| Study Period | 2019 - 2030 |
| 2024 Market Size | USD 20.1 Billion |
| 2025 Market Size | USD 24.1 Billion |
| 2030 Forecast | USD 60.6 Billion |
| Growth Rate (CAGR) | 20.2% |
| Largest Region | Europe |
| Fastest Growing Region | North America |
| Nature of the Market | Fragmented |
| Largest Application Category | Food |
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In 2024, the global industrial hemp market size is estimated at USD 20.1 billion, and it is projected to progress at a CAGR of 20.2% during 2024–2030, reaching USD 60.6 billion by 2030.
The major growth drivers for the market are the increase in the availability of raw materials with the legalization of hemp cultivation in more countries, surging demand for textiles, ropes, building materials, and other products made from hemp fibers, advancing cultivation technology leading to higher productivity and lower resource wastage, surging interest in hemp cultivation owing to its lower water requirement, and burgeoning usage of hemp oil and seeds in the food & beverage industry.
Globally, over 45 countries permit hemp cultivation, and there is an increasing bast fiber demand for the production of high-quality textiles. In the past, Canada concentrated on hemp cultivation for the production of seeds for the food and cosmetics industries. The country has recently begun to grow this crop for fibers, which will be used in bio-composites, insulation, and building materials. Furthermore, an increasing number of states in the U.S. are legalizing hemp farming, indicating that the country would experience a burgeoning hemp demand for its fibers and seeds.
Moreover, in terms of fiber hemp cultivation, China is the most-important country. For export to Europe and Northern America, the country produces both traditional long fibers and enzymatic cottonized hemp fibers.
Developed countries, such as the U.S., the U.K., and France, are seeking for ways to grow crops with a low environmental impact, such as cereals, which are produced in excess. Hemp is a potentially profitable crop, fitting into sustainable farming systems. Interest in "new" fiber crops is growing as a means of finding alternatives to high-input crops, such as cotton, or reducing the paper industry's impact on forests. It has prospective uses in the paper, textile, composite, biofuel, and food industries, as well as novel uses as renewable raw materials for seed oils and essential oils.
In Europe, the area allocated to hemp farming has increased by more than 70%, from roughly 20,000 hectares in 2015 to 35,000 hectares in 2019. Moreover, hemp production increased by roughly 65% during the same period, from around 95,000 tonnes to 155,000 tonnes. THC levels in hemp harvests have also been raised from 0.2% to 0.3%, allowing European farmers access to more than 500 hemp varieties.
The legalization of the cultivation of industrial hemp in many countries is driving the market. Cannabis sativa L., which is used to make industrial hemp, is not marijuana, but a different cultivar of the same species. A resurgence in cultivation is being seen since the European Union, the U.S., and many other countries have legalized it, provided that the mandates for low THC levels are adhered to.
In the U.S., the 2018 Farm Bill (the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018) removed hemp with less than 0.3% THC from the Controlled Substances Act's definition of ‘cannabis’. In June 2018, the FDA approved the first CBD-based drug, Epidiolex, for the treatment of childhood seizures associated with two forms of epilepsy.
In the European Union, the cultivation must be of varieties containing less than 0.2% THC. In these countries, hemp seeds, seed oil, and flour are permitted, while all extracts and derivatives containing cannabinoids are considered “novel”. Additionally, in March 2019, the Chinese National Anti-Drug Committee announced that CBD is not included on the list of narcotic drugs in the country and that it is not a controlled drug. It also stated that cannabis with a THC content of 0.3% or less can be grown in certain parts of China.
The legalization of industrial hemp cultivation in North America and Europe has shifted the focus on producing oilseeds and CBD oil; CBD is a non-psychoactive cannabinoid that can be employed in the food and medicinal industries. Further, CBD is becoming popular as a food supplement and a component of pharmaceutical and cosmetic products.
As a significant portion of hemp still goes into recreational use, growers, THC and CBD extractors, and end product manufacturers have to undergo extensive government scrutiny before being licensed and even during production. Since different countries look at this product differently, the regulatory procedures and the level of checks and compliance vary significantly. Moreover, CBD is not yet approved from pharmaceutical or food & beverage use in many countries, thus limiting its application.
Moreover, its cultivation requires specific conditions, such as high humidity with up to 30 inches of annual rainfall, good soil drainage, and compact soil. Further, since hemp and marijuana are similar, it can be difficult for new growers to distinguish between the two. This raises the risk of the cultivation of the wrong species, which can bring about regulatory action, such as fines or confiscation of the entire farm.
The study covers the following product types:
The following applications are included in the report:
We have analyzed these sources:
The farm segment is bifurcated as below:
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The report offers analysis for the following regions and countries:
The industrial hemp market has a fragmented nature because both large and small-scale farmers grow this crop. Additionally, there are a wide variety of existing and emerging applications of hemp-derived products, with farmers supplying to different industries. Additionally, apart from the different legal requirements across countries, the regulations are often different across different states of the same country, as is the case in the U.S. Further, different companies usually specialize in particular products, such as oil or seeds; hence, consolidation of the market has been difficult.
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