“Why consume forests that took centuries to grow and mines that took geological ages to establish, if we can get the equivalent of forests and mineral products from the annual growth of hemp fields?”
A forward-thinking question that Henry Ford, founder of the car company of the same name, posed to himself and the entire world. An innovative vision that led to the birth of Hemp Body Car. A very current car, ecological and built in hemp fibers and powered by hemp ethanol.
Ford's Hemp Car: History and Construction
Presented to the general public in 1941 as the most environmentally friendly car ever built, Ford's dream of creating "a vehicle that came from the earth" came true in the Hemp Body Car.
An invention that revolutionized the automotive market, which boasted a bioplastic bodywork obtained mainly from hemp and soy, and a completely green diet based on hemp biothenol.
A definitely car lighter of the classics made in steel, but also more resistant. In fact, to demonstrate this, one was filmed spots in which Ford's "ecological little jewel" was repeatedly hit by an anvil hammer, remaining perfectly intact.
A bio car made of hemp and powered by hemp
What made his invention so famous was nutrition which, unlike fossil-derived pollutants, benefited - and did not destroy - the environment.
Already in 1925, given his love for Nature and his incredible business acumen, Ford declared to the New York Times that: "The fuel of the future is going to come from fruit, from the road or apples, from weeds, from sawdust, in short, from almost everything. There is fuel in every plant matter that can be fermented and provide nutrition. There is enough alcohol in one year's yield of a potato field to drive the machinery needed to cultivate the fields for a hundred years."
And after years of studies, research and failed attempts, the finally completed prototype arrived at the Dearborn Days festival in Dearborn (Michigan) in 1941, Ford's hometown, moved by a tank full of hemp ethanol.
A clean fuel, made from the oil of the same plant, which is still considered today among the most valid and convenient, both in economic terms and in terms of environmental sustainability. In fact, it is estimated that hemp, including biodiesel, bioethanol, biomethanol and biogas, can produce more than 800 litres of biofuel per hectare per year.
Past, present and future intersect in a hemp field
Despite its qualities and potential, which would have slowed down our race towards the environmental abyss, Ford's naturalistic dream soon had to clash with the powerful of the time who, shortly thereafter, would have banned hemp in favor of the God of money.
But today, with an oil crisis upon us, an education oriented towards environmental protection, given the threats looming on the horizon, those projects which at the time were inconvenient are a beacon for a green revolution clearly expanding.
This is demonstrated by the Hemp Cars which, given the constant pressure placed on the automotive industry to use sustainable materials and reduce its overall carbon footprint, are once again parading in exhibitors.
First of all we find the BMW i3, the first fully electric car launched in 2013 by the German manufacturer. Among the materials used to create the bodywork, the “kenaf“, a hemp-based material that is excellent for insulating the passenger compartment.
Same thing for Audi, Mercedes, Volkswagen e Porsche, which prefer hemp among eco-friendly resources, as it is extremely resistant and highly sustainable.
