American and International Hemp Producers Talk EIHA Experience in Prague
On this week\u2019s podcast, we continue our coverage of the European Industrial Hemp Association (EIHA) annual conference, this year held in Prague, Czech Republic, June 5 to 7.
As Lancaster Farming\u2019s friendly neighborhood hemp reporter,\xa0I was invited to be part of an American delegation to the conference, funded in part by a grant from the USDA Market Access Program to build overseas markets for hemp as a commodity crop.
Last week, I shared a slew of interviews with Europeans in attendance at the conference. This week, I am sharing my interviews with American business leaders, entrepreneurs, policy wonks and processors \u2014 plus a handful of Canadians and one Australian who attended the event in Prague earlier this month.
Zhaohui Wu is a professor of supply chain management at Oregon State University in Corvallis, where he is an affiliate faculty member of OSU\u2019s Global Hemp Innovation Center.
He said he was eager to learn from the Europeans, because he said they are further along in developing the industrial applications and supply chains.
\u201cFor me, this is the first time to come to the EIHA conference and to learn from European folks on how things are done, the best practices, and also to find opportunity to collaborate,\u201d Wu said.
Tommy Copeland was part of the American delegation, representing Kentucky-based HempWood, a flooring manufacturer that uses hemp instead of hardwood.
Copeland said many attendees were not familiar with HempWood, and he enjoyed watching people\u2019s reaction to it.
\u201cYou get to see the wow factor that they have,\u201d he said. \u201cTheir mind is blown that you can do this from hemp.\u201d
Copeland described to attendees the HempWood process from whole stalk, pressed with soy-based adhesives with no VOC off-gassing.
\u201cIt\u2019s a clean building material, it\u2019s eco-friendly to use, and I think that fits with the European mindset of building in a lot of ways,\u201d he said.
Tim McCarthy is a business owner from North Carolina where he runs United Natural Hemp Extracts, USA.
\u201cI am currently the chair of the policy committee for the NIHC, so I\u2019m here on their behalf and the USDA trying to promote hemp from the United States to around the world,\u201d he said.
Roger Gussiaas is oilseed producer at Healthy Oil Seeds in Carrington, North Dakota, where he produces and processes hemp and flax grain for oil and protein.
\u201cWe process 24 hours a day, seven days a week,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019re expanding our business. In the next couple months, we (will) be doubling our production.\u201d
Currently exporting to over 25 countries, Gussiaas is always looking for opportunity.
\u201cThis trip here,\u201d he said, \u201cit\u2019s just there\u2019s a lot of opportunity. There\u2019s always a lot of opportunity in any new country you\u2019re in.\u201d
He said the key to finding markets is simple for him: \u201cAlways produce good quality and you\u2019ll have markets.\u201d
Keenan Stone, vice chair of the Canadian Hemp Trade Alliance and an owner of Uni Seeds in Ontario, was excited to attend the conference.
She enjoyed connecting with people in person, a welcome change from online interactions.
She said she was impressed with the research and innovation happening in Europe and, like Gussiaas, was open to opportunity.
\u201cThere have definitely been some good business prospects,\u201d she said. \u201cThere seems to be a lot of interest in trying out new varieties and things like that. Our business is seed supply, so definitely some good interest from Europe there.\u201d
Morris Beegle, founder of the annual NoCo Hemp Expo in Colorado, worked with EIHA to plan and execute the event in Prague.
On the final day of the conference, Beegle told me he was happy with the overall energy, participation and programming.
\u201cIt was really good last year, but I think definitely a step up this year, he said. \u201cGreat attendance. The conference has been packed the whole time. Networking has been really good. Lots of folks having great conversations. So I mean, overall I\u2019m just very pleased with the way everything\u2019s turned out.\u201d
5:49 Robin Destiche, KonopiUS, Pure Shenandoah\xa0\xa0\xa0
21.14 Roger Gussiaas, Healthy Oil Seeds
25:37 Morris Beegle, WAFBA
29:58 Alicia Fall, Her Many Voices
34.55 Zhaohui Wu, Oregon State University\xa0\xa0\xa0
39:24 Tommy Copeland, HempWood
42:01 Trey Riddle, IND HEMP; Joe Hickey, Halcyon Technology Holdings; Gregg Gnecco IND HEMP
44:01 Tim McCarthy, Universal Hemp Extracts, NIHC
55:09 Hunter Buffington, APS, ASTM
58:10 Beau Whitney, Whitney Economics
1:00:30 Peter Dushop, Forever Green
1:05:35 Ted Haney, Canadian Hemp Trade Alliance
1:14:25 Keenan Stone, CHTA, UniSeeds
1:16:14 Ghyslain Bouchard, Askiy, Eko-Terre
1:18:19 Sherri Smith-Hoyer, Australian Hemp Council
1:24:24 Cait Curley
1:25:27 Morris Beegle
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Thanks to Our Sponsors!
IND Hemp\xa0https://indhemp.com/: Americhanvre\xa0https://americhanvre.com/ Forever Green\xa0https://www.getforevergreen.com/
Music by Tin Bird Shadow