The aim of the Australian Industrial Hemp Conference (AIHC) from its first edition has been to enhance co-operation and collaboration. We believe the only way forward for the industrial hemp industry is for growers, processors, businesses and researchers alike to work together in a cooperative manner.

Over the journey of the AIHC we have tried to bring presenters to our event to promote this idea and help expand the industry. And so, the fifth Australian Industrial Hemp Conference has the theme ‘Growing Together’.

Much has developed since the first conference (in March 2018), which was held just after industrial hemp was legalized in November 2017. The Australian Government’s National Climate Risk Assessment identifies agriculture as one of the country’s highest‑risk sectors, with impacts on yield stability, water availability, pest pressure, and regional viability. And whilst Australia’s innovation system performs well at farm‑level trials it remains weak in supporting the post-harvest processing and standards development that the industrial hemp industry requires. Hemp’s value lies less in raw biomass than in integrated value chains (fibre and hurd processing, hempcrete, food ingredients), which are capital‑intensive and regionally anchored.

With the HempToday and AHC Australian and New Zealand report available, the recently published Senate Inquiry Report  and the Industrial Hemp Variety Trials Final Report from Agrifutures, we are at a terrific turning point for the industry. With collaboration and stakeholder commitment we should be in a position to make some real positive plans to move the industry forward and propel the scale up required to meet the demand that is out there.

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