Building South Africa's hemp future: from cultivation to textile processing

The local hemp industry is taking root, with Green Route Hemp Industries pioneering local trials, farmer training, and fibre processing to unlock opportunities.

- Octavia Avesca Spandiel

Once outlawed and misunderstood, hemp has steadily emerged as one of the most promising crops for South Africa’s agricultural and industrial future. With legislation now opening the door for commercial cultivation, companies like Green Route Hemp Industries have been at the forefront of building a local value chain from trialling different hemp varieties to producing high-quality textile-grade fibre.

Speaking to Farmer’s Weekly, Mahlatse Mohlala, director and founder of Green Route Hemp Industries, said the company was founded in 2021 and the vision extended beyond farming. It aimed to prove that hemp could not only be grown successfully in South Africa’s diverse climates, but also processed into products that matched international standards.

“We’ve been building a value chain of proudly South African hemp textiles. Not only can we cultivate hemp locally, but we can process it into viable, highquality textile products,” says Mohlala.

TRIALS ACROSS THE COUNTRY

Chad Ferlito, head of operations and chief technology officer at Green Route Hemp Industries, told Farmer’s Weekly that the company had adopted a broad approach to testing hemp cultivation across different South African provinces.

“We have two main sites under our Green Route umbrella, and also other farmers within our network across the country. That has allowed us to establish whether or not certain varieties do well in certain areas. We also have a plot that is our trial facility, where we trial all of our variants and genetics,” says Ferlito.

According to him, testing is critical because hemp responds differently depending on altitude, latitude, and climate. “We’ve run trials with Yuma, Fibro79, and Hybrid SI -1, and we’re now plotting to trial other Yuma variants and genetics from around Europe and China,” he adds.

The trial facility covers 1,5ha, while another site spans 20ha with the potential to expand to 200ha.