Technical hemp - the answer to the petrochemical dependence of the economy

The growing understanding of the prospects of this area of ​​management, the economic interest of using technical hemp, as well as modern technologies for its processing, undoubtedly allow the plant to take a worthy place in the modern "green economy". In the coming years, research will continue in the hemp industry aimed at replacing fossil with hemp raw materials. Already there is a huge potential replacement technical hemp a huge range of products manufactured using fossil materials.

Despite the fact that there are many companies and individual initiative groups trying to use "synthetic biology" to modernize the ubiquitous oil and gas complex of economically developed countries, most of this kind of research "does not fit" in the concept of "green economy" and is inherently far from the possibility of environmentally safe use. At the same time, there is a natural rapidly renewable material known to mankind for thousands of years, which can be used to make all the same products / goods / products that today are made from raw materials obtained from the processing of fossil oil / gas / coal, etc. . Of the existence of this raw material, the readers of the profile electronic resource of Ukrainian cannabis farmers have already undoubtedly heard - this material is called hemp.

Hemp raw materials can be used to make a huge range of modern goods, from biodegradable plastic ( Porsche uses hemp-based material in the back of its 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport track car , in order to reduce weight while maintaining rigidity and safety) and to building materials ( laminate, siding, drywall, insulation), textiles and knitwear, pulp and paper products, cosmetics, personal care products, biofuels, food, goods used in zoobusiness, etc.

There is no need to focus on the fact that natural, biodegradable and recyclable products made from technical hemp can bring significant benefits to the environment and the health of the person living in it. This will be expressed in the annual reduction of millions of metric tons of plastic, penetrating into the world's oceans, reducing consumer concerns about the use of petrochemical products in cosmetics and hygiene products. In addition, one should not forget that hemp is the best phytoremedient in nature, i.e. The plant can play a key role in removing toxins from the soil. All the above-mentioned advantages of a plant are difficult to ignore when the question is raised about the possibility of using hemp as an alternative to fossil energy sources or as the basis of the created "green energy".

Despite the huge amount of materials for which technical hemp could serve as a petrochemical alternative, a number of infrastructural obstacles prevent the plant from becoming a viable competitor to the existing industry based on fossil raw materials.

Firstly, despite the fact that industrial crops of technical hemp are already widely cultivated in economically developed countries, the knowledge, equipment and production facilities necessary for cultivation and processing are no longer universally accessible (the fullest amount of information regarding cultivation, processing, and technical cannabis sales in the territory of Ukraine may be obtained within the " hemp University ". Created for the past several centuries infrastructural vacuum cos al problems at all stages of industrial hemp: from genetics and seeds before planting quality seeds, irrigation, techniques and methods most efficient harvesting, processing, pricing, distribution and sales in the wholesale and retail market.

In particular, according to Professor of the Integrated Plant Research School at Cornell University and leading US researcher cannabisa "Other cultures have a long history of breeding programs, but there is still no gene bank for cannabis. This is why substantial investments are needed in the development of modern US cannabisation This includes including a huge amount of resources in carrying out the necessary research. In addition, there is a huge shortage of processing capacity that does not allow be profits from the plant, commensurate with the potential that it can provide in the case of complex processing. Simply put, agricultural producers will not cultivate something that is not in demand in a product market, which is unprofitable to grow and process. "

Secondly, the supply chain of seeds of technical hemp in a number of cases is opaque. A number of seed farms cannot guarantee that the seed that is bought for sowing will "work as advertised" (including relevant for Ukraine). The inconsistency of laboratory test results with what is actually sold as seed material leads, at best, to the loss of the planned profit, at worst, to the unprofitability of sowing the most profitable crop. The lack of sufficient “transparency” on the seed market adds additional risks, as well as unforeseen difficulties in growing industrial crops of technical hemp. In addition, “problematic crops” often do not correspond to the regulatory requirements in force in the country and do not produce a consistently high-quality crop, which is always in demand in both the domestic and international markets.

Thirdly, there is still tremendous uncertainty in the provision of the regulatory framework governing the hemp industry. For example, despite the fact that in Ukraine you can legally use malonarcotic cannabis seeds and dried straw in which the amount of tetrahydrocannabinol does not exceed 0.08%, the ability to work with the most profitable part of the plant (leaves and buds) at the level of the regulatory framework is not regulated .

Commentary of the Association "Ukrainian technical hemp"

Despite the fact that modern trends in the development of the green economy favor the rapid introduction of hemp raw materials, as well as innovative technologies for its processing, they are unlikely to make it possible to replace the whole range of products made from fossil raw materials in the short term with manufactured hemp goods. Nevertheless, the growing understanding of the prospects of this area of ​​management, the economic interest of using technical hemp, as well as modern technologies for its processing, undoubtedly make it possible for the plant to occupy a worthy place in the modern "green economy". In the coming years, research will continue in the hemp industry aimed at replacing fossil with hemp raw materials. Already there is a huge potential replacement technical hemp a huge range of products manufactured using fossil materials.