British researcher says hemp binds more CO2 than forests

By Natan Ponieman

Hemp Blockchain, Inc, a Utah-based agro technology company, has developed a novel solution to measure and record carbon emissions and atmospheric carbon sequestration information for hemp farms: blockchain.

The product, part of what the company calls “Carbon Protocol Initiative“Could set a new standard for measuring the net carbon footprint of hemp companies, one of the company’s goals.

Photo by Remedy Pics via Unsplash

The solution records data from critical points during the entire cultivation process and registers both CO2 sequestration and emissions in a blockchain data set.

The system then grants farmers CO2 credits that are converted into tokens. “Carbon offsetting credits that can be used by companies to offset their carbon footprint to meet their CSR and ESG commitments,” the company said in a press release.

“The Hemp Blockchain is building a critical piece of digital infrastructure that enables efficient and trustworthy transactions across the industry,” said the CEO and President of Hemp Blockchain Dan Higbee.

Hemp is a leader in carbon sustainability: According to a researcher from Cambridge University Darshil Shaha, Hemp can be twice as effective as trees at sequestering atmospheric carbon.

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Industrial hemp absorbs between 8 and 15 tons of CO2 per hectare of cultivated land, while forests typically absorb 2 to 6 tons of CO2 per hectare per year, depending on the climate, region and stage of growth, Shah told Dezeen.

Shah, a member of the Center for Natural Product Innovation, Part of the Department of Architecture at Cambridge University, researches biomaterials and focuses on construction techniques that can help reduce the carbon footprint for the construction industry.

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Shah highlighted the role of hemp as a source of sustainable building materials for the future, noting that the crop can produce more usable fiber per hectare than forestry. Hemp fibers can be processed into bioplastics and wood-based materials that can replace building materials such as fiberglass and aluminum.

This article originally appeared on Benzinga and was republished with permission.