Hemp can be selectively bred for a range of consumer and industrial uses and has been grown in Asia for centuries. The fibres from the stalk can be used to make rope, clothes and other textiles, and as an organic construction material. The seeds are also edible and provide the source ingredients for a wide variety of medicinal products. Hemp is relatively easy to grow outdoors in a range of climates. Hemp stalks can grow up to four meters tall, without needing pesticides, and are generally much skinnier and taller than marijuana plants. The biological robustness of hemp plants, coupled with the broad range of applications developed for its products and by-products over years of use in the Asia make it a viable choice as a focus for new business development, particularly in an environment where the negative stigmas associated with hemp have been or are being eliminated.
Food
The potential of additional food production derivable from our strain research is significant, particularly given the growing focus on safe and environmentally sensitive food production techniques around the world. Hemp hearts (shelled seeds) and hemp protein produced from milled seeds are highly nutritious meals containing most of the essential amino acids. Hemp oil offers very balanced oil composition which rivals or exceeds the potential of canola seeds – and can be used as a milk made from soaked seeds or as juices from cold-pressed foliage and leaves.
Fuel
Hemp is a superior energy crop – historically, as a source of fuel pellets made from the shiv or core of the stem. In a world very concerned about carbon emissions, certain strains of hemp are extremely viable and potent sources of organic material for the creation of Bio-fuels.
Fibre
Fibre-oriented Hemp strains can produce extended and viable fibre strands for use in a diverse array of products, including carpet, yarn, rope, geotextiles (netting or matting), paper, sacks, and other uses locally and in export markets.
Foundation
Hemp is being applied to and developed for commercial uses ranging from superior-insulating composite wall boards to its application in hempcrete – a lighter-weight, better-insulating, crack-resistant construction block for use in commercial and residential construction.
The potential range of product applications hemp and its many varieties is capable of fulfilling is substantial. Working in concert with our science partners at InPlanta Biotechnology Inc. in Canada, Asia Green’s efforts include focusing on a number of core strains which have been bio-engineered to provide a discernible benefits around the food, fuel, fibre, and foundation pillars of these important crop types. In particular, Asia Green is moving ahead rapidly to test the viability of these strains in the various Asian sub-climates in our licensed regions and will use the intelligence gained from these testing activities to support and stimulate growth in the local hemp sectors.