Hemp Inc. acquires American Sustainable Rubber company

Las Vegas, NV – In an all-stock transaction, the Hemp, Inc. purchased a 100% membership interest from United American Healthcare Corporation (UAHC), a diversified holdings company, to acquire full ownership of American Sustainable Rubber Company, LLC (ASR), which is pursuing large-scale production of natural rubber through a genetically modified rubber source at The Ohio State University. The acquisition will enable Hemp, Inc. to leverage ASR’s proprietary intellectual property to improve its hemp grows and harvesting.

“This is Hemp, Inc.’s second major acquisition in less than 3 months. Our first acquisition was in September, of this year. We acquired Ferris Holding, Inc., a leading co-packer and manufacturer based in Las Vegas, Nevada. This allowed us to expand our product launches in the global hemp market.  And now with the ASR acquisition, I couldn’t be more excited and inspired by the momentum we’re gaining as we continue to fortify our competitive positioning and aggressive marketing strategy. These strategic acquisitions allow us to develop new avenues of long-term profitable growth that I’m sure our shareholders will appreciate,” said Jim Hancock, President of Hemp, Inc.

Before we get into how this acquisition is a win-win for Hemp, Inc. and its shareholders, let’s address the immediate question of, “Why rubber?” And if you think rubber doesn’t affect you, think again. It’s used in over 40,000 commercial products every day. From the obvious auto tires which help you commute to and from work, plane tires that help you travel around the world to the clothes on your back, toys kids play with, and the shoes you have on your feet, rubber is an integral part of our lives.

Integral may be an understatement. Rubber is a critical raw material and is considered “strategic material” deemed critical to National Security by the U.S. Department Logistics Agency.  This year (March, 2021), the U.S. imported $140 million in raw natural rubber. That’s a far cry from the $1.6 billion imported in 2017. The Ohio State University professor and Scientific Advisor to ASR, Katrina Cornish said, “We could be on the cusp of a rubber apocalypse.” Maybe not an apocalypse but a looming shortage is very possible.

Key contributing factors to a possible shortage are: cyclical pricing disruptions (fluctuating prices from volatile market conditions); climate change (tsunamis/typhoons and major flooding that can wash out entire crops); disease (leaf blight fungus that can also wipe out entire crops); and Covid-19 (less workers to harvest the crops). It takes 4-7 years before rubber trees are mature enough to be tapped for latex (the milky sap that is inside of the tree). So, when these key contributing factors wreak havoc on rubber crops, it takes years to harvest another crop.  In our fast-paced lives, do we really have that kind of time?

In addition to the time factor, rubber is not grown in the U.S. The majority of the world’s natural rubber supply is grown on small family farms in South East Asia, Thailand mostly. But what if something were to happen to Thailand? Indonesia? Vietnam? What would happen if we could no longer import rubber for our everyday use and basic necessities? Sadly, the U.S. relies on this foreign import. Complete reliance subjects you to a high amount of risk, primarily environmental and political.

Instead of succumbing to an apocalypse, as Dr. Cornish hinted, there is a solution. ASR is one of the innovative companies passionately pursuing large-scale domestic production of natural rubber through a genetically modified rubber source. That source is dandelions, one of the most familiar plants in the world that just about anyone can identify at a glance and beloved by children for the mere pleasure of “blowing the puffball”.  And ASR has exclusive rights to the genetically modified T.K. Dandelions (Buckeye Gold), developed at The Ohio State University, to be grown in hydroponic settings for rubber production.

The goal is to harvest latex from the plant’s roots by modifying the DNA of the T.K. Dandelion in order to create and identify strains of high yielding rubber. The T.K. Dandelions would be in a controlled indoor hydroponic setting to prove growth and develop multiple harvest schedules (4 or more harvests annually). That’s in one year, not 4-7 years. Aside from the benefit of a quicker growth timeframe, there is less foreign dependency, safer working conditions, and the creation of jobs. ASR will also be able to help supply rubber for tires, flooring, toys, and tens of thousands of other products that currently use rubber from plantations that displace tropical rainforests.  Basically, ASR plans to meet the gap in rubber supply through large-scale indoor farms.

Now, on to how this is a win-win for Hemp, Inc. and its shareholders. Hemp, Inc. owns ASR and all of their technology and intellectual property. Just as the technology is used on the dandelion plant, it can be used to grow hemp more effectively. Without getting too deep into the scientific technical jargon, let’s take a look at the cannabis plant.

In the cannabis plant, one gene uses carbon dioxide more effectively.  There’s a gene that turns off THC. Imagine turning off that one gene that produces THC. What would be left is CBG.  But there is more than one gene that produces THC.  ASR’s technology (100% owned by Hemp, Inc. now) could find all the genes and turn off the ones producing THC completely.  Since CBG is the precursor, we want to turn more genes into CBG only. Additionally, there are over 120 other cannabinoids creating a future for Hemp, Inc. of unlimited possibilities.

We can also use ASR’s technology to grow a plant that is easier to harvest. The hemp plant currently grows up to 12 feet… not very space efficient. Ideally, we’d like to grow a shorter, bushier plant with lots of colas on it. This would be easier to machine harvest, thereby growing super productive plants leading to better harvests. Possibilities and profitability are endless.

“The possibility and profitability this acquisition affords us is a huge game changer for Hemp, Inc. and added value to our shareholders. Leveraging this technology with our hemp grows makes this an unbeatable partnership. ASR is one of the leading players in this burgeoning space so the value we’ll be able to bring to the entire market is unparalleled,” said Hancock.