How hemp can change the current vision of industry and commodity production and bring health
How hemp can change the current vision of industry and production of commodities such as textiles, construction, packaging, publishing but also mobility, cosmetics, food, health, restoration of intoxicated land and substitute for petroleum-based products. Uses can benefit economically, energetically, healthily and store large amounts of carbon dioxide during the process.
Cross-border/international
Italy
Italy
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It addresses urban-rural linkages
It refers to a physical transformation of the built environment (hard investment)
Hemp has been used for millennia by mankind across the globe for the most diverse purposes, from textile fibre (the strongest in the plant kingdom) to medicine, food, energy source, building material and many others.
For the last century or so, however, it has become one of the most controversial and endangered plants, probably due to its psychoactive genetics, reducing its role to narcotic. But it is much more than that, its recreational use is the silliest and most trivial, but its potential in industry, construction, environment and medicine is very high, especially with regard to today's problems such as environmental and air pollution, lack of raw materials, rising production costs and loss of biodiversity.
Its ability to adapt to the land (it can grow in the most diverse climates and altitudes), universality, very fast seasonal growth with very few resources, resilience, phytoregenerative capacity, vast range of uses, and storage of toxins and carbon dioxide without needing pesticides and chemicals for growth, makes it the perfect candidate to help solve the environmental crisis humanity is currently experiencing worldwide.
Historically it has played an important role in the development of humanity as we know it today, just think that the discovery of America by the Western world is also due to its contribution, in fact the three caravels of Christopher Columbus had sails and ropes made of hemp, the only fiber that could withstand the fury of the Atlantic Ocean, as well as the American Declaration of Independence of 1776 was drawn up on hemp paper.
The change that such a plant could bring is colossal, in fact it could support and later replace a good part of the production processes and consequently of the consumption necessary for humanity.
Hemp
Life
Sustainable
Natural
Universal
A practical example is paper. Today, production involves the use of entire hectares of forests that grow and regenerate every 30/40 years; one hectare cultivated with hemp can have four times the cellulose yield of one hectare of forest in four months, absorbing four times as much carbon dioxide during the process, and be more recyclable (up to 8 times against the 3 of traditional paper). In addition, hemp paper does not require the use of adhesives and bleaching processes obtained from chemicals, so the production process is much leaner, cheaper and more sustainable, with a negative emission rate (more CO2 is absorbed than is emitted). Hemp could make the building process cleaner. In fact, with the addition of lime, it is possible to create heat-insulating building bricks that regulate temperature and humidity according to weather and climate conditions, keeping warm in winter and cool in summer, mitigating the use of air conditioners and radiators, and are resistant to earthquake. The construction of new buildings in this manner would drastically reduce the environmental impact, no longer requiring quarries for the extraction of cement, but on the contrary favouring sustainable cultivation.
One of the areas where hemp could make a difference is in textiles: unlike cotton, which uses much more water and pesticides and can only be cultivated in certain areas of the world (drastically reducing soil fertility), it can grow anywhere with a much higher yield, and in addition to being a very strong fibre, it is also antibacterial and hypoallergenic, and could be used to replace nilon in the production of fishing nets, so that if it were to be dispersed in the sea it would biodegrade much more quickly, without becoming a source of death for many animals. Similarly, if it were used in the production of clothing and accessories, it would be more body-friendly, not storing bacteria like synthetic fibres, and would have to be washed less often and cause less irritation.
The value that this could bring both to individuals and to entire communities is innovative, but at the same time it is a reconnection with the ancient roots of man and the plants itself. Proceeding in this dimension in fact changes the culture and thought that underlies the vision of the relationship with Life, from a detached relationship and exploitation of nature, the project wants to turn to a new approach that can help both the growth of mankind and the restoration of natural balances. In fact, being able to integrate industrial and building processes with the element of sustainability and circularity of resources is a great challenge: it is not at all easy to find valid substitutes for today's raw materials. This way of acting could bring about new feelings on the part of people, starting to produce with natural materials and integrating them into everyday objects could generate a slow but inexorable change in how people see themselves in relation to the Earth and natural elements, a change of perspective, which slowly turns what today is a cause of problems into a resource of solutions, bringing the industrial production process to emit oxygen instead of polluting is not only an acknowledgement of the material well-being that industrialisation has brought to a vast portion of the world's population, but is also the manifestation of an even deeper evolution that transcends its own limitations.
The concept aims to be applicable and realistic, to be able to function universally, with an economic use within the reach of all the entities and people who will be involved, the crop needs space in which to grow, the land most in need of shelter may be the most suitable to host it, also favouring farmers. From the seasonally harvested raw material, spaces are then needed for the graming and separation of the various components of the plant, from fibres for textiles to the woody parts for the production of hempcrete, for which disused industrial spaces could be enabled or others converted, which could bring new jobs for workers. Subsequently, the fibres and other components would be shipped to their respective places for the production of textiles, hempcrete, and paper, expanding the network of involvement to distribution in the construction, paper and textile industries, and then to the market in the form of houses and buildings, clothes, fishing nets, ropes, books, foils, packaging, and more. Governments will play a key role in this, especially in legislating and encouraging companies and investors to proceed along this path with determination, which can help a development of the market and a gradual change in attitudes towards a more balanced future with this planet.
This concept encompasses many different professions and areas of work, from farmers who could allocate part of their land to this crop with good economic returns to the workers in the industries that transform the raw material into the specific products, including governments and legislators who would regulate the production and use of the production and investors who could finance the growth of this model, even though it may seem expensive at first, it could also become cheaper and more efficient, to the point of being more convenient than contemporary methods. In general, for both producers, beneficiaries and final customers, this would be an environmental benefit that would be reflected in the quality of life and health, both of individuals and cities, and would also become an economic benefit that simplifies, expands and increases everyone's coffers. Imagine living in a house that is built of hempcrete and allows you to have guaranteed air quality, insulation from noise and humidity, and safety against earthquake catastrophes, reducing the consumption of radiators and air conditioners by up to 30%, and all this with a material that has grown in four months and stored CO2 and toxins inside it, converting them back into plant matter, new buildings could literally become healthy accumulators of pollution released in previous decades, and this is a process that could extend globally and rehabilitate larger and larger places day by day while reversing the process of soil degradation and the greenhouse effect that suffocates the atmosphere.
The way in which functional action by the relevant bodies could be coordinated could start with an information and economic incentive campaign on the part of the European Commission towards smaller entities such as state and regional authorities, also involving companies in the sector and national associations in agriculture, construction, textiles, paper mills. We could initiate a communication aimed at the latter using telematic channels on the one hand and legislative and financial incentives with contributions on the other. All this could be done in order to spur the formation on a regional, national and continental level of these new realities and to coordinate the interactions of each interested party in order to generate a solid network in which each body performs its function and communicates with all the others for the necessary actions to ensure the effectiveness of the process. A practical example could be a proposal for laws or bonuses that reward those who decide to undertake this alternative path, thus favouring the birth and development of these new realities, one could also add a publicity campaign on social media to promote this mode of sustainable production and construction (such as linkedin, youtube and instagram) in which a call for tenders is presented to which companies can adhere, also integrating the creation of a body/company to coordinate the partnerships between the various interested parties that can manage all these activities. In implementing the concept, the commitment of all those who would adhere to it could truly transform not only the cultural habits of these areas and people but also the landscape and the quality of the air and soil of the places concerned, as well as improve the quality of the interior, clothing and fishing grounds.
The disciplines and fields of knowledge involved in the concept are mainly law, agriculture, industrial/managerial and construction engineering, architecture, design and communication. the beginning of the process could be in a legislative incetivation by European and state governments towards farmers, companies and citizens. It would then be in the fields that thanks to the farmers the raw material is cultivated and harvested, there would then be transport to the industrial facilities for the processing of the product, which would include the management part of the engineers to coordinate the separation of the components of the raw material by the workers, the deliveries to other branches for the actual production of the various finished products, and the distribution to the markets and construction sites. The contribution given by architects and designers would also be of great importance in designing lines and buildings compatible with the material or integrating them with others such as the 'Casa di Luce' project in Bisceglie in Apulia. Last but not least, the communication side could make use of graphic designers, photographers, videomakers and publishers/advertising sponsors to create an effective campaign that could inform citizens and renew the culture of this crop with a thousand uses. For the coming together of all these stakeholders, one idea would be to establish a start-up or company that would take care of the contacts and partnerships between all the professionals in the field and thus tangibly represent the mission and which people could refer to in order to include these revolutionary values in an easily identifiable single brand. The added value of this process is the contamination of culture and ideas between the most diverse disciplines and a global awareness of the many possibilities for eco-sustainable change aimed at improving the lives of all of us, the environment in which we live and the products we use.
This concept is innovative, but at the same time it is a cultural habit that already existed in the past but was buried less than a century ago by the petrochemical industry. In fact, especially in the case of textiles and paper, or even oils and fuels, its properties were already well known, for example the maritime republics in Italy made great use of it for ropes and sails, while Gutemberg's first Bible was made from this very type of paper. The concept aims to renew, integrating them with current technologies, these ancient traditions that have accompanied man throughout history. In fact, hemp has been fundamental in the construction of a vast amount of goods. Specifically for the purposes of the concept, what would differ is the production materials used in the building, paper and textile industries. Many of the benefits that the concept could bring compared to mainstream production are spelled out in the key sustainability goals in the second question, summarising the sources of raw materials would shift from quarries (in the case of construction cement), cotton fields and hectares of forests to hemp fields that would cleanse both the land and air during the growth process, instead of causing air, soil and water pollution. The material thus obtained would then be transformed into consumer goods such as books, packaging, buildings, clothing and accessories, ropes, fishing nets, and any other type of object, creating natural products that are healthy for people and the environment, which at the end of their life cycle would be easily disposed of without causing damage as they are biodegradable, and in the meantime there would be economic growth due to the agricultural, industrial and commercial process behind it. If this worked out later, other more complex production processes could also be integrated, such as the production of bioplastics, cars (like Henry Ford's 'Hemp Body Car'), fuels, paints, food and feed.
The concept could be replicated in any area with a Mediterranean or temperate European climate or even outside, certainly agricultural crops can be placed in many sandy and dry places where other crops would fail to grow, in fact industrial hemp plants prefer airy and draining soils, and the cultivation does not require complex operations so it is simple and can be placed anywhere. The industrial operations are also universal, and apart from the tools needed for processing, the techniques are simple and do not require any special chemical processes, if not the skills to use the machinery and for the processing steps. The paper, textiles and bricks thus produced would then be sent to their respective places of application, which could potentially also be spread throughout the territory. The more widespread the concept is, the more changes would be felt on a large scale. If communication and encouragement were at European level, one could coordinate a broad work involving the various nations among themselves, perhaps creating exchange networks throughout Europe that interact with each other, or one could start with a single nation, for example Italy where the climate is one of the most favourable and the Po Valley is one of the most polluted and desertification-prone places in Europe (in the mid-20th century it was the second most productive nation in the world) to test the project and its validity on a smaller scale and if successful, then export it to other countries taking it as a model.
The global challenges that the concept aims to help solve by bringing local solutions are many, mainly related to air, soil and water pollution and the greenhouse effect, but it also ties in with the health of ecosystems and people. In fact, as mentioned earlier, due to its fibre density and speed of growth, hemp sequesters a lot of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, at a rate four times faster than trees, and it does not need pesticides or fertilisers because, being a phytoregenerating plant, it does not deplete the soil of nutrients but rather regenerates them, thus being able to be a fixed crop, without the need for four-year rotation, it does not even need insecticides, because it repels harmful insects by itself. There is also a saving in water as the plant's needs are reduced compared to most existing crops. All the products obtained in this way are healthy and natural for human well-being and they are biodegradable, so dispersion in the environment is not a problem. A good example is fishing nets, which are now mainly made of nilon, hemp fibre is just as strong but if it is dispersed in the sea it gradually disintegrates, while nilon continues to cause damage to aquatic fauna even for a century or more, becoming microplastic at best. There are also the benefits brought by the products themselves: for paper the annual production of an hectare is 120 times more than forests in relation to the amount of cellulose generated and the time taken, as well as the absence of chemical processes for glues and bleaching, in the case of building materials the greater resistance to erosion by natural agents and to seismic shocks thanks to the elasticity of the material, as well as thermal and acoustic insulation. For textiles, strength, cost-effectiveness and thermal and antibacterial insulation properties are excellent characteristics for both industrial textiles such as ropes, nets and fabrics, as well as for clothing fabrics and accessories such as hats, bags or shoes.
