Industry Profile

Alice Caillouel: building and cultivating the future of hemp

Between drawing architectural plans and working the soil of Normandy's fields, Alice Caillouel has chosen not to choose. A farmers' daughter turned architect, she seeks to reconcile the act of building with the living world.

It was in the field in 2021 that she discovered the construction qualities of hemp, during a training course run by the CAUE 76 (the departmental council for architecture, urban planning and the environment) at the apprentice training centre in Bourgtheroulde (Eure). It was a genuine professional revelation. « We were given a demonstration of hemp sprayed with lime. I discovered its exceptional performance in terms of summer comfort, its fire resistance, its rodent-repellent role and its unique ability to regulate humidity without losing thermal efficiency, unlike conventional insulation such as glass wool », she recalls.

Based in Normandy and specialising in the renovation of older buildings, Alice quickly began including hempcrete in her specifications, mainly as cast formwork. In her view: « Architects bring an essential added value in steering projects towards bio-based and geo-sourced materials. »

Her commitment also extends to the institutional level. Elected to the regional Council of the Order of Architects, then to the national level since 2021, it was through these roles that Alice Caillouel came across the Construire en Chanvre association, reinforcing her conviction about the technical and environmental viability of the material: « When you see successful projects in the heart of Paris or in the regions, you realise there is no obstacle. », she stresses.

For Alice, the growth of hemp in the building sector requires more communication and more site visits: « I get the impression that people sometimes need to be up against the wall to realise, (…) they need to live the experience and see the thermal comfort during a heatwave to appreciate the value of this material ».

Today, this committed architect is starting a new chapter by taking over the family farm in Normandy. From field to building site, Alice now masters both the agricultural upstream and the implementation for construction and renovation. Nothing beats knowing the material to bring out its full potential.

The sector's proposals for the presidential election

As part of the campaign for the 2027 presidential election, the French industrial hemp sector has drawn up a set of agreed proposals, to put before the candidates 16 proposals to include in their programmes!

This work was carried out with the board members and Euralia, InterChanvre's public affairs consultancy, in order to push hemp into public policies concerned with French agricultural and industrial sovereignty.

Hemp is an opportunity for France.

From the bioeconomy strategy to the development of public procurement in school catering or construction, these proposals aim to support, strengthen and develop the entire sector, from upstream to downstream.

We invite every player in the sector to share this document with their local politicians or with those who influence the candidates. InterChanvre has begun holding meetings to defend the sector's positions and the reception has been good. Don't hesitate: please circulate this document widely!

Markets & Applications

Construction

Apply for the 2027 National Hemp Construction Prize!

Construire en Chanvre is launching the 3^rd edition of the National Hemp Construction Prize (PNCC). This free competition celebrates the commitment of building professionals to hemp construction and refurbishment carried out under the Professional Rules.

5 categories, 5 winners and an exceptional showcase

To reflect the full diversity of building methods, the competition will reward 5 winners across strategic categories: multi-family housing, social housing, buildings open to the public (ERP), commercial and office buildings, and individual housing. A special prize may also be awarded if the jury so decides.

Interested teams have until 15 November 2026 to submit their complete application. After a pre-selection phase at the end of November, the expert jury will meet in December to choose the winners. The awards will be presented in February 2027, at an official ceremony held at the Forum Bois Construction (International Timber Construction Forum), under the prestigious nave of the Grand Palais in Paris. The mezzanine exhibition of the winning projects is sponsored by InterChanvre.

Go to the dedicated PNCC website to submit your application, access the rules and discover previous editions!

CSTB and the hemp sector: a strategic partnership to build the future

On the occasion of its General Assembly, held on 9 and 10 September at the Scientific and Technical Centre for Building (CSTB), the Construire en Chanvre association highlighted an important collaboration for the industrial hemp sector.

A public body founded in 1947 to support the reconstruction of France, the CSTB covers the entire building value chain, from upstream research to dissemination and training, including expertise, assessment and certification. Today, at its historic site in Marne-la-Vallée, hemp-based technical solutions are rigorously assessed for their fire, acoustic and thermal behaviour, among other things. These are essential steps to reassure project owners, inspection bodies and insurers, notably through the ATEx (Technical Assessments for Experimentation) that frame innovation.

For the hemp sector, building closer ties with this research centre required a constructive period of adjustment. As Stéphane Hameury, Operations Director for the Building Envelope at the CSTB, explains: « Our collaboration rests on strong complementarity and reciprocity: the hemp sector brings us its knowledge of the material, of practices and of the realities on the ground, while the CSTB provides its scientific and technical expertise to consolidate solutions and make it easier to integrate them into construction standards. It is by moving forward together, sharing knowledge and feedback, that we will be able to foster the development of hemp construction at national scale. »

This desire to build together took concrete form when the CSTB joined the board of directors of Construire en Chanvre in 2024: « By joining the board, our ambition is to pool our expertise, learn from one another and contribute together to the choices that will allow hemp construction to develop sustainably. »

With a resolutely forward-looking vision, Stéphane Hameury reaffirms the central place of bio-based materials: « When we talk about adaptation to and mitigation of climate change today, it is quite clear that bio-based materials have a leading role to play in this transformation. »

During the General Assembly of Construire en Chanvre, participants were able to visit the site and its laboratories, guided by the professionals. Construire en Chanvre and InterChanvre once again thank the CSTB for its welcome and for these constructive exchanges.

For more information on the CSTB, visit its website.

Food

Nicolas Conraux sows the seeds of hemp in haute cuisine

When Michelin-starred gastronomy meets local producers, hemp finds pride of place on the plate. The meeting between the producer Arnaud Pilet and the Michelin-starred chef Nicolas Conraux is proof of it.

Self-taught, Nicolas came to the world of cooking at the age of thirty, and cultivates a freedom of tone and an insatiable curiosity. Today he runs the family establishment La Butte (gourmet restaurant, bistro, bakery and wellness area) in Plouider, in Brittany, just five kilometres from Arnaud's farm.

It was at a customer's suggestion that the chef first added hemp to his creations. A discovery that has been refined over time: « At first we used it sparingly, as flour. Then we understood that by drizzling hemp oil over the bread we would get a more present aroma. Finally, with hulled hemp seed, we could really make plant-based dairy alternatives and give them that indulgent side. »

Today, hemp is used daily in his granolas, his breads, and even in the range of treatments at the wellness area of the family establishment La Butte.

He creates one of the house's signature dishes: L'Estran, a hemp milk broth paired with seaweed from the shoreline (see photo)

These creations never fail to intrigue customers, who oscillate between surprise and amused curiosity.

Faced with these questions, the chef stresses the importance of education and of recent documentaries, such as « Le chanvre des possibles » (“The Possibilities of Hemp”), broadcast on Tuesday 22 September on France 5, in which he appears.

To make this superfood mainstream, he offers valuable advice: « You must first introduce it as a condiment (…) and highlight its well-being benefits for the body. » An inspiring approach to showcase the full nobility of hemp!

Textile

French Hemp Webinar: a collective momentum building for French textiles

On 5 October, the webinar of the Union des Industriels du Textile (UIT, the French textile industries' union) brought together processors, manufacturers and local stakeholders around a strategic issue: the future of short fibres in French textiles.

This event, which gathered 39 participants, reaffirmed the value of hemp in the value chain.

The various speakers illustrated how the links of the sector complement one another:

● Myriam Joly, head of Missègle, briefly shared her vision as an entrepreneur.

● Victor Lamego, head of Occitanie Géotex, described the sector's industrial ramp-up, embodied by the ongoing construction of their second plant.

● Margaux Lamourelle, co-founder of Aura Chanvre, demonstrated the strength of a locally rooted model, highlighting short supply chains as a lever for regional development.

● Joël Lagneau, management officer at InterChanvre, gave an overview of the sector and also presented the Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) of cottonised hemp.

Thanks to Christelle Perz for organising this exchange, so rich in sharing. A first that will be followed by others, to keep moving the sector forward together.

Couldn't attend, or want to watch it again? The webinar replay is available via this YouTube link.

Find the 2026 Life Cycle Analysis here.

In the Field

An unusual year: the hemp sector facing the heatwave

In the memory of hemp growers, there has never been such a hot and dry year, and no crop was spared. Despite its good drought resistance, hemp suffered from the high temperatures, which weighed on its growth and development. Yields are very uneven from one region to another, but heavily affected overall.

This situation penalises the entire sector, from seed companies and growers to the manufacturers who must supply committed markets. At the strategic seminar in May, the board members had expressed the wish to develop agronomic knowledge within InterChanvre and to set up a seed observatory.

This is the right year to mobilise the sector

● The Agronomy Working Group (GT Agro), relaunched this year, meets regularly to exchange views and set the priorities for agronomic support within the sector.

● A seed observatory is under way to better understand hemp growers' needs in hectares per variety and the availability offered by seed companies on the French market. Semae (the French seed interprofession) contributes to this survey through its flax/hemp group, of which InterChanvre and Hemp it are members. The data will be fully anonymised and compiled in order to move the sector forward without harming any player.

Arno Dignan of InterChanvre is handling both projects.

Regulation

Negotiations are speeding up on the CMO regulation

The targeted revision of the regulation on the Common Market Organisation (CMO) aims in particular to regulate the production, import and marketing of hemp. While Member States wish to adopt their position on the text before the end of 2026, technical-level meetings in September were marked by an initiative from six Member States (Sweden, Finland, Italy, Slovenia, Slovakia and Bulgaria) to take hemp flowers and leaves out of the regulation. Political-level meetings should now allow these negotiations to be concluded in the coming months.

On this issue, the National Federation of Hemp Producers (FNPC) and InterChanvre maintain a consistent position: a clear separation between the industrial hemp sector and the “flower” sector, in line with the scope of the interprofession in France, without calling for a total exclusion of flowers and leaves from the scope of the regulation. The aim is to reserve CAP support for industrial hemp producers and to secure differentiated support that rewards the agri-environmental benefits of industrial hemp.

For their part, MEPs are currently negotiating the compromises that should be voted on in the European Parliament by the end of 2026. Trilogues will follow, paving the way for adoption of the final text by the European institutions in the course of 2027.

In Brief

688,000 pairs of eyes glued to « Le chanvre des possibles »!

On Tuesday 22 September on France 5, the documentary « Le chanvre des possibles » attracted 688,000 viewers in prime time. The industrial hemp sector thanks director Gaëlle Le Garrec for her commitment and this immersive work. All the professional players and partners contributed to introducing the general public to industrial hemp, from its cultivation to its uses.

The documentary is now available for replay on france.tv.

« Le Chanvre en Chantier »: a video mini-series on the realities on the ground

Discover a house renovated with hemp through the feedback and the technical and practical advice of its owners, in the video mini-series « Le Chanvre en Chantier » (“Hemp on the Building Site”).

Filmed in Lorient on the renovation project of Mathis and Alexia Rager, winners of the 2026 National Hemp Construction Prize (PNCC) in the Individual House category, these 5 short films of 1 to 3 minutes offer a lively and concrete insight into the use of this bio-based material.

The mini-series is built around 5 thematic episodes: thermal comfort, the integration of hemp in renovation, feedback from the National Hemp Construction Prize, the regulatory framework, and the sharing of knowledge through training worksites and courses.

These videos are a documentary resource that can be reused by the whole sector.

The episodes can be viewed on InterChanvre's LinkedIn page.

Agenda

Recent Events

● 1–3 September: the Alliance du Lin et du Chanvre (Flax and Hemp Alliance) was present at the Première Vision trade fair with its “Hemp Lab” on their stand. Their book The Hemp Textile Inspiration Book, which positions hemp as a “fibre of character, raw, resilient and made by humans”, was exhibited there as part of the European project Hemp4Circularity.

● 22–24 September: Organised by the Union Sociale pour l'Habitat (USH, the Social Housing Union), the HLM Congress is the annual event of the social housing sector in France. For this 86^th edition, housing professionals gathered in Bordeaux. Many discussions highlighted the place of hemp in building, notably thanks to the presence of Wall'Up Prefa, confirming the sector's essential role as a solution for the future in the face of climate and environmental challenges.

● 28 September – 1 October: At Batimat, the major national construction event, the presence of Cavac Biomatériaux and its subsidiary Biofib Isolation attracted particular attention. The stand received a number of candidates in the 2027 presidential election, offering a fine opportunity to put the industrial hemp sector in the spotlight. It was also an opportunity for the company to successfully launch its new « Biofib toiture » roof insulation.

● 6 October: The Public Construction and Architecture Department of the City of Paris organised a day dedicated to innovation following this summer's repeated heatwaves. Bio-based sectors and suppliers were invited to exhibit in order to make innovative solutions better known to its staff. InterChanvre had a stand to present hemp buildings in Paris and the benefits of this construction method, alongside IsoHemp and Cavac Biomatériaux.

● 30 September – 1 October: ProDurable, the European event for CSR players and solutions. For the 3^rd year, InterChanvre presented the Hemp Environmental Services Payment (PSE) scheme at this event, which brought together thousands of professionals at the Palais des Congrès in Paris. Nearly a hundred conversations took place, opening the door to new synergies to promote the environmental benefits of hemp for the benefit of growers.

Upcoming

● 24–26 November: the European Hemp Hub invites you to the Centre de Congrès de l'Aube, in Troyes, for the second edition of the World Hemp Forum. Take the opportunity to meet and exchange with international players in the hemp sector!

Programme and information can be found on the dedicated website.