New Zealand Natural Fibres, based in Christchurch New Zealand, has a long-established business in manufacturing woollen yarns for soft flooring and boasts a deep pedigree in agronomy, with several years dedicated to growing and harvesting hemp. Significant investment has been made to date in building out its vertically integrated business model, encompassing research and development, cultivation, manufacturing, and market development for the hemp business and its associated products.
Continuing to build off its foundation, New Zealand Natural Fibres has expanded its product through entry-level offerings such as geotextiles, animal bedding, and bulk hurd for hempcrete and leveraging its existing wool business with hemp hybrid yarns currently undergoing market testing.
The future growth strategy is to focus on developing novel products that will offer viable alternatives to current market solutions across apparel, the built environment and biocomposites. Key learnings will be shared to provide insights into the capabilities required to drive adoption and accelerate the inflection point for larger-scale adoption. This includes the need for vertical integration, channel alignment, significant upfront investment in processing, specialised equipment and full plant utilisation.