Naturally Advanced Technologies is a Vancouver

Vancouver

Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...

, BC

British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

-based cleantech company focused on providing textile, composite and pulping solution

Solution

In chemistry, a solution is a homogeneous mixture composed of only one phase. In such a mixture, a solute is dissolved in another substance, known as a solvent. The solvent does the dissolving.- Types of solutions :...

s, through the processing of industrial hemp

Hemp

Hemp is mostly used as a name for low tetrahydrocannabinol strains of the plant Cannabis sativa, of fiber and/or oilseed varieties. In modern times, hemp has been used for industrial purposes including paper, textiles, biodegradable plastics, construction, health food and fuel with modest...

, and other bast fibers. The company states that it believes that using hemp as an alternative to other fibers results in end products which are more environmentally-friendly

Environmentally friendly

Environmentally friendly are terms used to refer to goods and services, laws, guidelines and policies claimed to inflict minimal or no harm on the environment....

 than those currently produced using conventional feedstock

Raw material

A raw material or feedstock is the basic material from which a product is manufactured or made, frequently used with an extended meaning. For example, the term is used to denote material that came from nature and is in an unprocessed or minimally processed state. Latex, iron ore, logs, and crude...

. Naturally Advanced is now developing and commercializing its proprietary CRAILAR fiber processing technology in partnership with the National Research Council of Canada

National Research Council of Canada

The National Research Council is an agency of the Government of Canada which conducts scientific research and development.- History :...

 and the Alberta Research Council

Alberta Research Council

Alberta Research Council is an Alberta government funded applied research and development corporation. In January 2010, the name was changed to Alberta Innovates - Technology Futures -History:...

. The CRAILAR process and resulting products and by-products are expected to have applications in apparel

Clothing

Clothing refers to any covering for the human body that is worn. The wearing of clothing is exclusively a human characteristic and is a feature of nearly all human societies...

, performance textiles, energy

Energy industry

The energy industry is the totality of all of the industries involved in the production and sale of energy, including fuel extraction, manufacturing, refining and distribution...

, composite material

Composite material

Composite materials, often shortened to composites or called composition materials, are engineered or naturally occurring materials made from two or more constituent materials with significantly different physical or chemical properties which remain separate and distinct at the macroscopic or...

s, and pulp and paper

Pulp and paper industry

The global pulp and paper industry is dominated by North American , northern European and East Asian countries...

 markets.

Corporate Structure

Naturally Advanced comprises two wholly owned subsidiaries

Subsidiary

A subsidiary company, subsidiary, or daughter company is a company that is completely or partly owned and wholly controlled by another company that owns more than half of the subsidiary's stock. The subsidiary can be a company, corporation, or limited liability company. In some cases it is a...

 – Crailar Fiber Technologies Inc. and HTnaturals Apparel Corp.

HTnaturals

HTnaturals is a Canadian clothing and accessories company based in Vancouver, BC. The company focuses mainly on wholesale sales to third party retailers but also operates a factory outlet in Vancouver and an online store...

 Naturally Advanced is the parent company

Holding company

A holding company is a company or firm that owns other companies' outstanding stock. It usually refers to a company which does not produce goods or services itself; rather, its purpose is to own shares of other companies. Holding companies allow the reduction of risk for the owners and can allow...

 whose shares

Share (finance)

A joint stock company divides its capital into units of equal denomination. Each unit is called a share. These units are offered for sale to raise capital. This is termed as issuing shares. A person who buys share/shares of the company is called a shareholder, and by acquiring share or shares in...

 are publicly traded

Public company

This is not the same as a Government-owned corporation.A public company or publicly traded company is a limited liability company that offers its securities for sale to the general public, typically through a stock exchange, or through market makers operating in over the counter markets...

.

History

Naturally Advanced Technologies was founded as Hemptown Clothing in 1998. Originally a clothing company focusing on hemp, the company name was officially changed to Naturally Advanced Technologies Inc. in 2006 to reflect its new stated direction as a developer of technology. The company has claimed to operate on a triple-bottom-line

Triple bottom line

The triple bottom line captures an expanded spectrum of values and criteria for measuring organizational success: economic, ecological, and social...

 philosophy since its founding. The apparel division of Naturally Advanced is now called HTnaturals

HTnaturals

HTnaturals is a Canadian clothing and accessories company based in Vancouver, BC. The company focuses mainly on wholesale sales to third party retailers but also operates a factory outlet in Vancouver and an online store...

.

Products

Naturally Advanced products are marketed through its subsidiaries. Crailar Fiber Technologies is in the commercialization stage of its line of CRAILAR products. HTnaturals provides natural and organic clothing through third party retailers and a factory outlet, as well as its website.