Before it was legal to grow hemp in Canada, Christina Anderman was experimenting with hemp seed recipes.

"I've always been a food lover," says the owner of The Cool Hemp Company.

"I had learned that hemp was really nutritious, and wanted to help get the word out about its benefits."

After much experimentation, this small, family-run company in Killaloe, Ont., (near Pembroke) now makes organic, nondairy frozen desserts that are as nutritious as they are refreshing.

About 10 years ago, Anderman's research told her that hemp seeds were a rich source of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, essential in our diets but lacking in most foods. They are also high in protein, making them a natural choice for vegetarians and vegans.

She started buying them from outside the country, adding them to the organic vegetable entrees she was already marketing.

Her hemp halvah was popular, but labour intensive. "Our home/office/business is solar powered," she says of the homestead she shares with her husband Robbie and their two sons. "We were using a hand grinder, and the process was all very labour intensive."

Contracting with a nearby bakery, she tried hemp cookies, too. Cool Hemp's Energy Cookies are still part of their product line.

"One of the benefits of hemp, is that it has easily digested protein, and you can eat it raw," says Anderman.

"The essential fatty acids are better, too, if they are not cooked."

This is how her frozen desserts were born.

The hemp seed is made into a milk, similar to soy milk, then processed with other ingredients like organic maple syrup and fairly-traded sugar and chocolate to make vegan-friendly frozen desserts, similar to gelato.

Before the advent of steamships, hemp was a widely grown crop in Canada. The fibre from its stalks was the preferred material for rope, sail riggings, sailcloth and durable clothing. The Canadian government was promoting the protein content of the seeds even then.

Having marijuana as a close cousin and the public's misunderstanding of hemp's usefulness is a challenge to Anderman's marketing efforts.

When its cultivation was made legal once again in 1998, she had a hard time convincing farmers in her area to grow it for her.

She still advises them to only plant small quantities until more industries catch on to this easily renewed source of fibre for paper, fabric and even building materials.

When that happens, Anderman plans to pack her frozen desserts in hemp-fibre cartons.

Until then, look for Cool Hemp products in recycled or tree-free paper cartons in natural food stores across Ontario, including Goodness Me natural food stores, The Horn of Plenty in Dundas, and Vital Planet health foods in Hamilton.

You can learn more about The Cool Hemp Company online at coolhemp.ca, or e-mail hemp@coolhemp.com.

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