by Nature Going Smart | Mar 29, 2019
Today, one of the most common forms of biofuel is biodiesel. In “What is Biodiesel” we already discussed its origins and evaluated pros and cons of its use in “Drawbacks of modern production of Biodiesel”.
Today we would like to address
– what is the role of the Cannabis plant in the Biodiesel and green energies scenario?
– how can this plant help us to move towards a more sustainable-energy world?
One of the most interesting alternative to traditional and common feedstocks for biodiesel and biofuels in general is Cannabis.
Why Cannabis is an interesting raw material for biodiesel?
Biodiesel can be produced from a great variety of feedstocks: the choice for the best one depends largely on geography, climate and economics. For this reasons, today rapeseed and sunflower oils are mainly used in Europe, soybean oil and animal fats in the United States, palm oil in tropical Countries and corn and sugarcane in Brazil.
Thus, the choice of feedstock used for Biodiesel production does not follow criteria that pinpoint the most efficient raw material that could be grown for this purpose, but it’s rather based on the most available feedstock currently present in a Country.
In contrast to palm oil, sugar cane, maize, etc., Cannabis is a highly adaptable, fast-growing, annual plant that can be cultivated at most latitudes. In addition, Cannabis is oneof the few plants that produces high yields of both oil and biomass, which means it can be used to produce both biodiesel and bioethanol.
For this reasons, Cannabis has the potential to form the basis of a revolutionary fuel industry, internationally distributed because the plant can be efficiently grown almost anywhere, yet locally determined because consumers and communities can also be producers.
What kinds of green energies can be produced from the Cannabis plant?
There are many applications for the Cannabis plant in the textile, food, medical and building sectors, but its uses in the energy sector are not well known by the general public and not limited to biodiesel which is just one of many.
Examples of energy products that can be produced from Cannabis are: [3] , [4]
– heat produced from the combustion of briquettes or pellets made of Cannabis hurds and stems;
– electricity from Cannabis biomass through the use of Combined Heat and Power (CHP) engines;
– biogas from anaerobic digestion, a common natural process based on microbial degradation of biomass in the absence of oxygen, which generates methane;
– bioethanol obtained through fermentation, which is another natural process used by man since ancient times;
– biodiesel from Cannabis seed oil where the oil contained in the seeds is converted to biodiesel by a transesterification process with methanol;
Between the advantages of using Cannabis as a resource for biofuels we can now highlight at least 4 important points:
1) Cannabis produces annually high yields of both oil and biomass;
2) Cannabis can be efficiently used in crop rotations substituting the common crops, so no new arable land would be necessary;
3) Cannabis requires little pesticide;
4) Cannabis has the potential to decrease pesticide use in succeeding crops; [5] Today, the main feedstocks for biofuels like maize, soybean and sugar beet, require large quantities of pesticides so a biofuel production 100% based on these crops may not be a real green solution.
In fact, a responsible way of growing green oil crops should take under consideration the amount of pesticides the cultivar requires.
Pesticide use have a strong influence on:
a) the energy input in cultivation (due to high energy requirements for pesticide production)
b) the entire ecosystem
If you are interested in natural pesticides solution, check out our video on “Push-pull technologies, an eco friendly pest management system”.
In contrast with common feedstocks, Cannabis:
– can be grown even on “marginal” lands because it has low input requirements for cultivation;
– can be efficiently used as a preceding crop for the cultivation of cereals since it increases their yields from 10-20%;
– is a pest-resistant, highly adaptable plan;
– even in monoculture fields, it allows for a low pesticide use if followed by a well designed crop rotation;
– it is an annual plant that fits well in crop rotations and it has the ability to suppress soil pathogens opening the path for an healthier soil; [6], [7]
Cannabis biofuel: the advantages
– low pesticide requirements;
– good weed competition (less need for pesticides);
– suitability as break crop in cereal-oriented crop rotations;
– high biomass yield in relatively short time;
– low input requirements;
– economically feasible even for small-scale cultivation areas;
– unlike perennial crops it does not require any long term commitment for its cultivation;
All these aspects may be key elements for a more sustainable biofuel production from biomass in the next future.
So, why Cannabis is not already the main source for biofuels worldwide?
Today, after decades of prohibition, Cannabis is getting back to the legal market claiming its share in many sectors. Laws are changing and people has started to look at different alternatives.
But the reason why Cannabis is still not widely used for biofuels is very simple: today, the value of the crop’s fibre and seed is greater than the value of energy it would produce.
Economical competition on the energy level with petroleum-based fuels or other biofuels can be very challenging for Cannabis. Given the actual situation, incomes for farmers are greater if they sell their seed and fibre crops separately, which can better compete on the food and textile levels.
Right know, without the necessary infrastructure and subsidies by governments aiming to favour green energies instead of fossil fuels, the production of biofuels from Cannabis struggles to be profitable.
Cannabis has a good energy output-to-input ratio and is an above-average energy crop but it has been developed little as an industrial energetic crop over the past decades compared to other crops.
However, in comparison with other well-established food crops, Cannabis still has a great potential for improvement on both increased biomass yields and better conversion efficiencies into biofuel so we can be optimist for the next future.
What are Cannabis hurds and how can they contribute to make energy crop more competitive?
As we said, industrial Cannabis hemp is mainly cultivated for its high-quality fibres and high-value seed oil, but today the hurd, the woody core of the plant which constitutes up to 70% of the dry stalk matter, is a cellulose waste.
A better use of this waste material may contribute to rank Cannabis at the top of the most interesting plants for energy production. In fact, the efficient liberation of sugars from lignocellulosic biomass waste (like Cannabis hurds) not only would decrease solid waste handling, but it would also produce value-added biofuels and bio-based products such as bio-plastics.
Cannabis hurds are a form of lignocellulosic biomass which constitutes the most common raw material present in the world. Differently from wood species, Cannabis is an annual plant and its hurds chemical composition is pretty unique:
– on one hand it is very similar to that of wood species with a high content of carbohydrate (cellulose and hemicelluloses) containing sugars;
– on the other hand it has a very low percentage of lignin, thus favouring the extraction of cellulose from the plant material;
So far, Cannabis hurds still only have minor applications such as animal bedding, garden mulch or as a component of light-weight concrete; Cannabis hurds are an agroindustrial by-product with a high carbohydrate content so they are an excellent candidate for second-generation ethanol production.
Thus, the use of Cannabis hurds as a feedstock to produce ethanol may increase Cannabis attractiveness as a resource for biofuel and replace petrol as a transport fuel.
Conclusions:
Today, technologies to recover up to 96% of the sugar present in Cannabis hurds to transform it in ethanol already exist, but the problem is that they have not been introduced at an industrial scale yet.
Why Cannabis cultivation has the potential to make us move towards a greener world?
– it can promote environmentally beneficial methods of agriculture (especially via crop rotations), which could actually help secure a long-term strategy of land management, ensuring that food
shortages do not occur;
– it can generate the basis for a green economy, taking advantage of the many bio-products that can be derived from the Cannabis plant;
– it can be used for either food, fibre or as a bioremediation crop to restore unproductive land back to agricultural productivity while at the same time providing industrial quantities of cellulose for energy production;
The world urgently needs a replacement for fossil fuels, and cellulose derived ethanol seems to be an ideal industrial successor to them. With Cannabis we would replace an unsustainable industrial feedstock with one which is not only sustainable, but addresses some very serious environmental and socio-economic issues.
It is important to understand that neither Cannabis nor any other energy crop should become the only resource used on a global level for biofuels. Assisting to repeated large monoculture fields of Cannabis for biofuel production would be detrimental even for this highly adaptable plant.
A balanced mix between Cannabis and other crops may provide a solution, and it would be very short-sighted for society and industry to keep neglecting the Cannabis’ energy potential.
Cannabis is an environmentally friendly biodegradable alternative to both petrofuels and petroplastic and it will become more popular only when industrial mandates begin to favour environmental concerns for real.
An increased green consciousness between the general public followed by a bigger demand for natural products may be fundamental in triggering this process.
Here at Nature Going Smart we try to make people move towards a more nature-consciuos world.
Today we explained why Cannabis has the potential to be a real solution for a sustainable worldwide biofuel production.
All the rest is politics.
Deepen your knowledge on the biofuel topic checkin gout our articles “Solutions for biofuel: algae, non-edible oils & waste cooking oils“, “What is biodiesel” and “Drawbacks of modern production of biodiesel“.
by Hempington Post | Mar 21, 2019
Following the passing of the 2018 Farm Bill, CBD sales have continued their massive growth in the United States and beyond.
- Cannabidiol (CBD), a chemical found in cannabis, has seen a huge growth in sales over the past few years.
- CBD can be derived from hemp, and the passing of a new farm bill in the States makes this form of cultivation legal at a federal level.
- This forms part of wider growth in the cannabis market, as companies expand their operations in North Americaand even beyond.
Wildflower Brands Inc. is among the companies benefiting from this market, with an increase of more than 300 percent in online sales for its CBD products last year. Tilray Inc. is expanding with its acquisition of hemp foods company Manitoba Harvest. Canopy Growth Corporation announced revenue for its fiscal third quarter rose more than 280 percent compared to a year ago. In December, Cronos Group Inc. announced that tobacco company Altria would be taking a $1.8 billion stake in the company. Aphria has just completed expansion projects that allows it to substantially increase its output.
CBD Drives Growth for Hemp
Hemp, a plant that has long been out of the public eye, is returning to the spotlight in a big way. A non-intoxicating form of cannabis, hemp was primarily used for centuries as a natural source of fibers, which were used in cloth, rope and even building materials. Many ships in the great age of sailing relied on hemp for their riggings.
But in the sweeping anti-drug crusades of the 20th century, hemp became caught up in attacks on cannabis. Campaigners who were determined to save consumers from their own pleasures had cannabis outlawed at a time when there was little effective way of distinguishing between hemp and other forms of cannabis. No longer needed for cloth and rigging, hemp was made illegal. Now all that has changed – nowhere more dramatically than in the United States of America.
The Farm Bill
Hemp is making a comeback thanks to the growing popularity of cannabidiol (CBD), an active ingredient found in many forms of cannabis. It’s an ingredient that companies such as Wildflower Brands Inc. a creator of plant-based health and wellness products, have been making extensive use of in recent years. Combined with other naturally occurring plant compounds, full-spectrum CBD is used in a range of Wildflower products, including capsules, topicals, soaps, tinctures and vaporizers.
Until recently, the production of CBD in the United States faced serious restrictions and uncertainties. Many states had legalized the production of cannabis in some form, either for medical or for recreational use. In addition, there were licensed trials of the cultivation of hemp, which can be rich in CBD. But all of these plants were illegal at a federal level, meaning that even with state-level approval, cultivators faced financial limitations and the threat of government action.
All that changed in December with the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill. One of a regular series of bills governing the U.S. agricultural sector, this bill removes hemp from the list of controlled substances, making it unambiguously legal for farmers to grow hemp. This changes the landscape for CBD products in the States. Companies such as Wildflower, which has already got its products into many outlets in the health and wellness sector, will be able to expand their reach even further.
States have the right to set their own rules around restricted substances, and some states have taken an unsympathetic attitude to CBD. The Farm Bill doesn’t force states to change this attitude, but there are already signs that public opinion on all levels are changing. The regulations in many states assume adherence to the federal guidelines, and some states, such as Alabama, have already softened their stance since the Farm Bill became law.
Under the Farm Bill, hemp production will be tightly regulated. Most states already have existing regulations in place, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture will be developing its own regulations as well. But for an established company such as Wildflower, which already works in California, Washington and New York, this shouldn’t be a problem.
Cannabis companies are accustomed to working in a tightly controlled environment and meeting the legal standards set by state legislators, as well as the product standards required by retail outlets. In that context, working within new federal regulations shouldn’t present a significant challenge, while the existence of consistent national standards will create opportunities for growth.
CBD Demand Grows
The Farm Bill has been driven in large part by the growing demand for CBD. An obscure and seldom discussed chemical a decade ago, CBD has emerged as an important consumer product. The gradual legalization of cannabis and research into its medical effects drew attention to the fact that those benefits were not all related to THC, the psychoactive chemical that gets cannabis users high. Identified as a chemical with great potential for health and wellness, CBD has started to be marketed in its own right and is used in products such as the Wildflower Wellness line.
Public interest in CBD has grown seemingly from nowhere. Tapping into interest in both cannabis and natural remedies, and offering treatments that may succeed where others have failed, CBD sales have soared. Hemp-derived CBD alone was a $390 million market in 2018 and is expected to reach $1.3 billion by 2022. And that doesn’t even include all the CBD products derived from other forms of cannabis.
The results for producers have been staggering. Wildflower saw its online sales grow by more than 300 percent in just nine months in 2018. In response, the company opened its first New York retail store, a sure sign of a product’s popularity in an age when so many companies are shedding their brick-and-mortar presence.
Looked at globally, CBD is in even better health. The Brightfield Group has estimated that CBD’s value will reach $5.7 billion this year and $22 billion by 2022. While research on the topic is still in its infancy, there is growing evidence that CBD could be used to treat a number of ailments, including certain extreme forms of childhood epilepsy. Even the United Kingdom, a country whose government remains staunchly opposed to the legalization of cannabis, has allowed the use of a CBD drug for this purpose.
Companies producing and selling CBD products are springing up across North America, Europe and beyond. Demand is growing, especially among millennials. That’s bolstering the impressive sales of companies such as Wildflower and putting pressure on politicians to further liberalize the laws around hemp.
Making the Most of a New Market
A lot of companies are now making the most of the growing popularity of cannabis, CBD and hemp. With its acquisition of Manitoba Forest, is tapping into an extensive U.S. distribution network and an upcoming line of CBD products.
Manitoba Harvest sells hemp-based granola, protein powder, milk and other food products at more than 13,000 points of sale across the United States.
Canopy Growth Corporation impressive increase in sales was boosted by the company’s first sales of legal recreational marijuana in Canada, which accounted for more than 70 percent of gross revenue. Chairman and co-CEO Bruce Linton attributed the lift to the company’s decision to make early, “meaningful” investments that helped it corner a big part of the Canadian market when the law took effect. Canopy Growth is a world-leading diversified cannabis and hemp company, offering distinct brands and curated cannabis varieties in dried, oil and softgel capsule forms.
by Hempington Post | Mar 8, 2019
The Brightfield Group has gotten quite a lot of ink lately for their projections that the hemp derived CBD market will outpace the “Rest of the cannabis market COMBINED”.
Forbes too took a look back at 2018 and saw 2019 as another one to break the records, with an article titled: “For Baby Boomers, 2018 Was The Year Of CBD. Get Ready For 2019″ saying: “2018 was the year CBD was on everyone’s lips, thanks to plenty of media buzz and the suddenly-ubiquitous presence of an array of CBD-infused beverages, lotions and self-care products. It was also the year “CBD gummies” reached No. 3 on Google’s most popular search terms. And I’m willing to go out on a limb that a significant portion of those searches were made by Baby Boomers.
With the availability of new hemp strains specially bred for high CBD content, American farmers, processors and many others along the revenue stream are eager to produce and distribute as much of this lucrative substance as the fast-growing market can accommodate. And with CBD sales in the US expected to reach $22 billion by 2022, as projected by the cannabis market research company, the Brightfield Group, Congress’ re-regulation of hemp has presented a good reason for many to celebrate.”
Active Companies from around the market with current developments this week include: MYM Nutraceuticals Inc. (CSE: MYM) (OTC: MYMMF), Terra Tech Corp. (OTC: TRTC), Choom Holdings Inc. (CSE: CHOO) (OTC: CHOOF), InMed Pharmaceuticals Inc. (TSX: IN.) (OTC: IMLFF), CannTrust Holdings Inc. (NYSE: CTST) (TSX: TRST).
Brightfield added: “All of a sudden, CBD is everywhere – it is both a trendy, new ingredient in drinks, face creams and pet treats and an answer to the prayers of so many people suffering from medical conditions ranging from epilepsy to anxiety and chronic pain. It rides the waves of so many global food and health trends, as a substitute for opioids, towards more natural health alternatives and functional ingredients. CBD is the next healthcare phenomenon. It is so effective for so many conditions, is natural, non-psychoactive and has no known serious side effects. It is the next hot, functional ingredient beauty ingredient, like collagen, shea butter or aloe.”
MYM Nutraceuticals Inc. (CSE: MYM) (OTCQB: MYMMF) BREAKING NEWS: MYM Nutraceuticals is pleased to announce it has entered into an agreement with Elite Ventures Group (“Elite”) to grow 120 acres of CBD-rich hemp in Nevada, USA.
Under the agreement, MYM will fund Elite with $500,000 USD in exchange for the rights to 50% of CBD rich hemp grown on a 120 acre parcel of land in Nevada. In consideration for the investment, Elite will provide all the necessary capital and consumable supplies, plant, grow and harvest the hemp. If requested, Elite will also arrange for the processing and sale of the biomass at no less favourable terms than those found in the Elite supply agreements.
Based on Elite’s previous success in cultivating 120 acres of similarly situated land in August 2018, the estimated production of hemp from the MYM parcel of land is 120,000 pounds per harvest with a CBD level of 10%-19%. This represents potential revenue of over $26 million, of which MYM is entitled to 50% less processing and sales fees.
“We are delighted to have entered into this agreement with Elite Ventures,” said Howard Steinberg, CEO of MYM. “This agreement signals an important step forward in our plan to be a significant cultivator of hemp to satisfy the increasing demand of biomass and CBD worldwide.”
by Hempington Post | Feb 12, 2019
When talking about Climate Change and what we can do to reverse it, Hemp will lead the way with new sustainable non-toxic products and textiles.
We at HempingtonPost are very excited to share the announcement of this first America Plastic Company, based right in Boulder Colorado. We’re doing flips here because we know, Hemp Plastic is a huge game changer!
A bit of Plastic History!
A long time ago, humans invented a malleable, pliable, utterly unique substance called plastic. Once commercially derived from fossil fuels, the plastic revolution was born. In the early 20th century, plastics increasingly become the go-to for all product development. By the 1920’s, nearly every house in the developed world was relying on plastic products for everyday use. Plastic has come a long way since those early petrochemical plastic days. Today, the world is starting to wake up to the possibilities of bioplastics, specifically hemp plastic.
Never heard of hemp plastic? You are not alone. It’s a relatively new phenomenon and joins other renewable sources of plastic such as corn, flaxseed, and wood cellulose. Interestingly, the concept of hemp plastic has been around for more than half a century. Only recently has it caught on. Didn’t you know that Henry Ford built a hemp plastic car in the 1940s?
Bioplastic Statistics
Despite how often you might come across a corn plastic cup or a hemp piece of disposable cutlery, the reality is bioplastics still only make up a fraction of the market. According to the most recent statistics, only one percent of global plastic production is organic. That means only one percent of 320 million tons produced annually.
Even that statistic is a bit misleading, because of the 2.05 million tones produced annually, less than 50 percent of those are biodegradable. Some are only bio-based. Biobased plastics have less environmental impact during production but are not recyclable, nor biodegradable. Asia is by far the largest producer of all bioplastics, with 56 percent of the global output. The United States is second to last regarding production; it has a long way to the top.
Not surprisingly, the most significant driver of bioplastics is the demand for environmentally friendly packaging options. The number of plastic bags floating around the ocean has got even non-environmentalists nervous. The second largest application in 2017 for bioplastics is for textiles, followed closely by uses in the automotive industry and consumer goods.
Bioplastics, like hemp plastic, are good for the environment in many different ways. They obviously take far less time to break down in the environment. They also produce 30 to 80 percent fewer emissions than their fossil fuel cousins. Depending on type of production, hemp plastics are recyclable, biodegradable, and free of toxins.
HEMP Bio-DeGradable Plastics End World Pollution 4EVER !!!
by Hempington Post | Jan 29, 2019
As a global leader in the industrial hemp industry with bi-coastal processing centers, Hemp Inc. has the largest multipurpose industrial hemp processing facility in the western hemisphere (in Spring Hope, North Carolina). The company recaps its key business developments and successes in 2018.
“I am incredibly proud of all that our team accomplished in 2018,” says Hemp, Inc. CEO Bruce Perlowin (picture above). “Hemp, Inc. was at the center of news coverage (including Forbes) surrounding the legalization of hemp that came with the historic passage of the 2018 Farm Bill.”
After years of prohibition, industrial hemp became federally legal in America. President Trump signed off on the 2018 Farm Bill, in December 2018, which redefined hemp as an agricultural commodity, but more importantly, removed it from the Controlled Substances Act. Hemp is no longer considered a Schedule 1 substance and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) will no longer be able to interfere with the interstate commerce of hemp products. With its ever-expanding footprint across the nation, this has been a huge win for Hemp, Inc.
“This historic event in our nation’s industry created and will continue to create a tremendous amount of opportunities for the small family farm, local communities, the U.S. economy, and a myriad of industries,” Perlowin continues. “At the same time, I continued to travel the country meeting with farmers who are growing hemp or wanted to learn more about this incredibly valuable crop. In the coming year, I look forward to building upon our success and accomplishments as we continue to rapidly expand our footprint and bring new hemp products to market.”
Some expect the global industrial hemp industry to hit $20 billion by 2022. Until recently, the U.S. has imported, on average, $100 million worth of hemp products each year, according to Congressional Research Service. Now, hemp legalization will allow American farmers and companies to tap that market.
In addition to the company’s 85,000 square foot multi-purpose industrial hemp processing facility in North Carolina, Hemp, Inc. also has one the most sophisticated hemp local processing centers in Medford, Oregon, and a 4,500-acre hemp-growing eco-village in Golden Valley, Arizona. They continue to scout new locations for local processing centers nationwide. The processing center in Medford is one of the most sophisticated hemp harvesting and post processing centers in the state of Oregon, and its operations in Arizona consist of a 4,500-acre hemp growing eco-village that they are actively building out for 300 acres of hemp cultivation. The company aims to boost the economies of these towns by offering affordable hemp processing services, which incentivizes local growers to add hemp to their crop rotation.
by HempingtonPost | Jan 27, 2019
Hemp Can Help Our Planet And Economy
The effects of climate change are being felt the world over. Strong hurricanes, famine, war, extreme heat waves, drought, and torrential rains are just some of the effects of global warming. In order to mitigate these effects, we need to start getting creative about finding alternatives to our lifestyle to reduce our carbon footprint.
This is where hemp enters… a magical plant with numerous practical uses. A plant that can even completely eliminate our dependency on fossil fuels, water, energy, and other resources that harm the planet (and us in the process)
There is so much potential for using hemp to promote sustainability, prevent deforestation, and save the lives of humans and animals:
1. Hemp has the potential to replace pretty much anything that’s made from timber.
Using hemp gives us the opportunity to save natural resources while leaving something behind for future generations. It takes anywhere from 20 up to 50 years for trees to be suitable for commercial harvest while it only takes around 4 months for hemp.
2. No other plant or tree in the world today can produce as much paper in each acre.
In 1916, it was reported by the US Department of Agriculture that just one acre of hemp can already provide just as much paper as 4 acres of trees each year but despite this deforestation remains a problem.
In addition, the paper and pulp industry in the world’s 5 th largest consumer of energy and it also uses more water to produce per product than other industries. Over 40% of logged trees are used to make paper, and almost half of these will end up in landfills. Using hemp as an alternative to make paper will reduce the demand on burdened waste disposal systems and will also reduce energy and water consumption.
3. Hemp paper is of better quality than paper made from wood.
Paper made from hemp can last many more years without degrading and can even be recycled more than tree-based paper. Making paper from hemp requires significantly less chemicals to manufacture too.
4. Fabric that is made from hemp doesn’t have any chemical residue which can cause irritation
or introduce harmful toxins to the body. Synthetic fabrics contain as much as 8,000 chemicals. Today manufacturers also add harmful toxins such as Teflon, formaldehyde, and flame retardants to name a few just to give clothing those special “wrinkle-free” properties. Clothing containing hemp is much safer and even those that contains just 50% of hemp can already prevent the harmful UV rays from reaching your skin.
5. Hemp is a sustainable biomass source for methanol.
Hemp can produce both ethanol and methanol from an environmentally-friendly procedure called thermo-chemical conversion. Hemp as fuel can replace fossil fuels which are not sustainable sources of energy and isn’t adequate enough to meet global fuel demands for a long time. Our dependence on fossil fuels has had major negative impacts on the environment, such as air pollution, oil spills, acid rain, and climate change to name a few.
6. Construction is another industry that can greatly benefit from hemp
instead of cutting down trees to use timber for homes and other buildings. Combining lime with hemp fiber can create insulated and soundproof material that is more durable and lighter than concrete. Reducing concrete and wood from construction sites will also reduce the overall waste matter. Homes that are built using hemp fibers are better insulated and will need to use less energy for heating.
7. Hemp is resistant to pests and because it doesn’t need pesticide and herbicides,
it doesn’t contribute to air pollution. A minimal amount of fertilizers is used in growing hemp since its nutritious leaves naturally fall to the soil and provide it with minerals and nutrients needed for healthy growth.
8. Growing hemp plants is good for soil health.
It grows aggressively and in very dense batches although sunlight is unable to penetrate the ground which means that there are less weeds. This also results in less topsoil erosion, which thereby decreases water pollution. Hemp plants are also capable of absorbing metals that are present in the soil but are actually toxic – these include mercury, lead, cadmium, and copper.
Hemp is 100% biodegradable and can be recycled
Hemp plastic is increasingly becoming a viable option as an eco-friendly alternative to carbon-based plastic. Not only is this bioplastic sourced from safe and sustainable hemp plants, but it is also typically both biodegradable and recyclable multipleimes even. Isn’t it about time we begin using more hemp products in our daily lives?
Graciously reposting from Cannabis.net
