Indigenous to Asia, hemp is one of the oldest sources of textile fiber. Hemp was known as the king of fiber bearing plants and the standard by which all other fibers were measured. Besides clothing, hemp was widely used for sailcloth and rope because of it's strong fibers. Much of the hemp used in the early United States was grown in Kentucky, Missouri and Illinois. At different times it was grown in thirteen states across the country. The Marihuana Tax Act of 1938 was a result of pressure from newspaper baron W.R. Hearst, among others, who viewed hemp as a rival to his wood based paper production, essentially ending hemp production in the US. A small hemp fiber industry continued in Wisconsin until 1958. In many places hemp grows wild, offering opportunities for indigenous people to create hemp clothes, hemp bags and products. Hemp cultivation does not require any fertilizer or chemical inputs and produces a multipurpose fixed oil from the seeds that contains ideal amounts of Omega oils and essential fatty acids. It's strong fibers, in addition to making an ideal textile material, can be used to produce paper products, livestock feed and bedding, foods, nutritional supplements and body care products. Garuda International offers wonderfully durable hemp bags, hemp packs and hemp wallets in a variety of styles and colors.