When organic agriculture and biotechnology are mentioned in the same breath, they are usually sharing the sentence with other nouns such as “lawsuit” and “contamination.”
But there is at least one example where the two are working together.
Hemptown Clothing Inc. plans to use a biotechnology-derived enzyme processing technique developed by the National Research Council’s Institute for Biological Sciences to convert the stiff, scratchy bast fibre into soft, white fabric that can be used in its line of organic apparel.
For some purists the concept of combining biotechnology with organic agriculture is akin to treason, but Hemptown president Jason Finnis said it is a perfectly acceptable processing technique that he intends to have approved by an organic certifying agency.
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“We haven’t engineered any enzymes. We’re using all natural organic materials to do this,” he said. “There is nothing toxic in this at all.”
The enzyme technology will be used to remove unwanted lignin from the fibre, resulting in a fabric that is every bit as durable, warm and cheap to produce as cotton but offers superior strength.
Hemp fibre is currently processed through a variety of techniques: the crop residue can be soaked in a chemical bath; submerged in a pond where microbes eat away at the lignin or left in the field for a couple of months for what is called a dew retting process. These techniques have their drawbacks and can produce an end product that shrinks or is itchy.
“The hemp fabric industry over the past 20 years or so has been plagued with inconsistent fabric,” Finnis said.
The NRC-designed processing method is quicker, more environmentally friendly and less expensive than the existing techniques and produces a better quality fibre, he added.
While the technology has been panned by some in the organic community, who Finnis said didn’t fully understand the process, it has also received endorsements.
Stephanie Wells, Canadian liaison with the Organic Trade Association, is intrigued by the project.
“It does seem to be an interesting marriage of biotech and organic,” she said.
Wells opposes genetically modified crops but keeps an open mind about other biotechnology applications.
“I don’t have that knee-jerk reaction to biotechnology being something evil and the polar opposite of organic.”
She said the Hemptown project is one that seems benign and could be an exciting development for the organic sector.
Hemptown is in the final phase of testing the enzyme technique at its pilot plants in Alberta. The next step will be to build a mill.
For the past 12 years the Vancouver firm has produced its apparel in China using Chinese grown hemp.
That is about to change. The company has an agreement with Craik, Sask., to start building its first mill in that community next year.
