This week on the hemp show we’re going to a field day at Pocono Organics. Not just any field day, but a hemp field day, which in my opinion, is the best kind of field.

The Hemp Field Day at Pocono Organics was hosted in partnership with the Rodale Institute and Jefferson University, August 21, 2025 in Blakeslee, PA.

One this episode we will talk to Ashley Walsh from Pocono Organics, Tara Caton from the Rodale Institute and Ron Kander from Jefferson University.

ON this episode we will also hear from Larry Smart and Jacob Bish from Cornell University about Cornell’s upcoming hemp field day and 3-day hemp construction work shop.

This episode starts at Americhanvre’s shop in Barto, PA, where Larry Smart just loaded an Ereasy Spray-Applied Hemp System into his truck. Learn more:

Pocono Organics https://www.poconoorganics.com/

Rodale Institute https://rodaleinstitute.org/

Jefferson University https://www.jefferson.edu/index.html

Cornell University Hemp https://hemp.cals.cornell.edu/

Cornell Field Day Registration https://cals.cornell.edu/events/cornell-grain-fiber-hemp-field-day

Cornell Hemp Construction Workshop https://cals.cornell.edu/events/cornell-agritech-hemp-building-workshop-september-16-18-geneva-ny

Whichever path it travels, Texas appears determined to wipe out intoxicating hemp https://hemptoday.net/whichever-path-it-travels-texas-appears-determined-to-wipe-out-intoxicating-hemp/

Australian inquiry spotlights hemp’s promise for housing, farming and climate goals https://hemptoday.net/australian-inquiry-spotlights-hemps-promise-for-housing-farming-and-climate-goals/

Hemp is but one victim in Trump’s gutting of Biden-era environmental programs https://hemptoday.net/hemp-is-but-one-victim-in-trumps-gutting-of-biden-era-environmental-programs/

Americhanvre https://americhanvre.com/

King’s AgriSeeds https://kingsagriseeds.com/

This week on the Lancaster Farming Industrial Hemp Podcast we’re looking at hemp’s environmental promise. We’ve all heard the claim the hemp can save the planet—but what does the science really say?

I talk with environmental scientist Lorelei Alvarez and strategist Joseph Carringer, co-authors of the brand-new Hemp and Sustainability Report, published by HempToday and CannaMarkets Group. Together, we dig into the evidence, the hype, and the responsibility that comes with hemp’s potential.

The report breaks down hemp’s impact on carbon, soil, water, and lifecycle assessments, pulling from peer-reviewed research to separate fact from fantasy.

Lorelei and Joseph challenge legacy claims like “one acre of hemp equals four acres of trees,” while also highlighting real opportunities where hemp can reduce emissions, improve soil health, and support sustainable supply chains.

The message is clear: hemp won’t single-handedly solve our environmental problems, but when grown and processed responsibly, it can be part of the solution.

One of the things I like about this report is that it raises the standard for how we talk about hemp. It asks us to back up our stories with evidence, to tell the accurate version of hemp’s potential rather than the inflated one.

That honesty gives the industry a stronger foundation to grow from, and it gives farmers, processors, and entrepreneurs the tools to make smarter choices.

Check out the Hemp and Sustainability Report for yourself, and see what the data has to say. Hemp’s future is still being written—and we all have a role to play in shaping it.

Special Report: Hemp & Sustainability - HempToday

https://hemptoday.net/product/special-report-hemp-sustainability/

Special Reports Combo Package

https://hemptoday.net/product/special-reports-combo-package/

Hemp News Nuggets, August 20, 2025

Powered by HempToday

Hemp seed meal for laying hens clears key hurdle in U.S. but faces state bottlenecks

https://hemptoday.net/hemp-seed-meal-for-laying-hens-clears-key-hurdle-but-faces-state-by-state-bottlenecks

Cannabinoid firm’s takedown another ‘wake-up call’ in Italy’s treacherous hemp market

https://hemptoday.net/cannabinoid-firms-takedown-another-wake-up-call-in-italys-treacherous-hemp-market

Florida’s debate over ‘intoxicating hemp’ packaging masks deeper flaws in state rules

https://hemptoday.net/floridas-debate-over-intoxicating-hemp-packaging-masks-deeper-flaws-in-state-rules

Thanks to our sponsors:

IND HEMP

https://indhemp.com

Forever Green, distributors of the KP4 Hemp Cutter

https://hempcutter.com

This is the final installment of our special Global Hemp Fiber Summit Box Set. Sides 5 and 6 wrap up our coverage from Raleigh 2025, featuring voices from across the fiber hemp industry—from seasoned pioneers to fresh perspectives. Hear updates from long-time advocates, emerging researchers, farmers, processors, and policy influencers shaping the future of American hemp textiles.

Side 5:

Robert Jungman Jungmaven jungmaven.com

Joe Hickey – longtime hemp advocate

Gabriela Fioravanti – Thomas Jefferson University – https://www.jefferson.edu/

Eric Singular – INCERT / Responsible Hemp Standard https://www.responsiblehempstandard.com

Heidi Barr – PA Flax Project – https://paflaxproject.com/

Sandra Marquardt – On the Mark Consulting https://www.onthemark.info/

Aaron Baldwin – South Bend Industrial Hemp – southbendindustrialhemp.com

Side 6:

Mark D’Sa – Panda Biotech pandabiotech.com

Peter Dushop – Forever Green hempcutter.com

Andre West – NC State Wilson College of Textiles textiles.ncsu.edu

Arlo Estill – Hempsmith Clothing hempsmithclothing.com

Amy Schwest – Go Go Hemp

Miles Cathrigh – BoardWurks Biocomposites – https://boardwurks.com/

Derrick Muhamed – Bossville Farms https://www.bossvillefarms.com/

Guy Carpenter – Bear Fiber bearfiber.com

Thanks to our sponsor: King's AgriSeeds https://kingsagriseeds.com/

Thanks for tuning in to the Hemp Show. This week we’re spinning sides 3 and 4 of our special box set recorded at the 2025 Global Industrial Hemp Fiber Summit in Raleigh, North Carolina, July 15 – 17, 2025.

Side Three:

Glen Kayll – CEO, The Hemp Plastic Company [00:00:51]

 https://www.hempplastic.com

Joseph Carringer – HempToday / CannaMarkets Group [00:06:42]

 https://hemptoday.net

Eric Henry – TS Designs [00:18:43]

 https://www.tsdesigns.com

Andrew Bish – Bish Enterprises [00:25:08]

 https://www.bishenterprise.com

Coleman Beale – CEO, BastCore [00:28:12]

 https://www.bastcore.com

David Camby – BioPhil Natural Fibers [00:30:07]

 https://www.biophilnaturalfibers.com

Side Four:

Dave Cook – Tuscarora Mills [00:36:49]

 https://www.tuscaroramills.com

Satish Hodage – YUJ Labs [00:45:38]

 https://www.yujlabs.com

Patrick Atagi – President, NIHC [00:48:52]

 https://www.nihcoa.com

Ding Hongliang – Hemp Fortex, China [00:57:52]

 https://www.hempfortex.com

Trey Riddle – IND HEMP [01:01:04]

 https://www.indhemp.com

Stay tuned for Sides 5 and 6—coming next week.

Thanks to our Sponsor:

HEMI & The Goodness of Hemp https://hempinitiatives.org/

Special thanks to the National Industrial Hemp Council of America

 https://www.nihcoa.com

We’re celebrating big news from western Kentucky — HempWood is opening their new factory on the HempWood Campus in Murray. It’s a big deal and it’s a big day.

On this special HempWood episode, we catch up with Greg Wilson for a freewheeling conversation about flooring, farming, the Fibonacci sequence and the future of sustainable materials. From co-op growing systems and carbon credits to tornadoes, redneck hippies and 12-string guitar jams, this is a true journey through the World of Greg Wilson.

Key Topics:

• New HempWood factory grand opening

• Vertical integration and farmer co-ops in Kentucky

• The golden ratio & carbon sequestration

• Healthy building materials vs. toxic off-gassing

• Government support & bipartisan interest in hemp

• Construction industry insights and tariffs

• HempWood’s role in schools, universities, and brand partnerships (Nike, Patagonia, etc.)

Thanks to our sponsors:

Americhanvre Cast-Hemp

https://americhanvre.com/

Dear listeners,

This week on the Hemp Show, we’re dropping the needle on a very special commemorative box set from the 2025 Global Industrial Hemp Fiber Summit in Raleigh, North Carolina.

In this first installment — Sides 1 and 2 — of a three-episode miniseries, we hear from a wide range of voices building the fiber side of the hemp industry from the ground up: farmers, machine makers, wet processors, entrepreneurs and professors. They’re working in the field and in the lab, bridging research and manufacturing, and helping steer the industrial hemp conversation back to its core: fiber, hurd and regenerative purpose.

NIHC’s Global Fiber Hemp Summit in Raleigh was special. No question about that. And I thought it deserved special treatment here on the podcast. I am hopeful that I was able to capture the energy in the room. I interviewed nearly 40 people during the summit, and they each have a story to tell about their part of the supply chain.

Forty interviews is too long for one show. It’s too long for two shows. but it’s perfect for this three-disc set. I’m calling it a “box set” because that’s how it feels — like a classic record album like "All Things Must Pass," "Joe’s Garage," "Europe ’72," or "The Last Waltz."

Thank you for indulging me.

— eric

Side One — Voices Featured:

• Guy Carpenter – President, Bear Fiber [00:02:25]

• Maciej Kowalski – Founder, Kombinat Konopny, Poland [00:05:06]

• Hardy Sullivan – Managing Director, THIES US [00:12:24]

• Bryan Wilson – Project ELI, Environmental Living Industries, Texas [00:15:56]

• Dan Matthews – Project Manager, Tatham Ltd., U.K. [00:17:52]

• Shira Adler – Founder, EcoSynergy LLC [00:20:18]

• Anjli Kumar – Founder, Inner Bark Heritage [00:23:07]

• Alejandro Diaz – Hemp Fortex [00:25:45]

• Rick Brown – Brown Family Farms & Produce N.C. [00:29:04]

Side Two — Voices Featured:

• Larry Smart – Hemp Geneticist, Cornell University [00:35:25]

• Monique Anderson – Farmer, Orangeburg County, S.C. [00:38:57]

• Morris Beegle – Founder, WAFBA/Let’s Talk Hemp [00:41:39]

• Keith Dunn – East Coast Hemp Supply, Dunn, N.C. [00:42:11]

• David Suchoff – North Carolina State University [00:46:37]

Stay tuned for sides 3 and 4.

Sponsors

IND Hemp https://www.indhemp.com

Americhanvre Cast-Hemp https://www.americhanvre.com

King’s AgriSeeds https://www.kingsagriseeds.com

Forever Green – Distributors of the KP4 Hemp Cutter https://www.hempcutter.com

National Hemp Association – Advocating for hemp farmers and the fiber industry https://www.nationalhempassociation.org

Special thanks to the National Industrial Hemp Council of America for sponsoring our travel to the Global Fiber Summit https://www.nihcoa.com

This week on the Lancaster Farming Industrial Hemp Podcast, we’re listening to a recap of the 2025 Global Industrial Hemp Fiber Summit, hosted by the National Industrial Hemp Council of America at the Wilson College of Textiles at NC State, that took place in Raleigh, NC, July 15-17, 2025.

For three well-planned days, leaders from across the hemp value chain came together—from farmers and geneticists to processors, engineers, and global apparel brands. On this episode we follow the flow of the summit itself, threading together powerful takeaways from the TED-style talks across agriculture, processing, textiles, composites, and branding.

We hear from nearly 40 speakers—some familiar voices from the hemp world, and some new collaborators—sharing what’s working, what’s needed, and how we build a domestic fiber industry that actually works.

Special thanks to the NIHC for sponsoring our travel, and to NC State’s AV team for sharing the audio from the event. And thanks to our show sponsors HEMI – the Hemp Education & Marketing Initiative – and the National Hemp Association.

On this show you will hear (in order of appearance):

Rachel Raineri – Wilson College of Textiles – [00:00:01]

Guy Carpenter – President, Bear Fiber – [00:02:37]

Dr. Andre West – NC State, Textile Innovation Engine – [00:03:11]

Patrick Atagi – President & CEO, NIHC – [00:04:14]

Agriculture

Dr. David Suchoff – NC State Extension – [00:05:41]

Dr. Larry Smart – Cornell University – [00:06:05]

Terry Moran – Kanda Seeds – [00:07:12]

Glenn Kayll – Hemp Plastic Company – [00:07:36]

Melissa Nelson – South Bend Industrial Hemp – [00:09:09]

Rick Brown – Brown Family Farms – [00:10:07]

Steve Groff –Cedar Meadow Farm – [00:10:45]

Processing

Trey Riddle – IND HEMP (moderator) – [00:11:35]

Sandra Marquardt – On the Mark PR – [00:12:18]

Coleman Beale – BastCore – [00:13:43]

Satish Hodage – YUJ Labs – [00:14:42]

Siyan Wang– PhD Researcher, NC State – [00:15:39]

John Peterson – Dakota Hemp – [00:17:24]

John Lupien – Consolidated Carbon – [00:18:52]

Naiden Kremenliev – Argon Fiber / Tryon Finishing – [00:19:57]

David Culp – Andritz / LaRoche – [00:21:29]

Elias Junker – Andritz / LaRoche – [00:21:47]

Textiles

Ding Hongliang – Hemp Fortex – [00:22:44]

Maciej Kowalski – Kombinat Konopny – [00:24:57]

Dave Cook – Tuscarora Mills – [00:26:36]

Dr. Andre West – NC State (follow-up) – [00:28:05]

Arlo Estill – Hempsmith Clothing – [00:28:57]

Composites & Building Materials

Matty Mead – Hempitecture – [00:30:49]

Trey Riddle – IND HEMP – [00:31:59]

Dr. Daniel Walczyk – Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute – [00:33:41]

Katie Coppenhaver – Oak Ridge National Lab (ORNL) – [00:35:12]

Value Chain & Industry Strategy 

Patrick Atagi – NIHC (again) – [00:38:59]

Mark D’Sa – Panda Biotech – [00:39:50]

Joseph Carringer – Sound Strategy / Hemp 3.0 – [00:42:23]

Larry Serbin – Hemp Traders – [00:43:52]

Gabriella Fioravanti – Jefferson University – [00:45:15]

Olaf Jezela – Trace Femcare – [00:45:45]

Pierre Berard – HEMI – [00:46:32]

Erica Stark – National Hemp Association – [00:46:57]

This week on the Hemp Show, we’re continuing the conversation around the need to split the industry into two. There is much confusion in the minds of law makers and consumers when it comes to what hemp is.

For years hemp advocates championed the fact that hemp doesn’t get you high, but thanks to a loophole in the 2018 Farm Bill, somebody figured out how to get high from hemp, and so began the era of intoxicating hemp that we find ourselves in now.

But if hemp is getting you high, it’s not hemp — it’s weed. Stop calling it hemp.

And that’s why there needs to be a legislative fix. Erica Stark from the National Hemp Association joins us to discuss the issue and share her ideas on what a potential fix might look like.

Then we talk to Lancaster Country regenerative hemp farmer Steve Groff about the various hemp projects he’s working on down at the farm, where he's got 60 acres of fiber hemp ready to harvest in about three weeks. He talks about the “green decortication” project he’s working on and how he hopes to inspire people at the Global Fiber Hemp Summit in Raleigh next week.

As always Groff sees potential, but he’s not waiting for the next Farm Bill to act. “I’m not checked out,” he said. “I’m checked in.”

Plus, news nuggets from around the hemp world: Kazakhstan is preparing to make passport paper from hemp, Arizona courts are tightening THC rules, and Morris Beegle calls again for clear bifurcation between cannabinoid and industrial markets.

We close with a reminder to check out our new kids podcast, Super Smart Farm Show, launching July 22. Stick around after the credits to hear the trailer. As always, thanks for listening — and until next time, we’ll see you in the newspaper.

This week on the Hemp Show we’re talking about flax, a fiber plant with remarkable similarities to industrial hemp when grown for textiles.

There’s a fair amount of flax growing this year in southeastern Pennsylvania.

The last time this much flax grew here, tractors hadn’t even been invented yet.

By the late 1800s flax production was in rapid decline in the Keystone State, pushed out by cheap cotton and forgotten by a country racing toward synthetic fiber — which makes 2025 a special year in Pennsylvania.

Thanks to the PA Flax Project, spearheaded by Heidi Barr and Emma de Long, there are 30 acres of flax for fiber production in Chester, Montgomery and Lancaster counties this year.

Thirty acres sounds small, but it’s a far cry from the eighth of an acre the organization started with in 2022, or the zero acres for generations before that.

When they harvest their 30 acres of flax next week, de Long said, this will be the first flax for fiber ever mechanically harvested in Pennsylvania.

“When flax became no more in the United States, thanks to cotton and free labor and synthetics, the linen industry was destroyed. And since then, it has mechanized in other parts of the world. So now that we are having a resurgence of growing fiber flax and bringing this industry back, we have imported equipment from Belgium and we’re ready to rock and roll,” she said.

Barr said the Pennsylvanian Department of Agriculture has been instrumental in helping further the nascent flax industry in the state.

“We advocated for and they added fiber flax to Pennsylvania’s specialty crop list, which made us eligible for a specialty crop block grant, which we received,” Barr said.

The organization also received an Organic Market Development Grant through USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service, which they are using to implement their business plan and scale acreage, educate and support farmers, and to develop a plan for a scutching mill, Barr said.

She said the mill will be a worker- and farmer-owned cooperative, based on flax-producing co-ops in Europe.

The podcast this week shares a handful of voices from the PA Flax Project’s Flax Flower Picnic, held June 14 at Lundale Farm in South Coventry Township, Chester County.

In order of appearance on the show, we hear from Emma de Long and Heidi Barr from the PA Flax Project; Natalie Horvath, design director at F. Schumacher and Company, a family-owned textile and interior design powerhouse in New York; Bill Schick, director of agriculture for the PA Flax Project; Mike Roth from the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture; Paul Turner, chair of the Department of Theater and Dance at Rowan University; Leslie Davidson from the Pennsylvania Fibershed; and PA Flax Project member Rachel Laramee.

After flax, we check in with Dr. David Suchoff from NC State University in North Carolina about the Global Fiber Hemp Summit in Raleigh later this month.

Learn More:

PA Flax Project

paflaxproject.com

F. Schumacher & Co.

schumacher.com

Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture

www.pa.gov/agencies/pda.html

Pennsylvania Fibershed

pafibershed.org

North American Linen Association (NALA)

northamericanlinen.org

Thanks to our sponsors!

IND HEMP

Indhemp.com

Forever Green, distributors of the KP4 Hemp Cutter

hempcutter.com

Lately on the podcast, I’ve been wrestling with a question of language.

What does the word hemp really mean, where did that meaning come from, how has it shifted over time, and who gets to define the word hemp today?

For a thousand years, hemp was known as the plant or material that you made things from — things like rope, cloth and paper.

But now when people hear the word hemp, they think about weed. And that’s not helpful for a nascent industry trying to raise capital, build infrastructure and develop markets.

To help me sort out the history and meaning of the word hemp, I spoke with Oxford University Professor Lynda Mugglestone, a historian of the English language, a lexicographer and an expert in how words evolve and collide with law, commerce and culture.

“You would be cheered to know that hemp as a plant grown for fiber has history on its side. If we go right back to Old English we can see the very earliest kind of herbals and leech books talking about hemp,” Mugglestone said.

For most of its long life in English, hemp meant the fiber plant grown for ropes, sails and home spun fabrics, and that meaning was stable for centuries. It was a household word, part of daily life, tied to farming and industry.

But language doesn't sit still, and hemp is no exception. Over time, new uses for the word hemp have crept in. First medicinal, then psychoactive, and now commercial forces are pulling hemp in more directions.

While lawmakers try to impose definitions and industries fight for market share, ordinary people just keep using the word however they want.

That's how language works.

But the original meaning hasn’t gone anywhere — the fiber, the grain and the plant with history behind it. That meaning is still there and perhaps more robust today than at any time in the past 80 years.

But the meaning of hemp has been expanded, like it or not, to include these new definitions, including that hemp can be THC-a flower or that hemp can get you high.

Of course, I disagree with this new definition. Hemp that gets you high isn’t hemp. Call it pot, call it weed, call it what you will, just don’t call it hemp.

As Mugglestone, paraphrasing Samuel Johnson, said, “Words, like their author, when they're not gaining strength, they're generally losing it.”

So there you go, fiber and grain folks. You know what to do. Claim the word hemp and make it grow strong. You are hemp’s rightful heir. Be the signal in the noise.

* Books by Lynda Mugglestone, author of a range of books on English words and how they get used and recorded.Recent books include:

Dictionaries. A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press, paperback)

Samuel Johnson and the Journey into Words (OUP, paperback)

Writing a War of Words: Andrew Clark and the Search for meaning in World War One (Oxford University Press, hardback)

Thanks to our Sponsors!

IND HEMP

Forever Green

National Hemp Association

Credits: Produced by Eric Hurlock, mixed and mastered by Justin Berger