Kimberly Clarke, an American Fortune 500 company, currently manufactures hemp paper for cigarettes and Bibles in France, and much of the cigarette paper is sold to American companies. Tree Free EcoPaper of Oregon imports paper manufactured in China. They are in the process of building a mill in Oregon that would create 400 new jobs, but without a domestic hemp supply, raw materials will have to be imported, keeping prices high. Germany's largest paper manufacturer has recently converted two mills for hemp production. Current research at the Washing State Wood Composite Laboratory shows that medium density fiberboard made from hemp are twice as strong as that made from wood.
Composites are the fastest growing sector of the wood-products industry.
Currently, binders are made using formaldehyde. Hemp hurds could be used, either alone or blended with wood, in existing mills with absolutely no changes to existing equipment. Russia, Poland and other Eastern European countries currently manufacture composite boards from hemp and other plant materials. They believe that blending in hemp would make the panels even stronger. Hemp hurds also make an excellent animal bedding.