The hemp industry has become a multi-billion-dollar business worldwide in recent years. The applications of this raw material and its derivatives are almost infinite: they range from textiles to the food sector, from pharmaceuticals to building materials, from packaging to automotive. Every year the best innovations compete at the EIHA Hemp Conference, the most important international meeting on industrial hemp and cannabis, organized by the Nova Institut in cooperation with the European Industrial Hemp Association (EIHA). Held in June 2020 as an online conference, the meeting brought together 40 speakers from leading companies and institutes and over 200 participants from 35 countries. And they voted for the three winners of the innovation award “Hemp Product of the Year 2020”, sponsored by the Canadian company Hemp for Health.

First place: the Hempharvester

This year, not a product derived from hemp, but an equipment to help those who grow it, rose on the top step of the podium. It's called Henry's Hempharvester and it's a double-module front-loaded attachment for harvesting industrial hemp flowers and stems. It can be driven by a small tractor and is especially designed for small farms. www.henryshempharvester.de

Second place: the hemp house inspired by Moroccan architecture

Sunimplant is a modular off-grid hemp house, inspired by the needs of remote regions like the Moroccan Rif. A spherical building skin of hemp fibre biocomposites design integrates frameless PV technology of crystalline silicon cells, the most efficient on the market, whose output is optimised through the insulating carrier substrate. www.sunimplant.com

Third Place: knitwear based on organic hemp

Lyohemp Knitwear is made from an innovative cellulose fibre based on chemical pulp and obtained from organically grown hemp. The knitwear textiles win over due to their smooth and lofty surface compared with native hemp textiles. The fibre composition causes an excellent staining and an excellent humidity management. www.stfi.de