Improve Your Hemp Drying Process

What are industrial dryers?

As the use of hemp and CBD oil for medicinal purposes continues to gain societal acceptance, the hemp drying and processing industry has grown rapidly. The passage of the 2018 Farm Bill legalized the growing of cannabis plants for industrial hemp, allowing for the cultivation and processing of the biomass material, as well as transportation across state lines for commercial and industrial use.

As scientists continue to research the properties and uses of CBD oil, it has been found already to treat a wide range of conditions, from seizures, anxiety, and depression to even helping with cancer treatment. As a result, there is a huge market for quality hemp and CBD products and a great opportunity for farmers to process dried hemp for medical and industrial use.

But because the industry is still growing, many operations lack the systems, processes, and equipment needed to produce a quality product for sale.

Drying is an essential part of processing hemp for CBD oil extraction, but the process can take a significant amount of time and effort. Hemp biomass often has a high moisture content, even up to 85%, which has to be reduced to an acceptable level in order to extract quality CBD oil.

If hemp is dried quickly and with minimal damage, then the process results in a higher quality product for market or processing. However, if hemp is dried too slowly or the moisture content is not suitably reduced, you may end up with a low-quality product or even a product that is unable to be sold or used.

After high-CBD hemp is harvested, it must be dried as soon as possible in order to avoid deterioration and to ensure preservation of the CBD content. As with any food or medicinal product, drying systems and facilities must be clean, dry, and without any insects or animals that could contaminate the product.

Hemp plants are typically hung upside down to dry by hand. The stems are then removed, and the plants are chopped into ½-inch pieces for further drying. Only once the product is thoroughly dry can the hemp be sent off for extraction of CBD oil. This process is not only time-consuming but requires a lot of manual labor and leaves little room for error.

After the hemp has been dried and processed, it can then be sent to a CBD processing facility to extract the CBD oil from the biomass material. Once the crude CBD-rich hemp oil is extracted, the CBD is further refined into a product that can then be sold or processed into CBD medicines, such as oils or capsules.

With the proper equipment, you can dry hemp correctly and efficiently, resulting in a product ready for CBD oil extraction or other industrial or medical purposes.

At Vulcan® Drying Systems, we’ve developed a system to dry hemp more efficiently and thoroughly, reducing overhead costs and allowing growers to process their product faster. Our drying systems are custom-designed to meet the unique needs of your climate and situation.

We have previously developed drying systems to reduce the moisture content of hemp from 80%-85% to 10%-12%. Our system can dry up to ten wet tons an hour, speeding up drying and reducing overhead by simplifying the process and helping you bring your product to market on a shorter timeline. Instead of drying just 50 pounds an hour by hand, our system allows you to develop a more efficient drying process, which in turn can help you obtain higher levels of CBD from the oil extraction process, resulting in a higher-quality product ready for market.

Our drying solutions are large industrial-sized systems capable of processing multiple tons of hemp biomass per day.

Whether you are just starting out in hemp processing or are an established grower looking to improve your process, we’re here to help.

Our custom-designed and manufactured drying systems can help ensure you produce and deliver a quality product for industrial or medicinal use.

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