EIHA was founded 20 years ago in Cologne, Germany. Initially, the idea behind its creation was to build a strong network of farmers, producers and traders of hemp and hemp-derived products in Europe and share a common know-how and best practices.

In 2019, EIHA decided to have a stronger political representativeness by establishing its presence in Brussels. A dedicated public affairs team was created with the aim to defend the hemp sector in EU policy-making, build a strong reputation and find common ground with other stakeholders.

By having a strong voice at the heart of the European Union, EIHA highly increased its visibility and influence in the European policymaking sphere, a crucial step for the future of the whole sector.

Our mission is to steer and promote hemp farming, processing and trading in the European Union. We aim at developing a single and safe common market of high-quality hemp products, inspired by the principle of social, environmental and economic sustainability.

EIHA believes in a sustainable economic model that reconciles agriculture, industry and environment. For this reason, we promote the development on the EU territory of local, yet globally connected value chains, capable of delivering the multiple ecosystem services that hemp has to offer. We favour an inclusive, transparent and multi-stakeholder approach to policymaking, guided by science-based information.