Greenfern Industries, Hemp Connect and Callaghan Innovation have been awarded a further Bioresource Processing Alliance (BPA) grant to research high-value products made from the by-products of hemp seed processing.
If it can be successfully commercialised, the project would see new food and cosmetic products made from what would otherwise be wastage from hemp seeds.
The three companies put in a joint bid for BPA funding and were awarded NZ$110,000. Greenfern and Hemp Connect will each contribute $15,000 in cash and $10,000 in-kind towards the project.
The grant will fund the continuation of research that began in early 2021 with promising results. Greenfern managing director Dan Casey said: “To begin with we’re looking at a high-quality, plant-based soluble protein (peptide) made from New Zealand-grown hemp.
“The research we’ve already done tells us this product alone would be new to market – there doesn’t appear to be anything like this readily available elsewhere in the world.”
Other products the project will look at include whether lipids (fatty, waxy or oily substances) could be extracted using various methods, and used as an edible or cosmetic oil. It is expected to get under way in the next few months and will run for around 16 months.
Meanwhile, Greenfern has launched a $1.2m offer to wholesale investors, with shares priced at $0.115 and a minimum investment of $10k, as part of a bid to raise up to $5m.
