What to do with millions of tons of cannabinoid waste?

At the moment, in our country, no one has yet raised the problem of waste that is formed during the extraction of hemp raw materials to obtain therapeutically active elements from it. As can be seen from the published material, this problem not only exists, but it is so serious that specialists from specialized scientific institutions are engaged in it, and changes are already being initiated to the current regulatory framework at the level of individual US administrative-territorial units.

In the years since the regulation of the therapeutic properties of cannabis in the United States, the sector has faced an inability to answer an increasingly pressing question: What to do with the millions of tons of post-extraction hemp biomass that the industry produces every year?

Last year, co-founder of California-based GAIACA Waste Revitalization Jonathan Lee estimated that the US hemp extraction sector generates about 150 million tons of waste annually. “Diverse waste streams arising from the processes of growing, production, processing, distribution, sale, laboratory testing and research. Waste is generated directly from hemp plants - biomass, stems and fibrous material; and biological waste from downstream production - extraction chemicals and contaminated residues, ”says GAIACA Managing Member Garrett Rodewald.

It should be noted that at the moment the most common and simple approach to the problem of waste extraction hemp is disposal. However, potential markets for biomass derived from extraction are being explored and developed. 

How much hemp waste is left after extraction?

Approximately 90,000 tons (200 million pounds) of CBD hemp biomass was produced in the United States over the three years from 2019 to 2021, with some of this raw material not going through the extraction process and will probably never go through it. However, assuming that about 10% of the weight of hemp biomass is recovered from the CBD oil production process, the extraction of cannabinoids over the past three years has likely resulted in tens of thousands of tons of used hemp biomass, with most of that volume of hemp raw material being destroyed.

What are the ways to use waste hemp biomass?

One of the obvious ways to use the resulting waste in the extraction process is to package and sell the used hemp biomass as compost. Depending on how much time has passed since processing, any chemicals (primarily ethanol) in the hemp biomass waste are “emitted” or evaporated; and when used for compost, the waste biomass will get wet, and the moisture reduces any additional risks associated with the presence of chemically hazardous substances in this kind of compost.

Another way to use hemp waste is to feed pets with it. However, it must be borne in mind that animals do not really like this kind of food due to its pungent smell.

What are officials and researchers doing about the hemp waste problem?

In the summer of 2021, scientists at Virginia Tech studied whether one of the byproducts of the CBD extraction process - pectin found in plant cell walls - could be used as a modifying agent in the production of plywood, structural composite lumber and other wood-based materials. Chip Fraser, a professor in the Department of Sustainable Biomaterials at the University, notes that CBD hemp waste has opened up new avenues for researchers looking for alternative biological materials.

In addition, some US state governments are considering amending existing regulations to reduce the amount of waste generated during extraction. In particular, in November, the senator of the state of New York initiated amendments to the legal framework of the aforementioned administrative-territorial unit of the United States, according to which plans for the packaging of hemp and industrial products made from the plant should be developed. Changes to regulations call for the establishment of a "green hemp incubator program" that will require packaging materials to be compostable, biodegradable, and made from "at least thirty percent hemp."

Commentary of the specialists of the Association "Ukrainian technical hemp"

At the moment, in our country, no one has yet raised the problem of waste that is formed during the extraction of hemp raw materials to obtain therapeutically active elements from it. As can be seen from the published material, this problem not only exists, but it is so serious that specialists from specialized scientific institutions are engaged in it, and changes are already being initiated to the current regulatory framework at the level of individual US administrative-territorial units.