Les 27 et 28 mai 2026, le comité de pilotage du projet ICHAT (Industrialisation Chanvre Textile) se réunissait à Troyes. On 27 and 28 May 2026, the steering committee of the ICHAT project (Hemp Textile Industrialisation) convened in Troyes. Two intensive, productive and collegial days, during which all partners took stock of the technical, economic and environmental progress made on this ambitious project for France’s hemp textile industry.
ICHAT: a consortium of key players across the hemp and textile sectors
The ICHAT European project is led by the Hemp European Hub, with the support of FRD-CODEM and the Union des Industries Textiles Champagne-Ardenne (UIT). It brings together ten partners:
- Corderie Meyer-Sansboeuf
- Eco-Technilin
- FRD-CODEM
- La Chanvrière
- Lacoste
- Peignage Dumortier
- Hemp European Hub
- UIT Champagne-Ardenne
- LPMT – Université de Haute-Alsace
- LERMAB – Université de Lorraine
This diversity — manufacturers, farmers, university research labs, and processing industry players — is precisely what makes the project so strong. The collective goal is to address the challenges holding back the viable development of a French hemp textile supply chain, from field to finished product.
Day 1: technical progress and the knitting challenge
The first day was devoted to an in-depth review of the project’s technical work packages. On the agenda: decisions on which processing pathways to prioritise as the consortium tackles one of the most complex problems in the value chain — knitting hemp yarn.
Work is also advancing on several fronts:
- Composite tasks Initial trials on fibre blends are now underway.
- Spinning long fibres and tow Trials are ongoing to refine processes and achieve industrial-grade yarn quality.
Short, semi-long and long fibres: each fibre type offers specific valorisation prospects, and ongoing trials are helping to identify the most promising technical pathways.
Day 1: participatory workshop on outcomes exploitation
A collective intelligence workshop also brought all partners together around a central question: how can the results of the ICHAT project be best exploited and leveraged?
Each stakeholder had the opportunity to reflect on their own development prospects while taking into account the needs and constraints of their partners. A demanding and rewarding exercise, which strengthened the cohesion of the consortium and laid the groundwork for the exploitation phase.
Day 2: economic impacts, LCA and recyclability
The second day focused on the economic and environmental dimensions of the project, with substantive discussions on three key topics.
Economic impacts of the supply chain
Discussions centred on the preliminary findings of the work package dedicated to the economic impacts of the various technical pathways. A fundamental question runs through this work: how is value distributed across the supply chain?
Improving returns for farmers, enabling the development of industrial facilities in local areas, creating local jobs, and making hemp fibre products accessible to consumers These are the complex trade-offs that ICHAT is seeking to model and optimise.
Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)
Preparatory work on an LCA gave rise to considerable debate: which criteria should be selected? How should data be collected and processed in the most rigorous and representative way? These methodological questions are critical to the credibility of the project’s findings.
Fibre recyclability
The recyclability work package was also a central topic: how should end-of-life scenarios for certain fibre blends be tested? What approach should be taken to obtain usable, comparable results?
Site visit to FRD-CODEM facilities to close the two days
The two days concluded with a tour of FRD-CODEM’s facilities — a key project partner for research and development. A welcome opportunity to ground the theoretical discussions in the concrete reality of industrial equipment and processes. A welcome opportunity to ground the theoretical discussions in the concrete reality of industrial equipment and processes.
Next milestone: the ICHAT interest club, 15 October 2026 in Paris
The ICHAT project extends beyond its founding consortium. An interest club is open to any company wishing to follow the project’s progress and get ahead of the opportunities it is generating.
The next meeting of this interest circle will take place on 15 October 2026 in Paris. A unique opportunity for players across the hemp and textile industries to discover results as they emerge, exchange with consortium partners, and explore their potential involvement in the hemp textile sector of tomorrow.
👉 Interested in joining the ICHAT interest club? Get in touch.
