Hemp essential oil: an innovative product with potential industrial applications

In the last decade there has been an increasing demand for hemp derivatives from legal Cannabis sativa L. (THC content < 0.3%) to be used in different industrial applications, because of the spread of its cultivation and preference in sustainable agricultural systems. In the European Union about 25,000 hectares are cultivated, and more than seventy cultivars are allowed to be grown in agricultural systems. During hemp processing a huge amount of biomass, mostly given by leaves and inflorescences, can be generated, and be reused to produce niche products. Among the latter, the essential oil, a liquid, odorous product composed mainly of monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes, represents a promising future candidate in different fields such as pest management science, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and others. In this chapter we review scientific literature dealing with the chemical compositions of the essential oil obtained from different cultivars of industrial hemp highlighting the potential use of their constituents as pharmaceutically active drugs, insecticides, acaricides, and antimicrobials.