Industrial hemp is making waves at Greenbuild 2024, the largest global event for green building professionals, as a sustainable building material with carbon-storing capability. Over a dozen companies and organizations representing the American supply chain for industrial hemp—ranging from farmers and processors to manufacturers and builders—are uniting under The Goodness of Hemp® banner within the Carbon Storing Materials Pavilion.
The Goodness of Hemp at Greenbuild 2024
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Nov. 13, 2024 – While industrial hemp is an emerging sector in the United States, it has a long-standing history in both traditional and modern construction across Europe. The Goodness of Hemp® showcase at Greenbuild will demonstrate why and how hemp is utilized in construction materials, highlighting its role as a carbon-storing resource. Attendees can explore a wide array of products, including flooring, insulation, and complete wall systems like panel and cast/spray hemp-lime installations.
Pierre Berard, Executive Director of Hemp Education and Marketing Initiatives (HEMI), who leads The Goodness of Hemp® campaign, expressed his excitement: “Seeing our industry unite at Greenbuild under The Goodness of Hemp® banner is truly inspiring. We’re thrilled to highlight the vast potential of hemp in construction, alongside companies actively bringing these products to market today.”
Hemp Building Leaders Advocate for Sustainable Construction
The Hemp Building Institute (HBI) and US Hemp Building Association (USHBA) will play key roles at The Goodness of Hemp® booth, offering insights on codes and regulations for hemp-based materials. These organizations have been instrumental in integrating hemp-lime building systems into the International Residential Code (IRC), paving the way for wider adoption of this sustainable, carbon-negative construction solution across the U.S.
“We are showcasing Industry Pioneers from Across the United States. The event will feature leading U.S. companies, including Pennsylvania’s Americhanvre with their spray system, Sativa Building Systems (Wisconsin) and Homeland Hempcrete (North Dakota), both known for their hemp-lime wall panels and Hemp and Block (Colorado), specializing in hemp-lime block systems. We have Tiger Fiber (Missouri), who recently teamed up with US Heritage Group (Illinois) to scale the prefabricated SIP panel developed in the UK over three decades ago. Flooring maker Hempwood (Kentucky), was the first in the industry to complete a full Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) for its products and to establish a voluntary carbon market for its farm-to-floor process is here. We have Hempitecture, the producer of natural fiber insulation and of course, IND HEMP (Montana), who’s founders’ leadership and vision in this developing industry led to the formation of HEMI and The Goodness of HEMP® marketing initiatives” continues Berard.
Governmental Support and Funding Boost Hemp Innovation
Industrial hemp in construction has attracted significant support from U.S. government agencies, driving both development and commercialization: Americhanvre recently secured a $1.9M grant from the U.S. Army’s Small Business Innovation Research program (DOD) for sustainable building materials. Hempitecture has received an $8.4M matching grant from the Department of Energy to develop a hemp fiber nonwoven facility in Tennessee.
The National Hemp Association (NHA), in collaboration with partners, secured a $19.6M grant under the USDA Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) to promote sustainable farming practices and develop raw hemp materials for new building applications. The Hemp Building Institute was chosen by the EPA to lead the creation of an Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) generator for biogenic building materials.
Advancing Carbon Measurement with AI-Powered Tools
Understanding the carbon footprint of construction projects is crucial. IND HEMP had collaborated with Zasti to develop comprehensive LCAs for hemp fiber materials. This partnership has led to the creation of an AI engine, now integrated into the HEMI platform. Tools like HempFACTS and HempMARK are helping the industry to become data-driven and benchmark the carbon impact of natural hemp insulation versus conventional options like fiberglass, driving informed decision-making in sustainable construction.
