19 October 2024

Manufacturers, News, Processors

Ashford Hemp Industries processing for the building industry

  Leon and Connie Minos have been riding a wave of increased enthusiasm and demand for their Ashford Hemp Industries’ products over the past decade.  Since developing their own hemp processing system in 2018 to address a bottleneck in the hemp industry, their business digressed from growing hemp in northwest NSW to designing and building the containerised Ashford Hemp Processor, or AHP. The first AHP was sold in Tasmania to the dynamic Andi Lucas of X-Hemp, followed by another sale in New Zealand and South Australia.  In 2024 Ashford Hemp Industries returned focus to increasing their local hemp supply by accessing quality hemp bales in their regional area. The consistent supply of quality hurd for the building sector had been impeded by a lack of regionally available suitable hemp bales which saw the processing facility at Ashford shut down for weeks at a time.  Connie and Leon are confident that this supply issue will be addressed in the coming season. Ashford Hemp Industries has been able to secure over 200 tonnes of excellent quality hemp bales from the Tamworth area, and expects this supply to more than double next year. In addition to providing employment for the small rural town of Ashford, the hemp processing facility expects to generate enough hemp hurd to allow two new house builds each week.  The increase in Australian grown and processed hurd will help supply a market which is longing for quality Australian hemp in their building products. With the Ashford processing facility running at full capacity, the Minos’ look forward to building their fourth Ashford Hemp Processor later this year.  Further information on Ashford Hemp Industries can be gathered from their Facebook page, website or email connie@ashfordhempindustries.com.

News, Research

Biosecurity Alert!

News from Biosecurity Harrisia Cactus is a pesty biosecurity matter that appears to be creeping in. WE DO NOT WANT IT!!!! For those in the Narrabri region, please if you can, turn up to the Pilliga Pub on Tuesday the 29th of October and familiarise yourself with this plant and what it can do to your land. Please share this to other landowners. We need you all to be vigilant and help us to help you to protect your land.  It has the potential to take over.

A box with sample size containers of Northern Rivers Hemp products.
News

Northern Rivers Hemp is thriving!

Northern Rivers Hemp Cooperative  By Crystal White Spring has sprung in the Northern Rivers region although there has certainly been some cooler days lingering and even a few nights beside the fire! This month we have launched our Trial Trio gift set, finalised our market setup and started spreading the word at markets about how great hemp is! We’ve also made an exciting discovery of CBL Cannabicyclol and we are supporting and have donated to the AHC Paws For Wellness Campaign. This is vital for our whole Australian Hemp industry to get behind! Launch of our Trial Trio box. This beautifully curated set includes an indulgent collection of three of our top selling rejuvenating products. Each of the 10mL samples is perfect for friends and family who are perhaps new to Full Spectrum Hemp Oils and seeking the benefits of 100% natural skincare and wellness products. If you are thinking of gifting, this is the perfect introduction to Full Spectrum Hemp! Our 2024 Trial Trio includes: FACE, a luxurious natural face cream that targets aging and damaged skin with its potent, rejuvenating formula Deep Hemp, a full-spectrum whole plant hemp infusion that delivers soothing relief from life’s aches, pains and stiffness. Your muscles and bones can thank us later!  Full-Spectrum Hemp Oil in Olive Oil, perfect for enhancing overall skin hydration and reducing signs of aging as well as soothes skin irritations, blemishes and bites. Markets We are ready to roll into the market scene with our marquee and advertising looking schmick! Although we don’t have a set market schedule, you’ll see us popping up from time to time at markets in Northern Rivers and into Southern Queensland. Farmers Chris and Tommy set up and had a great time at the Sample food festival at Bangalow last month, which attracted huge crowds and was a great launch for our first market right in the heart of the Northern Rivers region.  We have also just done a weekend collab with Hinterland Hemp. Exciting new test results -CBL Cannabicyclol We now have access to a new testing machine in Northern Rivers area that is able to test for many more Cannabinoids and terpenes.  This means we can really narrow down what we are getting from our grows and cultivars by analysing the results. Surprisingly our results from last season’s grow on all 7 farms growing our King Gee Cultivar has shown a very interesting lesser known and scarce cannabinoid called CBL- CANNABICYCLOL.   It is not new – it was first discovered by Raphael Mechoulam’s Israeli team of researchers in 1966. It is exciting to see this in our results although CBL is one of the lesser studied minor cannabinoids scientists are studying it and believe it may have pain-relieving, anti-inflammatory properties. Paws for wellness Did you know hemp seed and hemp seed oil is legal for human consumption, but not for animals?!?! Crazy right! The Australian Hemp Council has launched the “Paws for Wellness” campaign to raise funds for the legalisation of hemp seed for pets and companion animals in Australia. Northern Rivers Hemp is in support of this campaign and we have donated to paws for wellness so that we as a industry can make steps towards getting hemp back on the table for our pets- after all they certainly do deserve the best! If you think your pet deserves the best and that you should have choice over what you pet can consume we strongly recommend making a donation to the Paws for Wellness Campaign. Happy hemping!

Education, News, Research

“Little Experiments, Big Crises”

By iHempNSW member Amanda Marsh from Otetto  On September 26th, we were invited to participate in a symposium titled “Little Experiments, Big Crises” hosted by Sydney University in collaboration with the Alistair Swayne Foundation. The symposium brought together architects, builders, manufacturers, and collaborators involved in the field of prefabrication. Otetto was invited to discuss the use of hemp and sustainability, during which we delivered a presentation followed by an open panel discussion with leading sustainability architect Alexander Symes, moderated by Jennifer McMaster of Trias Studio. It was an honour to contribute to such an engaging discussion focused on prefab housing in Australia, highlighting the ongoing tension between customisation and affordability. Harrison, co-founder of Otetto, showcased Otetto’s two offerings: off-the-plan hemp homes and the early developments of our Living Canvas prefabricated walling system; that save time and costs while promoting access to sustainable and healthier homes. A key takeaway from the event’s discussion was the need to shift people’s perceptions from customisation to standardisation, encouraging new home builders to embrace a curated, menu-like selection of home designs that are sustainable, accessible and highly liveable. We look forward to continuing this discussion and being part of the movement that highlights how the combination of prefabrication and locally-grown hemp is the change Australian homes need.

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