US hemp exports rose by over 500% in 2020, the second full year of hemp cultivation in the US. The exports portrayed in the chart below are categorized as “true hemp Cannabis sativa l., raw or processed, but not spun; tow and waste of true hemp, including yarn waste and garnetted stock”.

This category does little to shed light on the actual products being exported. For instance, some of the exports to Switzerland are floral products, like smokable hemp. This is a radically different product with dissimilar applications to industrial fiber.

Hemp exports grew by another 15% in 2021, primarily destined for European countries or Canada. In 2022, hemp exports declined by 42%. The lack of cadence to these markets…