Dr. Paul M. Hallacher is Project Manager at  Vytal Plant Science Research

The vision of the PAIHE is to develop a national industrial hemp ecosystem with Pennsylvania's I-81 Corridor as a locus for research, innovation, and workforce development spanning product supply chains and addressing plant genetics, seed production, growing and harvesting, processing, and consumer and industrial product development and manufacturing. Pennsylvania's I-81 Corridor encompasses more than 6 million people including Philadelphia and the Southeastern Pennsylvania metropolis, the urban and rural mix of the South Central region, and the industrial and agricultural Northeast. This region possesses a very large and diverse manufacturing base, a major farming and agriculture sector, and direct access to major consumer markets, all in proximately of a few hundred miles. The utility and versatility of industrial hemp allow the PAIHE to simultaneously help address several major challenges including strengthening the food system, creating jobs at all levels of the industrial hemp supply chain, and reducing non-biodegradable waste. Industrial hemp can also sequester carbon and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and can help reclaim abandoned mine land and brownfields, and control erosion.