Hemp was a major economic crop in the Eastern US until 1937 when it was classified as a Schedule 1 banned narcotic and outlawed.
Hemp has been prohibited to cultivate and sell since then, until President Trump signed the 2018 Farm Bill, which removed hemp from the Controlled Substances Act, making it lawful.
Textile production wastes and plastic microparticles are polluting our water, air, and land more than ever before.
Hemp may be the answer to our issues, given its revival as a cash crop and capacity to fit into regenerative agricultural systems.
According to the EPA, over 260 million tonnes of garbage are created each year; the majority of this waste is non-biodegradable and ends up in landfills.
Hemp products may be utilized as ecologically beneficial alternatives for ordinary things that end up in the garbage, in addition to its usage in agricultural systems.
What do we know about Plastic?
Plastic trash is a hot concern in the sustainability community these days. Currently, the plastic we use is made from fossil fuels and takes over 400 years to degrade, which is a disaster for the ecosystem given that we have 9.2 billion tonnes of it.
Hemp, on the other hand, may be used to replace plastic in anything from bottles to supermarket bags.
Why not go back in time to when organic hemp cellulose fibres were used to make some of the first plastics? Hemp is biodegradable since it is an organic substance. While it is difficult to create a plastic made entirely of hemp and other plant fibres, several corporations, such as Coca-Cola and Lego, are already employing hemp-based plastic.
We may limit our exposure to hazardous compounds present in plastic and reduce the quantity of plastic that ends up in landfills and the ocean by converting it to hemp and plant-fiber plastic.
There’s no need for the “Great Pacific Garbage Patch” to expand anymore!
What do we know about Cardboard and Paper?
Are you aware that the Declaration of Independence was written on hemp paper? Yes, it is correct! Hemp paper has a considerably older history than the paper we use today. The paper we use today is produced of wood, which contributes significantly to deforestation.
Deforestation contributes to climate change since the trees that absorb carbon dioxide are no longer there, and the machinery utilized emits a lot of CO2. To mention a few issues, deforestation can cause soil erosion and displace wildlife and indigenous people.
What do we know about Rope, Textiles, and Fabrics?
Clothing, rope, and canvas have all been made from hemp at some point in history. Industrial hemp was originally employed in textiles during the Iron Age, and it was also used for rope on ships, including Christopher Columbus’, and the first American flag, which is on display at the National Museum of American History.
While certain firms, such as Sanuk, continue to employ hemp in textiles, cotton and polyester have taken over the garment industry. Polyester is made of plastic, whereas conventionally farmed cotton pollutes the environment, causes soil erosion, and utilizes a lot of pesticides. Hemp produces four times the amount of material like cotton and is four times warmer.
Hemp is more durable than cotton and, rather of wearing out or weakening, becomes softer with each wash. Hemp clothing is also antibacterial, odor-resistant, breathable, UV-protective, and fire-resistant.
How can Organic Hemp contribute to the manufacture of Building Materials?
Concrete, metal, carpet, wood, and insulation—all of the essential foundations for constructing a large structure such as a house—can be replaced with hemp alternatives. Hempcrete is a fantastic industrial hemp-based product.
This hemp and lime concrete is seven times lighter and equally as robust as regular concrete.
It’s a terrific insulator, but it’s also breathable, non-toxic, mold and insect resistant, and it lasts for hundreds of years. Hempcrete may not only be combined in a mortar-like regular concrete but it can also be purchased as bricks.
Surprisingly, hemp may be used as a steel substitute. Hemp is really more durable than steel. It’s ten times stronger than steel and six times more effective at mending and bending.
Cars built of hemp, both inside and out, have shown to be incredibly difficult to damage.
Hemp may also be used as a wood substitute for flooring and paneling, much as it can be used as a paper substitute.
Hemp construction materials help store carbon while growing, reducing emissions and hazardous chemicals discharged into the environment from wood, concrete, and steel manufacture.
