Is skyrocketing timber prices good news for industrial hemp?

If you have some building knowledge, you will know that wood is one of the most common building materials and has been valuable for many years. While not the most popular of all building materials on the market (concrete takes the crown), wood is still preferred and will continue to be so in the future.

If you take a closer look around your neighborhood or town, you will find that houses, bridges, and other structures are made of wood, and this is a historical idea as wood has long held a prime spot. However, wood prices have skyrocketed, which is having an interesting impact on the hemp industry worldwide.

The rising price of wood

People trade in wood all over the world as every country uses wood for construction. It was recently announced that the price of wood has tripled in the last year. Construction companies and wood buyers are shocked by the rise in prices, and all are looking for alternative building materials to wood.

The discussion about finding alternatives is more about getting a more sustainable material that will lower the price of wood and be better for the environment. Can it be that hemp is the material of choice?

Hemp: a building material

When people consider hemp, they sometimes associate it with certain products, such as clothing or paper. Recently, the demand for hemp has increased due to the increasing popularity of CBD products. As you already know, CBD products are made from hemp.

Interestingly, hemp can be used, which is becoming increasingly popular as a building material due to the rise in wood prices and hemp. Behind this idea is the realization that the internal wood fibers in the hemp plant can be maximized to produce boards that are similar to wooden boards (these are called hemp boards).

Hemp as a building material can also be used to make “hemp concrete”. Yes, you guessed it; it’s similar to concrete. But unlike concrete, hemp concrete is a much more environmentally friendly material, and with the world embracing such sustainable ideas, it is gaining a lot of attention.

Hemp grows faster than trees; they are more resistant to pests and fire, and although the prices of hemp building materials have been higher than those of construction timber for many years, the gap is no longer great.

The sustainable advantages of hemp concrete as a building material

Many states are in the process of legalizing recreational and medical marijuana, which is being expanded to include industrial hemp legalization. Although hemp is a close relative of recreational marijuana, it contains less than one-half to one percent THC. Hemp is also grown for its woody essence and is a significant sustainable and renewable alternative to cement.

When hempcrete is used on a construction project, moisture evaporates so you don’t have to worry about mold affecting the appearance of your building.

Termites tend to thrive where there is moisture, and since hempcrete allows water to evaporate, termites will not settle on your building. Termites on a construction project cause it to shrink using traditional materials, and without termites, hemp concrete wouldn’t shrink.

Since hemp concrete is light, it is easier to move around the construction site and to move it from one place to another is very easy. Hemp concrete is also non-toxic; they add more value to the construction project than other traditional materials. Their strength increases over time and makes the building more robust and free of harmful substances.

Hemp concrete is an alternative to traditional cement blocks, which means that when it is used it will reduce the demand for cement blocks and timber frame construction. This reduction in demand also means that the pressure on forests around the world is reduced.

Did you know that an estimated 15 billion trees are felled annually? Hemp concrete is used to cut down less forest and thus make a natural contribution to combating global warming.

Hempcrete is the full definition of a sustainable option as, unlike other building materials, it does not require extensive and harmful chemical processes. Builders are often at higher risk for various health problems due to their chemical exposure on construction sites.

Hemp concrete minimizes such risks as builders use a healthier and safer option. Hemp concrete is climate-neutral and can be used for various types of buildings with the promise of long-term security of use. The cement industry is a major contributor to global warming, which leads to climate change (5% of all CO2 emissions).

When hempcrete is used, it doesn’t require widespread chemical processes like burning fuels, which cause greenhouse gas emissions. The lime used in hemp concrete captures the carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and the hydrated lime hardens to limestone.

Sourcing building materials can become a logistical nightmare, especially if your construction project is in a hard-to-reach location. With hemp concrete, builders have easy access because it is locally produced materials that do not require additional agrochemical products. It is also good to reactivate and strengthen the rural economy: it is a renewable agricultural resource.

Bottom line

In the old days, when the price of an item shot up unexpectedly, people would wait a while for the cost to drop before they can shop. But we are dealing with construction, which sometimes leads to higher material prices, and we have to keep building; this is where alternatives become indispensable.

Wood has become extremely expensive, so what can we do? We rely on hemp !! The cannabis and hemp industries are known for offering alternatives and this is now a reality in the construction sector. The skyrocketing lumber prices are suitable for the hemp industry in the long run and with all the advantages mentioned above you get a good offer at a pocket-friendly price.

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