Name : The Hempettes
Company name : X-Hemp
Job title : Production Staff at a Hemp Fibre Mill
If we had to step into your (she wear) shoes (pun intended), what could we expect a day in your life to feel like? :
The average day of one of our Mighty Hempettes starts with a drive through the beautiful Cressy countryside in the Northern Midlands of Tasmania to our small factory surrounded by farmland and plenty of cheeky sheep. The day is often a dusty one with the main role of taking large bales of hemp straw, running the material through a hammermill, and bagging it up into different sizes for construction, pet bedding or garden supplies. On the colder days we also have the option to fire up the kiln to make Hemp BioChar which is an amazing way to capture carbon and improve soil quality.
What do you enjoy about your role? What is the favourite part of your job? :
One of the best parts of what is often a tough and physical job at the factory is getting to see the final result after working with the material from paddock to hempcrete walls! Our team recently got to duck down to Hobart to check out the internationally award winning UTAS Forest Building and the new Patagonia store in Salamanca Market, both of which have installed beautiful exposed hempcrete walls. Our team is an incredible mix of strong, feisty and hilarious women who make each other laugh every shift!
How did you get into your role? What did you study or how did you learn your skills? :
While no prior experience is needed, the job is physically demanding, so all aspiring Hempettes need to be strong and have a can-do attitude! Our team also needs to be creative and willing to adapt quickly as we undertake a lot of experiments on different uses for the material. Over the past five years we have learned how to grow and process it, and because hemp is such a new industry in Australia, there is rarely a suitable out of the box solution or pre-existing pathway to getting the job done.
Have you won any awards, earned any special recognition or been involved in something “out of the box”? :
Some of our favourite projects so far have been:
● Being featured on the Huon Hemp House episode of Grand Designs Australia.
● Supplying the UTAS Forest Building which is the largest use of hempcrete in the southern hemisphere.
● Working with the St Helens Serpentarium to trial hemp as a reptile substrate and getting fantastic
results!
What advice would you give to other women? :
Give it your all, don’t let the tough challenges of life keep you down, and always support other women-owned businesses!
Do you have a favourite saying or quote, or mantra that you live by? :
One of our founders favourite sayings is “Nevertheless, She Persisted” and we reckon that’s a good one to live by.
Tell us a funny story about your role or an amusing experience you’ve had :
Our factory is full of laughter as we always manage to find the humour even on the toughest of days. Our team mascot Astro the golden retriever often features in our amusing experiences with some of our favourite times being when she tries to play hemp straw, tug-o-war with visitors including the former Governor of Tasmania, Barbara Baker.
Have you ever encountered any negative experiences that, although difficult at the time, may have helped shape who you are today? :
Every one of the Mighty Hempettes have overcome huge adversity and loss of different types throughout our lives. Our founder Andi created this business in response to experiencing homelessness after the loss of not one, but two homes to natural disasters (a bushfire and a flood) over the space of nine months, and our entire team share the vision of supplying environmentally friendly materials into housing, empowering women financially and proving that we can do anything when we put our minds to it!
How do you feel about your she wear boots? Any comments you’d like to make.
Comfortable and durable they hold up great in the factory environment during all seasons down here in Tassie.
