Fibre
A long and very strong ‘bast’ fibre, hemp fibre has been used for thousands of years to manufacture clothing, twines, ropes and cordage, and is an excellent complement to fibres such as flax, silk, nettle and cotton in fabric blends. It can be used to produce many weights and blends of fabrics for applications, from the heaviest sofa cover to the finest ball-gown. Hemp fabric also has natural anti-mildew, UV protection and thermodynamic and hypoallergenic properties, making it desirable for use in many products. The fibre also has applications for ‘fibreglass’ and in paper-making.
Cellulose
As a bio-fuel, as a source of paper pulp, in chipboard and MDF for use in construction, as an eco-cement, as insulation, for animal bedding and furniture stuffing, as fuel-logs. Hemp cellulose has myriad uses.
Seed
An incredibly nutritious protein source, an excellent seed oil for skin and digestion, cosmetics, paints, varnishes, binders, burning oils, animal feed and more.
A crop for the future?
With modern farming in big trouble, farmers are being paid not to cultivate their land, and food mountains are burnt in developed countries, while billions of people go hungry in developing countries. Hemp represents a lifeline crop for rural and hunger-prone areas, of particular value for its’ versatility and organic nature. A famine-stricken village could clothe, house and feed themselves from one hemp field!
In the developed world, we still rely on machinery from the turn of the century to harvest and process emerging hemp crops. Gradually, new processing machinery is being designed and implemented, and present machinery converted so that the new hemp crops are just as easy to process as cotton and hay.
