Panda Biotech to open Texas hemp processing plant
Panda Biotech said it will open a 500,000 square foot hemp fibre processing centre in Wichita Falls, Texas, later this year. The company described the facility as the largest of its kind in the US and the first in the country to process hemp fibre on a commercial scale.
Set on the 97-acre campus that was formerly home to the General Motors’ Delphi assembly plant, the Panda Texas Plains Hemp Gin is planned to house two 10-ton/hour decorticators. When running at full production, these machines, which separate the outer bast fibre from the inner woody core (the “hurd”), can process around 300 million pounds of Texas-grown industrial hemp per year, according to the company. Panda estimates the two lines could generate some $30,000,000 per year for Texas farmers.
Hemp fibre will be cottonised, a process that removes the lignin that binds hemp fibres together in bundles and “opens” them for further refinement, the company said. The hemp fibre is then ready to be blended with other natural or man-made fibres, such as cotton, silk, wool and polyester, and spun into yarns to be knit or woven into fabric. The hurd will be processed for industrial purposes.
Panda Biotech said it chose Wichita Falls based on “an available outstanding facility, the city’s geographical location, access to highly experienced Texas producers, an excellent workforce, a low cost of living and pro-business community”.
Scott Evans, executive vice president of Panda Biotech, said there is also enough land to allow for expansion into “strategic, new business endeavours” the company is planning.
Image: Panda Biotech. From left to right, bast hemp fibre, refined hemp fibre, cottonised hemp.
