Forests Out, Hemp’s In: The New Green Spin for Fashion, Paper, and Packaging

Published: Sep 13, 2024

by: Mike Hudema

Next Gen
Next Gen Provider
Blog article

Every year, over five billion trees, many from Ancient and Endangered Forests, are cut down to make paper, paper packaging, and Man-Made Cellulosic Fibres (MMCF) for textiles like viscose and rayon. Canopy’s innovation partner, Bast Fibre Technologies (BFT), is challenging that paradigm using hemp residues.

Why hemp?

Hemp is renowned for being highly effective at storing carbon (1). It can play a crucial role in rebuilding soil health (2), can be grown in rotation with existing crops (3), and require minimal irrigation and pesticides (4). Remarkably, hemp grows to maturity in just three months, significantly reducing the economic risk for farmers and fostering more resilient communities. Hemp is also a high-yielding, versatile annual harvest crop with a wide range of uses including making high-quality textiles and paper (5).

With its ecological benefits, long, durable fibres, and short crop cycles, it’s no surprise that the world’s earliest paper was made in China from hemp fibres around 2,000 years ago!

The lifecycle of Sero™

BFT’s innovative product, Sero™ hemp fibre, originates from farmers’ fields who prioritize regeneration and circularity during the growing process. BFT follows a whole plant strategy where the raw fibre is harvested from the plants for fabric production while the hurd is separated out for other co-products — minimizing the amount of waste! Then comes the innovative part. BFT’s unique processing technology cleans, unfurls, and isolates the individual fibres, then softens them to meet industry specifications. These fibres go on to be textiles, feminine care products, surface cleaning wipes, disinfecting wipes, and more.

When products made from Sero™ fibre reach the end of their lifecycle, they can be recycled in the same waste streams as wood-based paper, or composted, returning valuable nutrients back to the soil and completing the regenerative cycle. In short, you could say that hemp is one of our Bast options to reduce industry impacts on our forests and climate (see what we did there?)

A great alternative to using forest fibres in textiles and paper packaging

Hemp provides a strong, durable, and biodegradable option for paper and paper packaging. It reduces the reliance on plastic and wood fibres. In fashion, hemp offers a sustainable alternative to synthetic fibres, which are often petroleum-based and non-biodegradable, or wood-based viscose rayon. Hemp can be made into garments, accessories, and home textiles. Hemp fabrics are not only low impact, but also durable and comfortable, meeting the high standards required by the fashion industry.

As companies look for ways to comply with incoming regulations like the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) and other corporate accountability mechanisms, integrating hemp products like Sero™ fibre into supply chains offers a low-carbon, deforestation-free alternative to conventional wood and more resilient supply chains that are less vulnerable to regulatory shifts, market fluctuations, and climate-related disruptions like wildfires and other extreme weather events.

Forest-saving solutions are available today

Canopy works with many innovative companies like Bast Fibre Technologies to transform unsustainable forest-based paper, packaging, and textile supply chains by strengthening demand for Next Generation alternatives and fostering collaboration across the supply chains of today and tomorrow. You can learn more about BFT and other cutting edge innovators by checking out our EcoPaper Database and Next Gen Solutions Providers directory.

With increasing climate-related supply chain disruptions and circularity-related regulations, low-impact, Next Gen alternatives such as hemp will help global brands to strengthen their supply chains and reduce reliance on wood fibres, saving forests and
reducing costs in the process.

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Footnotes:
(1) Zampori et al., 2013; Finnan & Styles, 2013; European Commission, 2022
(2) Placido & Lee, 2022; Pudelko et al., 2019; Pudelko et al., 2021; Adesina et al., 2020
(3) Gorchs, 2017; Zegada-Lizarazu & Monti, 2011
(4) Tang et al., 2017; Amaducci et al., 2015; Struik et al., 2000
(5) Fike 2016; Ranalli & Venturi, 2004