Pioneering sustainable fabric woven from a blend of wool and hemp
First launched in 2012, Hemp is made from an all-natural blend of wool and hemp fibers to create a fabric with impeccable eco-credentials and innate flame retardancy. Developed by Camira as part of their pioneering innovation work into the use of plant stem fibers in textiles, Hemp has become one of their most iconic and loved fabrics, selling thousands of yards since its introduction.
Grown as an agricultural crop under license from the UK government Home Office on a farm in England, the hemp plants used within Hemp are the Cannabis sativa strain which contains only minute amounts of the psychoactive substance THC. Proven to capture atmospheric carbon twice as effectively as forests, recent research by the Centre for Natural Material Innovation at Cambridge estimates that industrial hemp absorbs between 8 and 15 metric tons of CO2 per hectare of cultivation, whilst forests sequester between 2 and 6 metric tons.
Part of Camira’s collection of fabrics made from bast fibers, Hemp is made using the long stem of the hemp plant. Sown from seed and reaching over three yards in height in just 120 days, Camira plants 100lbs of seed for every hectare which generates 6 metric tons of hemp straw, which in turn yields 1 metric ton of textile fiber, equating to 5,400 yards of fabric.
Manufactured in an eco-conscious method, the process of separating the stem’s fibers for spinning into yarn begins with dew retting – a natural, sustainable way of allowing dew and rain to begin breaking down the tissues and pectins which surround the stem – which is then completed by mechanical decortication, during which the fine textile fibers are extracted from the heavier woody shiv commonly used in the creation of building materials and animal bedding. Once harvested, the hemp leaves are left behind to decompose and act as fertilizer for the following year’s crop. Requiring just 5kWh to produce 2lbs of textile fiber, in comparison to 69kWh to produce 2lbs of nylon, the environmental benefits of hemp extend across its lifecycle.
Jodie Padgett, Senior Innovator at Camira, comments, “With sustainable design more important now than ever before, we are delighted that Hemp has stood the test of time and remains a beloved fabric in our portfolio. One of our proudest achievements, it is one of the most eco-friendly fabrics on the market, providing incredible environmental benefits, and is also beautiful in its aesthetics. With its natural composition visible in its appealingly weathered finish and multi-tonal coloration, we look forward to Hemp continuing to play a valuable role as a sustainable textile staple in commercial interiors.”
About Camira:
- Camira designs and manufactures contract fabrics for commercial interiors and passenger transport. The company’s fabrics are used in offices, hotels, schools, universities, shops and hospitals, as well as on buses, coaches and trains. End-user clients include Transport for London, LNER, Lloyds Banking Group, the BBC, Intercontinental Hotel Group, Google, Microsoft and Facebook.
- Camira is privately-owned, founded originally in 1974 under the name Camborne A Management buy-out from the US company Interface, Inc (specialising in modular textile flooring) led to the creation of Camira Group in 2006.
- Today Camira sells around 8 million metres of fabrics annually and in over 80 countries globally.
- Headquartered in Mirfield, West Yorkshire, Camira operates manufacturing sites in and around Huddersfield giving the company textile manufacturing capabilities from yarn spinning, to weaving, dyeing and textile finishing and printing. There are sites in Birkby, Meltham and Holmfirth, a technical knitting plant in Nottingham, and a European manufacturing facility in Lithuania.
- Camira has won Queen’s Awards for Sustainable Development, Innovation, and International Trade, as well as numerous industry accolades.