What is Hemp?

Hemp, or "industrial hemp", is a plant in the botanical class of Cannabis sativa cultivars grown specifically for industrial and consumable use.

• Along with bamboo, hemp is among the fastest growing plants on Earth.
• Hemp was one of the first plants to be spun into usable fiber 50,000 years ago.
• It can be refined into a variety of commercial items, including paper, rope, textiles, clothing, biodegradable plastics, paint, insulation, biofuel, food, and animal feed.

Hemp as Stall Bedding

Hemp stall bedding is made from the stalk of the hemp plant, also known as the hurd. The hurd is dried and mulched into a straw-like structure to create the bedding.

Hemp bedding is often used for smaller farm animals such as chickens and rabbits, but it can also be used as a sustainable bedding option for horses.

Hemp is emerging as the preferred alternative to shavings and wood pellets for managing horse stalls.

Benefits of Using Hemp as Stall Bedding

Highly Absorbant

Hemp bedding is highly absorbant, up to four times more so than pine shavings or straw. This can help reduce odor and ammonia levels in animal enclosures, which can make for healthier animals and a more pleasant environment for humans.

Low Dust

Hemp bedding is less dusty than other bedding types, which can help keep the animals' lungs healthy. It also blows around less in the wind than pine shavings.

Decomposition - What we call "Compost-ability"

Hemp bedding breaks down faster than pin eshavings or pellets in compost bins. This is because hemp is comprised primarily of hemicellulose with only 2-10% lignin, whereas the lignin content of wood ranges from 20-35% for both soft and hard wood species.

Hypoallergenic

Hemp is an excellent base material for clothing, bedding, and other items that come in contact with the skin. One of the main reasons for this is that it is hypoallergenic. This means that is does not cause allergic reactions in most people (and livestock, when used as stall bedding).

Sustainable

As stated earlier, hemp is among the fastest growing plants on Earth. As such, hemp production is based on an annual cycle rather than a decades-long cycle for wood products.

Cost Comparison

On a per-bag basis, hemp is typically 50-70% more expensive than an equivalent volume of pine shavings. However, because it is highly absorbent, it takes about half the amount of shavings to accomplish the same performance (i.e. about one bale per 7-10 days).

When all time-related expenses are added up, hemp will reduce your overall stall management budget for the following reasons:

• cleaning stalls takes less time
• less manure waste is generated, resulting in
  • fewer trips to the compost system
  • a faster cycle time to convert raw manure to high-quality, finished compost

Our Recommendation

For a month or two, give hemp a try in a few of your horse stalls and decide for yourself if it's the smart alterative. We think you'll be pleasantly surprised.