The bulletproof plant undergoing high-velocity growth
www.abc.net.au
Hemp is one of the toughest plants on the planet and its potential uses range from bulletproof vests in the US to waterproof flooring for housing and other robust building products in Australia.

Brett Boag holds a small square of what appears to be ordinary wooden, 20-millimetre-thick chipboard.

Only this material is heavier and startlingly stronger.

Bulletproof in fact.

During a recent test in the United States, it withstood even a burst from a high-powered AK-47.

“It’s phenomenally tough. We’re making products that are even way in excess of the hardest hardwoods, very high impact resistance as well,” said Mr Boag, who manufactures construction materials at a factory east of Melbourne.

The products are made from hemp — one of the toughest plants on the planet. …