• This article for Vogelsang USA was used to introduce its shredding equipment to a new market.
• Link: https://www.vogelsang.info/en-us/news/news/article/article/hemp-processing-is-an-evolving-science/
  

Hemp Processing is an Evolving Science

Hemp farming is today’s gold rush. Farmers have switched their vegetable fields to hemp farms in the hopes of cashing in on a market that is expanding the use of hemp. Traditionally used for fibers to produce rope, fabric, and building materials, hemp is now in great demand to be made into CBD oil for supplements, food, beauty products, and other uses. You can find volumes of advice about growing hemp – how to source seeds, the best growing conditions, and harvesting tips. But what is next once you’ve got the hemp out of the ground? Processing.

Historically, once hemp has been harvested, it must be dried before processing. Most processors then use a hammermill to crush the fibers and remove the flowers that produce CBD oil. This is a long, noisy, and dusty process, with the hammermill taking up considerable space and requiring high power consumption.

A new use for proven technology

There is a much better way to process hemp using a proven technology that has been used for years to process other materials. Tried and true shredding, grinding, and waste reduction technology from Vogelsang perfectly fits hemp processing, oil extraction, and waste handling. And the best part is that there is no need to dry the crop before processing. The Vogelsang XRipper easily processes coarse and high-volume solid material using a powerful twin-shaft design of two monolithic ripper rotors that can grind wet or dry hemp plants. Its slow speed and high torque grinding and shredding action are safe and reliable, less noisy and dusty, and it uses less power than a hammermill. The XRipper Ripper Rotors catch organic matter, coarse and brittle components are pulverized, while other solid matter is ripped apart.  Because the shafts revolve at different speeds, the XRipper rotors are self-cleaning. Various hopper designs can be used to suit the processing facility, and various blade widths control the size of the processed material and keep it consistent.  The XRipper is also ideal for hemp waste grinding, especially when you need to meet disposal requirements and when you want to add other materials.

The XRipper is maintenance friendly. It can be serviced and repaired easily and inline to minimize production downtime. Its compact design takes up less space in the processing facility as well.