A York-based project to establish industrial hemp as a ‘major’ UK crop has secured six-figure funding.The first development phase of the HEMP-30 project has been awarded £200k from the UK government’s Biomass Feedstocks Innovation Programme, funded through the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy’s (BEIS) £1bn Net Zero Innovation Portfolio.
The project, led by researchers at the University of York and Biorenewables Development Centre (BDC), aims to increase the amount of industrial hemp 100-fold in the UK from 800 hectares to 80,000 hectares.
BDC director, Dr Joe Ross, commented: “Hemp has major untapped potential as a versatile low carbon raw material that can be used across a range of industries.