Dive Brief:

• U.S. farmers may soon have a new cash crop: hemp, which can be used to make an energy-efficient building material called hempcrete for walls and building foundations.

• The 2014 Farm Bill removed hemp grown for research purposes from the Controlled Substances Act earlier this year—so, after 77 years, it’s not entirely illegal to harvest anymore. Now, a smattering of farmers in 15 states that are hosting pilot programs are growing the marijuana cousin.

• Hempcrete, also known as Canobiote, Canosmose, and Isochanvre, is a mixture of hemp and lime. One-eighth the weight of concrete, it is touted for its insulating qualities and can be cast into blocks or sprayed between walls.

Dive Insight:

A hempcrete home was built in Asheville, NC, in 2010 with product imported from Canada and the United Kingdom. Although the farm bill eased barriers to importing hemp seeds, Colorado is the only state that has legalized commercial hemp cultivation.