HEMP FIBRE Q&A

Hemp – how good is it?

Q. Why would I buy a hemp T-shirt?

A. Hemp clothing is stronger than cotton, requires less toxic chemicals and fresh water to grow and manufacture than other fabrics, looks and feels a lot like cotton, and is downright comfortable. Wearing a hemp shirt will set you apart from the crowd.  

Q. Is hemp cloth soft?

A. It is with HTnatural's new technology. Hemp was not widely used in North America from about 1920 until a decade ago, so manufacturing technology used to weave it fell behind that of cotton. So when hemp clothing starting becoming popular again in the 1990s it was initially quite rough. Since then, however, we have worked with partners to improve that technology and now produce a hemp/cotton blend just as soft and fluffy as cotton.

Q. But isn’t hemp marijuana?

A. No, and it never has been. Early in the 20th Century Canada and the U.S. made hemp illegal because of confusion between it and marijuana. In fact, commercial hemp and marijuana come from different plants, much like the poppies for bagels and poppies for making heroin come from different plants, but are both poppies. There is no active drug in commercial hemp plants. Canada recognized this confusion in 1992 and made growing hemp legal.

Q. Where can you grow hemp?

A. In fact, hemp is now grown commercially in every Canadian province, primarily for its seed, which makes a nice salad oil, and for the raw material used to produce chairs, hand-woven fabric, and other products. Hemp grows well in most climates, even in harsh northern areas, with the use of little or no chemical fertilizers or pesticides.

Q. Why don’t you grow hemp for large-scale fabric manufacture in Canada?

A. We will, hopefully in the near future. Currently Canada has no fabric manufacturing industry, so we’re working with partners to raise the funding necessary to build manufacturing plants here. Once those plants are built, Canadian farmers will provide us with raw hemp, which we will manufacture into cloth right here at home.

Q. Why doesn’t hemp require chemicals to grow, like cotton does?

A. Hemp is naturally pest-resistant and isn’t bothered by unwanted weeds. Hemp attracts a fraction of the number of bugs other plants grown for fiber attract, so doesn’t need heavy doses of pesticides. Also, Hemp plants grow close together and very quickly, crowding out and shading weeds, so doesn’t require herbicides to protect it. Hemp’s only fertilizer requirement is for nitrogen, which can be provided by manure.

Hemp is naturally suited to North America’s cooler northern climates, because it has been growing naturally in Asia and Europe’s northern climates for thousands of years. It will grow anywhere wheat will grow.

Q. How big could the hemp clothing industry get in Canada?

A. The U.S. T-shirt industry alone is worth $60-billion U.S. a year. Already, 60 per cent of our market is the U.S. We would like hemp t-shirts to totally replace chemical-dependent cotton t-shirts as soon as possible, much like Styrofoam cups and plates were replaced by paper. Considering hemp grows well in Canada but cotton does not, hemp has the potential to employ thousands of farmers, manufacturers, and retailers in Canada.