A new study suggests that hemp seed and hemp oil can be made into a promising gluten-free flour mix that offers an “optimal baked texture” along with “significant nutritional impact.”
The research, from a six-person team at the University of Calabria, in Italy, used hemp seed flour and oil to make gluten-free cupcakes, testing various parameters to explore the feasibility of hemp as an alternative flour.
Initially, authors found that replacing butter with hemp oil in a traditional recipe—made with 00 wheat flour—reduced the consistency of the cupcake batter. But when the wheat flour was replaced entirely with hemp flour, the batter’s consistency “was restored.”
“Replacing butter with CBD-enriched hemp oil reduced batter consistency. The subsequent, gradual incorporation of hemp flour led to a further decrease,” the paper, published in the journal Molecules, says. A mix of hemp and maize (corn) flour didn’t meaningfully improve the consistency.
“However, when hemp flour was used exclusively, the consistency of the batter was restored to a level comparable to the traditional formulation,” the study says, “resulting in an optimal baked texture.”
In addition to detailing a process authors described as “an efficient method for extracting CBD-rich oil”—which involves maceration along with the use of microwaves—they found that hemp oil “presents a viable alternative to traditional oils and fats for creating functional foods.”
Evaluating various physical properties of the resulting hemp flour–oil mix, researchers concluded that “hemp oil and hemp flour are viable ingredients for traditional cakes and desserts, notably contributing increased nutritional value through the CBD-enriched hemp oil and the beneficial profile of hemp flour.”
The study comes as more research evaluates the nutritional value of hemp in both humans and animals.
Late last year, for example, scientists at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s Agricultural Research Service said they were working to “unlock this plant’s amazing nutritional benefits for consumers and new economic benefits for the farmer.”
A USDA video also touted the many uses of hemp, including for fabric, paper, construction materials and a wide range of nutritional products. Novel ways of processing the plant, it predicted, could one day incorporate nutrients from hemp into even more everyday foods.
“The hemp plant is a very robust plant,” researcher Sean Liu said in the USDA video, noting that hemp grows in a range of different conditions, requires comparatively few agricultural inputs and can be processed into all sorts of products.
Nutritionally, seeds contain a variety of amino acids and are rich in protein, Liu added, while hempseed oil contains both omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. “It has a lot of unsaturated fatty acids that’s good for your heart, and it also can lower your blood pressure,” he explains.
But as Liu said in the video, there’s more work do be done to unlock hemp’s nutritional potential.
“We want to fully utilize the hemp seeds,” he explained. “Oil is a good part of the hemp seeds, but there are other things that we want to utilize to maximize the benefits of the hemp seeds, such as the proteins and the dietary fibers. They are all good food ingredients that can be used for a lot of healthy food.”
“There’s a couple ways of utilizing hemp seeds,” Liu added at the time. “One is that you use the whole grains, the whole seeds… The other way to do it is to take out some of the components to incorporate the formulation of a lot of common foods.”
Also last year, an organization of livestock feed control officials voted to allow commercial farmers to begin using hemp seed meal as food for egg-laying hens. Under the new policy, which was recommended by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), hemp meal can account for up to 20 percent of hens’ diet.
Since hemp’s legalization federally under the 2018 Farm Bill, there’s been a renewed interest in utilizing the plant for nutrition, fiber and even intoxicating cannabinoids. As part of that, some have eyed hemp seed meal as an attractive option for livestock.
In late 2023, for example, New York lawmakers sent Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) a bill that would have legalized hemp seed as a feed ingredient for horses, llamas and household pets, though the governor ultimately vetoed the measure, citing lack of safety information on the practice.
The topic is nevertheless gaining attention in the research community.
Separately, FDA in 2022 sent warning letters to a number of businesses marketing CBD products for animals, cautioning that there’s a “lack of data on what levels of potential residues are safe for a person consuming the foods that come from CBD-treated animals.”
In April 2023, however, the USDA found that cows that are fed hempseed cake retain very low concentrations of THC and CBD in their bodies, indicating that meat products from hemp-fed cattle are safe for human consumption.
Another federally funded study published in 2022 found that feeding cows hemp in fact reduces their stress levels. Researchers have also previously looked into how CBD affects stress and pain in horses.
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