By Sander Tamm
Last updated: Feb 2, 2025
Pictured: Pants made from 54% hemp (Toad&Co)
What is hemp fabric?
Hemp fabric is a textile made from natural fibers derived from the stalks of the hemp plant. Known for its fast growth and durable fibers, hemp has been utilized for thousands of years in clothing, home textiles, canvas, paper, and rope.
Hemp farming declined in the mid-20th century due to its unfortunate association with marijuana, despite being non-psychoactive. Currently, hemp is seeing a resurgence as a sustainable alternative to conventional textiles like cotton. As recently as 2018, the United States legalized hemp production under The Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018.
Hemp has played a key role in China's history, and it has focused much of its hemp industry on textiles specifically. With a hemp fabric history spanning 6,000 years, this has resulted in a fully developed hemp-processing infrastructure, enabling textile production at a scale, quality, and efficiency that remains unmatched by U.S. producers and other global competitors.
In 2023, around 200 thousand tonnes of hemp fiber were produced worldwide, accounting for 0.2% of all fibers. To put that into perspective, consider that 24.4 million tonnes of cotton (122x more), or 71.2 million tonnes of polyester (356x more) was produced in the same year.
What is hemp fabric made of?
Hemp fabric is made from the bast fibers found in the outer layer of the hemp plant’s stalks. These fibers are separated through either dew or water-retting, cleaned, combed, spun into yarn, and woven into textiles. The leftover woody core, or hurd, is used to produce paint, fuel, oil, and construction material, contributing to hemp’s overall resource efficiency.
How is hemp fabric made?
Producing hemp fabrics involves the following steps:
- Hemp cultivation: Hemp is grown densely for long stalks with strong fibers. Hemp and other bast fibers like flax (linen) produce fibers vegetatively and can be harvested before flowering, unlike cotton.
- Hemp harvesting: Mature hemp stalks are cut near the ground and harvesting typically occurs before flowering to maximize fiber quality. Due to hemp’s quick growth capabilities, multiple annual harvests are possible.
- Retting and drying: Retting uses moisture and microbes to break down the hemp stem, loosening fibers. Dew-retting uses field microbes, while water-retting is faster but riskier environmentally. Dried stalks are then ready for defibration.
- Breaking: Breaking, or defibration, separates bast fibers from the woody hurd by passing stalks through rollers or a decorticator. The remaining pectins and lignins must be removed for textile use.
- Cottonizing: Cottonizing, if applied, uses methods like steam explosion to transform hemp into short fibers compatible with cotton-spinning systems, bypassing the traditional scutching, combing and roving steps.
- Spinning: The hemp fibers can now be spun into yarn. Hemp is often blended with other materials like cotton for versatile textile applications and enhanced properties.
- Weaving or knitting: Finally, the yarn is woven for structured fabrics or knitted for elasticity. Both methods produce sustainable hemp fabrics for clothing and other uses.
What are the properties of hemp fabric?
Here is a breakdown of the material properties of hemp fabric.
Care and maintenance
- Shrinkage: Hemp fabric, like other natural fiber-based fabrics, shrinks when washed.
- Wrinkle resistance: Hemp fabric wrinkles easily but can be smoothed by ironing or steaming.
- Machine washability: Hemp fabric does not need hand washing and is suitable for machine washing.
- Ironability: Hemp fabric tolerates high ironing temperatures without structural changes.
Wear and performance
- Stretchability: Hemp fabric does not stretch and isn’t as elastic as linen.
- Durability: Hemp fabric is one of the most durable and demonstrates strong resistance to wear, retaining its long-term integrity.
- Pilling: Hemp fabric resists pilling, sustaining a smooth surface through repeated use.
Comfort, texture, and thermal properties
- Breathability: Hemp fabric is breathable and supports airflow, promoting effective moisture dissipation.
- Texture and feel: Hemp fabric starts somewhat coarse and rough, gradually softening with repeated washing.
- Absorbency: Hemp fibers have a high moisture-absorbtion capacity, absorbing 20% of their weight in water.
Sustainability certification and standards for hemp
The key standards to search in hemp fabrics are:
- OEKO-TEX STANDARD 100
- Responsible Hemp Standard (RHS)
- Organic standards (GOTS & OCS)
OEKO-TEX STANDARD 100
OEKO-TEX STANDARD 100 is a certification system ensuring finished hemp textile products are non-toxic and free from harmful chemicals. It evaluates all textile processing levels, from raw materials to finished textiles, focusing on human-ecological safety.
Responsible Hemp Standard (RHS)
The Responsible Hemp Standard (RHS) is a new chain of custody standard from farm to final hemp product, ensuring Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) and Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP). It promotes traceability and ethical labor practices across various industries where hemp is used, including textiles, food, feed, building materials, nonwovens, and plastics. However, detailed information about specific RHS criteria is not readily available.
Organic standards (GOTS & OCS)
For the most sustainable hemp, consider organic hemp, cultivated without synthetic pesticides, fertilizers, or genetically modified organisms (GMOs). The Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) is the benchmark for ensuring environmental and social sustainability throughout all organic hemp fiber processing stages. The Organic Content Standard (OCS) focuses on verifying the organic origin of hemp products through detailed chain-of-custody tracking. If you see an organic hemp product uncertified by GOTS or OCS, know it still brings a fair share of sustainability benefits.
Is hemp sustainable?
Yes, hemp is generally a sustainable fiber, with a profile similar to linen. It is one of the fastest-growing plants and absorbs carbon dioxide (CO2) through photosynthesis at twice the efficiency of trees. Compared to cotton, hemp requires fewer inputs like fertilizers and pesticides, uses 70% less water, and has a 74% lower carbon footprint. Its deep root systems reduce erosion and improve soil structure. Hemp scores a “C” from the Made-By Benchmark, which evaluates fibers for key environmental impacts.
However, hemp is not without risks. Retting, a key step in hemp fiber extraction, can have varying environmental impacts. Dew retting is more sustainable, relying on natural moisture and bacteria to separate fibers, which supports soil health and minimizes water pollution and chemical runoff. Water-retting, widely used in China and Hungary, is faster but more labor-intensive, consumes significant water, and risks contaminating local ecosystems.
Social sustainability is another concern, as child labor and forced labor remain issues in some hemp-producing countries. Notably, North Korea with its well-documented human rights concerns, is the largest hemp producer by land area and third by production volume globally. Thus, to ensure hemp is produced responsibly, look for certified hemp products, including those certified as organic.