Hemp for Insulation: Adding some industrial infrastructure with hemp

Hand-in-hand
with the development of legal cannabis in Colorado is the hemp industry,
another sector that was blacklisted by the federal government for far too long
due to unfair stigmas about cannabis. Now, with regulations lifted, the hemp
industry may get a serious boost, as a hemp grower plans to market cannabis as
insulation for floors and ceilings.

Ryan Loflin, a
farmer from Baca County who grows cannabis, informed The
Cannabist that
he plans to partner up with a company called Western Fibers to create an insulating
material made from recycled newspaper and processed hemp stalks. According to
their website, the company has been around since 1977, when they started up as
a company striving to provide affordable and natural insulation options for
homes and businesses. This insulation could be used in place
of other, non-organic materials currently used in most homes and businesses.

“This could
really help get the industry going,” Loflin told The
Cannabist. “Until
now, there really hasn’t been an industrial infrastructure for hemp in
Colorado.”

According to The Denver
Post, Loflin is
also famous for growing the first commercial hemp crop since cannabis and hemp
have become legal. His was the first legal hemp crop to be grown in 56 years,
ever since the product became demonized during “reefer madness.” The crop spans
55 acres, and at first was hailed as only symbolically significant, since this
initial grow won’t have great yields for hemp seed oil or other marketable
bi-products.

However, it is
now looking like something very lucrative indeed will come out of this batch.
In addition to the insulation plan, Loflin plans to sell some of his hemp seeds
to Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soaps, the famous organic soap company, for use in their
product.

“We’re
very excited that Ryan has done this,” David Bronner, the current company
president says about the new arrangement. “Ryan has kind of busted it open
and taken this necessary step to make hemp a viable crop.”

Loflin’s
company is called Rocky Mountain Hemp, and he plans to use a farm building in
Southeastern Springfield, CO to shred up the stalks and mix them in with the
newspaper, creating this new insulation to be used in grows.

Currently, the
project is still in its prototype stage and is soon to be demonstrated by
Western Fibers. If everything goes well, sales could begin as soon as late this
year, according to Mike McGuire, who owns the company. There will be three to
six workers to start off in the Springfield facility employed by Loflin, and
then more will be added later on if business continues to grow exponentially
and additional help is needed.

“Anytime we
can bring in a business and create jobs for the county, that’s a very good
thing,” Sheila Crane, who serves as the current Executive Director of Baca
County Economic Development, told The
Cannabist. In
addition to creating jobs and a new business opportunity for the cannabis and
hemp industry in Colorado, as well as for Coloradans in general, this new
venture will surely cut costs for those who buy expensive insulation now, and it
will become a welcome new enterprise.

Additionally,
it looks like the world of hemp is growing in leaps and bounds all across
Colorado. Whole Hemp Co., based out of Colorado Springs, has also recently
decided to convert a vacant building into a hemp processing facility to begin
making products. This, combined with the fact that there are currently 159 hemp
growers registered in the state, and 2,648 acres assigned to growing hemp,
paints a very positive picture overall for this emerging industry.