With climate change and carbon footprints in the news at the moment, we each have a responsibility to understand how the way that we live our lives has an impact and what we can do to reduce our impact on the planet.
It starts off by understanding where you are now and trying to improve on that. So, what difference does the rise in the popularity of CBD have on the planet and our carbon footprint?
About CBD
CBD is a natural compound that is found in the cannabis or hemp plant. This is a plant that has been used for thousands of years, not just medicinally, but also as a material for building, making clothing, or even rope.
CBD stands for Cannabidiol. It is a natural cannabinoid which, when taken by most mammals, can interact with the endocannabinoid system – through cannabinoid receptors. The endocannabinoid system plays a vital role in the body, helping to keep the other processes in the body in excellent working order.
When some of the endocannabinoids which interact with the receptors are at low levels, we begin to see health problems sneaking in and by boosting these levels with another cannabinoid – in this case, CBD, we can start to get the endocannabinoid system working properly again.
Processing CBD
Most CBD companies will be using the CO2 extraction method, which involves passing carbon dioxide through the hemp, pulling the CBD through it with them. These, of course, require an amount of technology, machinery, and energy to carry out, but the process of supercritical CO2 extraction is not harmful to the environment or people who take the CBD.
CO2 extraction methods can also be used in a loop system, which means that it can be used and reused, cutting down on the amount of waste. Once the CBD has been extracted, it is then important to look at the products which are being made and how they are made. Most CBD products contain as few ‘extras’ as possible, but think about the other ingredients – for example, if it is mixed with coconut oil, it might have a larger carbon footprint than if it uses local hemp seed oil.
You should also think about packaging. Is it made from sustainable or recyclable materials? Is there also much unnecessary packaging, or can you buy them in larger quantities, which may help reduce the amount of packaging that you use?Finally, and importantly, you should be looking at where the product was made. Was it made in the UK? Or the US? Or Europe. The place where it has had to be sent from has a massive impact on your carbon footprint, so try to buy your CBD products as locally as possible.
One of the bonuses of being a new industry is that the people who are in it are generally of a younger generation. This generation seems to be particularly interested in lowering their carbon footprint and slowing down climate change, as well as having some of the tools that are needed to change.
Conclusion
Hemp isn’t just good for giving us CBD. It can actually play a much bigger part in making the planet a better place. Hemp can be used for food, replace plastic, is biodegradable, can be used instead of synthetic clothes, and is an all-around good egg. Hemp seems to be showing a lot of promise in helping us to reduce climate change and improve the state of the Earth, through a number of different ways.
In the end, there are some limitations for the environmental sustainability of mass-grown hemp that cannot be overcome. It will always require the use of a lot of land and water, as well as fossil fuels used by industrial harvesting and distribution machinery. However, relative to most other mass-grown crops, hemp has many advantages for being more friendly to the environment. That’s good news for the future of the industry, as it is set to increase eight-fold in less than a decade.