Hemp History20 Jun, 2026
Global Hemp History Month: Celebrating One of Humanity’s Oldest and Most Useful Plants
Hempco Admin7 Mins. Read
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Hempco Admin
For thousands of years, hemp has helped clothe, feed, shelter and support human civilisation.
Long before synthetic fibres, petrochemical plastics and highly processed materials became part of everyday life, hemp was already being grown, spun, pressed, woven and built into the fabric of human history. It has been used for clothing, rope, sails, paper, food, oil, animal bedding, building materials and countless everyday tools.
Yet for much of the last century, this remarkable crop was misunderstood, heavily restricted and pushed to the margins.
Today, that story is changing.
As the world looks for more sustainable ways to grow food, make clothing, build homes and reduce reliance on environmentally damaging materials, hemp is finding its way back into the conversation. Not as a new trend, but as an ancient solution being rediscovered for modern times.
Hemp is often described as one of the earliest plants used by humans for fibre. Archaeological evidence suggests hemp and cannabis fibres were being used by early civilisations thousands of years ago, with some records pointing to ancient Asia and the ancient Near East.
For early communities, strong natural fibres were incredibly valuable. They could be twisted into cord, woven into cloth, used for fishing nets, tied into tools and worked into practical materials for everyday life.
In many ways, hemp was useful long before history was written down.
Ancient China played a major role in hemp’s early story.
Hemp fibre was used to make clothing, shoes, rope and cordage. Hemp seed and hemp seed oil were also valued as food sources. Some of the earliest forms of paper were made using plant fibres, including hemp, helping support the spread of written knowledge and record keeping.
For centuries, hemp was not a fringe crop. It was a practical, everyday plant used across households, farms, workshops and trade.
By the time global trade and seafaring exploration expanded, hemp had become essential to maritime life.
Sails, ropes, nets and rigging all needed strong, durable fibre. Hemp was prized because it could handle heavy use, salt air and rough conditions at sea. Without hemp, many of the ships that carried people, goods and ideas across oceans would have looked very different.
It is easy to forget just how important natural fibres once were. Before modern synthetics, a ship’s strength depended not only on timber and iron, but on the ropes and sails that held it together.
The 20th century brought enormous change.
Synthetic fibres, plastics and petrochemical products became more common. Cotton and other industrial crops took larger shares of the textile market. At the same time, hemp became tangled in the wider regulation of cannabis, despite industrial hemp being grown for fibre and seed rather than intoxicating use.
This combination of changing materials, public confusion and strict regulation led to hemp disappearing from many farms, factories and shop shelves around the world.
For a plant that had supported human civilisation for thousands of years, it was a dramatic fall.
In recent decades, hemp has been making a steady comeback.
Countries around the world have begun reintroducing industrial hemp as farmers, builders, designers, food producers and researchers look again at its potential.
Today, hemp is used in:
What makes hemp so exciting is not just that it has many uses. It is that many of those uses line up with what the world urgently needs: renewable materials, healthier buildings, lower-impact farming and products made closer to the source.
Australia’s hemp story is still being written, but its roots are deeper than many people realise.
While industrial hemp itself was introduced later, natural plant fibres have long played an important role in Indigenous Australian culture.
Across the continent, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples developed sophisticated fibre technologies using locally available plants, animal fibres and other natural materials. These fibres were used for cordage, nets, bags, baskets, weaving, binding, tools and everyday practical objects.
This is an important part of the broader story of fibre plants in Australia. Long before industrial materials arrived, natural fibres were understood, respected and used with deep knowledge of place, season and purpose.
In colonial Australia, hemp was recognised as a valuable fibre crop because of its importance in rope, sails, textiles and other practical goods.
This was part of a wider global pattern. Wherever sailing, shipping and farming were central to daily life, strong plant fibres mattered. Hemp was one of the most important of those fibres.
Although hemp never became the dominant Australian crop some early advocates imagined, it remained a plant with clear industrial potential.
The modern Australian hemp industry began to re-emerge in the late 20th century, as states gradually introduced licensing pathways for industrial hemp cultivation.
This revival has grown steadily over the past 30 years. Industrial hemp has been trialled, grown and processed in different parts of the country, with interest continuing to build across agriculture, food, skincare, textiles, construction and animal products.
One of the biggest turning points came in 2017, when low-THC hemp seed foods were approved for human consumption in Australia and New Zealand. This opened the door for hemp seeds, hemp seed oil, hemp protein and other hemp foods to become part of everyday Australian diets.
Since then, the industry has continued to expand.
Today, Australian hemp is being explored and used for:
The industry is still young compared to many established agricultural sectors, but that is part of what makes it exciting. Australia has the opportunity to build a hemp industry that is local, practical, environmentally responsible and connected from farm to finished product.
For Margaret River Hemp Co, hemp history is not just something we read about. It is something we have been part of for more than 30 years.
Established in Margaret River in 1995, we began at a time when hemp was still widely misunderstood. Most people had never eaten hemp seeds, worn hemp clothing or heard of hempcrete. Many did not know the difference between industrial hemp and other forms of cannabis.
So a big part of our work has always been education.
We have spent decades talking with customers, farmers, builders, makers, suppliers and curious passers-by about what hemp is, how it grows and why it matters. We have seen people go from confusion to curiosity, and from curiosity to genuine enthusiasm.
Over the years, Margaret River Hemp Co has been part of many chapters in Australia’s hemp revival.
We have supported hemp foods before they became mainstream. We have developed Australian-made hemp skincare. We have championed hemp clothing, homewares and natural body products. We have supported local hemp farming and processing. We have helped build awareness around hempcrete and the role hemp can play in healthier, more sustainable homes.
We have also continued to advocate for hemp through industry conversations, associations and public education, because real change takes more than good products. It takes persistence, trust and a willingness to keep explaining the value of this plant until people can see it for themselves.
Hemp’s long history is impressive, but its future may be even more important.
We are living in a time when people are asking better questions about the products they buy.
Where was this grown?
What is it made from?
How much waste does it create?
Is it healthy for my home, my skin, my family and the planet?
Could there be a better material?
Hemp offers answers across many of these areas.
As a food, hemp seeds are nutrient-rich and easy to add to everyday meals. As a fibre, hemp is strong, breathable and long-lasting. As a skincare ingredient, hemp seed oil is naturally nourishing and rich in essential fatty acids. As a building material, hemp can help create breathable, well-insulated homes with a lower environmental impact.
And as a crop, hemp continues to attract interest for its potential role in regenerative agriculture, carbon storage, soil health and sustainable manufacturing.
No single plant can solve every environmental problem. But hemp has something rare: versatility.
It can feed us, clothe us, shelter us and help replace materials that come with a heavier footprint.
That is why hemp’s return matters.
Global Hemp History Month is a chance to look back, but it is also a chance to look forward.
Hemp has travelled through ancient villages, Chinese workshops, sailing ships, colonial farms, forgotten fields and modern research labs. It has been praised, restricted, misunderstood and rediscovered.
Now, after thousands of years, it is finding its place again.
For us at Margaret River Hemp Co, that is what makes hemp so special. It is not just a product category. It is a plant with history, purpose and enormous potential.
After more than 30 years of sharing hemp with Australians, we are still excited by the same simple idea that started it all:
Hemp is one of the most useful plants on Earth, and we are only just beginning to remember what it can do.
