2. Hemp in the cultivation plan

Hemp is an interesting crop for a variety of applications, but what exactly do you need to know if you want to grow industrial hemp?

The starting point for cultivation shall be an early consultation with the buyer (§2.1). Considerations on the advantages (§2.2) and needs (§2.3) of hemp cultivation are also necessary. Due to limited needs, fibre hemp fits perfectly into an organic cultivation plan (§2.4). An example of a balance sheet for the cultivation for technical applications (§2.6) shows that the financial picture in an average year might initially be slightly less favourable than for, say, wheat, however this is offset by advantages (§2.2 and 2.3).

Explanation of aspects that are important for the farmer when choosing to grow fiber hemp.

The approach towards hemp farming depends on the desired end applications. Here, 2 main product types can be distinguished: 1) Short technical fibre and 2) Long fibre.

1. 'Short fibre' aimed at mostly technical applications such as fibre blankets for building insulation (§6.2), fibre mats for composites for the automotive industry (§6.3) and growing medium for the horticultural sector (§6.4). Fine fibres may also be suitable for textiles (§7.2). The shives and other processing residues can be used for a variety of applications: building blocks (§6.5), animal bedding (§6.6) and food (§6.7). Here again, there are generally 2 sub-options:

   1. Relatively early harvest to obtain relatively fine fibres, and where the yield in tonnes/ha is somewhat lower than with a later harvest. With early harvest, the flowers can also be harvested and field retting (§5.4) is possible; good retting is necessary to properly separate fibres and shives during further processing.

   2. Relatively late harvesting where thicker fibres and higher tonne/ha yields are obtained. This also allows seeds to be harvested. Harvesting later in the season makes it more difficult to sufficiently ret and dry in the field.

      • In drier climates (Germany) or more southern countries (France, Romania), the combination of late harvesting, seed harvesting and field retting is possible. But this option is currently also being explored in the province of Limburg in the Netherlands.

2. 'Long fibre' aimed at high-value textiles (§7.1). And shives with further residues for diverse applications (§6.5, 6.6 and 6.7).

   • Harvesting and processing is similar to that of long flax fibres. Methods for harvesting and processing long hemp fibres have been developed in recent years in countries such as Belgium and France and are ready for scale-up from pilot scale to industrial scale.

   • For growing long fine fibres, early flowering varieties are used which are also harvested early.

For obtaining the 2 different main products, often different seed varieties are used (§3.3 and 3.4), and also the methods of harvesting (§5.3.1 and 5.3.2) and further processing (§6.1 and 7.1.1) differ.

In some countries, it is allowed to grow hemp for the production of flower extracts (the so called CBD oil) which is used as a food supplement. In the Netherlands, this is not permitted (see box in §5.1). In this cultivation, the fibres and shives can be used as a co-product (also see §8.2).

§2.1 Selection of fibre hemp cultivation in consultation with buyer/processor

§2.2 Benefits of hemp

§2.3 Needs for good growth

§2.4 Organic cultivation

§2.5 Schemes

§2.6 Economic model calculation of hemp cultivation for technical applications