Biodiversity conservation

Regarding biodiversity conservation, hemp farming can promote biodiversity conservation by providing habitat and food for a variety of creatures, including beneficial insects which eat pests, promoting natural pest control (Adesina et al., 2020; Rightford, 2020). Since there is almost no need for pesticides, which reduce soil organism biodiversity, when cultivating hemp as it outcompetes most weeds and has no major pest issues so far (Cherney, J. H., Small, E., 2016). Growing hemp without the use of pesticides or herbicides decreases the danger of damaging beneficial insects and other creatures, promoting biodiversity and allowing the microfauna to develop (Adesina et al., 2020; Rightford, 2020). Therefore, organic hemp farming practices that do not use synthetic pesticides and herbicides benefit biodiversity by protecting natural habitats and reducing impact to non-target species (Akotsen-Mensah et al., 2024). Another aspect of biodiversity conservation is the possibility to utilise hemp as a sustainable replacement for wood in a variety of applications, including paper and building materials (Ahmed et al., 2022). By substituting hemp for wood products, hemp production helps to reduce deforestation and therefore conserve the habitat of fauna and flora. (ibid).