European believed people fell sick, and died after eating tomatoes. Unfortunately, the culprit was pewter dishes preferred by the upper classes. The tomato acid when in contact with pewter dishes leached good amount of lead to make the content of the dish poisonous.
Later, the advent of Italian and porcelain dishware finally provided a solution to the problem. Nonetheless, due to the myth that stayed in people’s mind for a long time Europe was much North America in terms of tomato consumption for a long time.
Facing competition from hemp, pharmaceutical companies conspire for its prohibition
Meanwhile, the prohibition of hemp is surrounded by a more nuanced story and challenging explanations.
In fact, the alleged conspirators behind prohibition of hemp have been industrialists from the paper, plastic, and pharmaceuticals sector. This is because they sought regulations to ban the use of hemp, which was emerging as a competitor.
Among a slew of causes of vilification of hemp, racism is the best-documented one.
Interestingly, the fear-mongering for hemp and cannabis has ended in most places. To top this, hemp and cannabis are making valuable contribution for nutrition, healthcare, and fiber. Nonetheless, the stigma of false claims of prohibition of hemp and cannabis continues in many places.
On the other hand, unlike the ban on hemp, the ban on hydrogen gas in the U.S. and Canada is negligible.
