Termite Response to Agricultural Fiber Composites: Hemp

IRG/WP 05-10548

J K Grace

Industrial hemp, Cannabis sativa, is a fiber usable in manufacture of nutritional products, rope, textiles, paper and building products. Due to the illicit recreational uses of Cannabis sativa varieties with high tetrahydrocannabinol content (marijuana), hemp is not grown commercially in the United States. However, it is grown in many other nations, and has been proposed as a replacement for sugarcane and other commodity crops in the United States, including Hawaii. These studies were undertaken to determine the susceptibility of several potential hemp building products to Formosan subterranean termite attack. Although advocates of the fiber sometimes comment on its relative resistance to insects and decay fungi, there is little to no data available to either substantiate or refute these claims. Termite responses to experimental hemp fibreboards (UF or MDI resins), and to a commercial mineralized hemp building material (Isochanvre) were evaluated in laboratory essays. The hemp fibreboards were readily attacked by termites, although the UF resin was relatively toxic to them in comparison to MDI. Termites also readily consumed the mineralized hemp fibers, although mortality was high. Thus, one can conclude that hemp is susceptible to termite attack. Urea formaldehyde resin in fibreboards and silica, lime or boric acid in mineralized hemp were detrimental to termite survival, but still did not prevent significant attack. Preservative or other treatments appear to be required to protect hemp building products from degradation.


Keywords: Coptotermes formosanus, Formosan subterranean termite, Cannabis sativa, fibreboard, mineralized hemp

Conference: 05-04-24/28 Bangalore, India


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