Alaska became the third state to legalize recreational marijuana in 2015, but it’s not exactly ahead of the curve on hemp, which comes from the same plant.

Alaska became the third state to legalize recreational marijuana in 2015, but it’s not exactly ahead of the curve on hemp, which comes from the same plant.

While plenty of cannabis goes up in smoke in coffee shops around the Netherlands, Dutch researchers have found a new use for it - as an environmentally friendly building material to rival cement or steel.

As interest in industrial hemp has grown, so too has interest in hemp-centric production.

Use of hemp as a construction material is part of the revival of the crop in America, thanks to entrepreneurs who are thinking big — and small, including a Colorado firm that hosts workshops on hempcrete and builds tiny hemp houses.