Hemp yarn imports have declined over the course of the previous five years. Key trading partners Romania and China constitute over 98% of all hemp yarn exports to the US.  

When viewing the prior three-year period, hemp yarn imports have stabilized, with modest increases from Italy, new partner South Korea, and China.  Romanian exports of hemp yarn to the US increased by 23% in 2024.

Romanian farmers continued to cultivate hemp when most countries prohibited it. The fiber hemp segment has been in decline in Romania for the last several decades due to depreciating facilities and falling demand for hemp yarn.

Romanian farmers plant roughly 3600 acres of hemp annually. Thirty years ago, Romania was the largest hemp fiber exporter in Europe and the fourth largest globally. In 1990, production reached almost 40,000 acres.

The complexity and cost structure…