Boom Food by Hemisphere Technologies

The world’s first sausage made from hemp concentrate started as a few days off work.

Hans Karlstrand and Erik Rune, a duo from Stockholm, booked a quick trip to Gotland to learn about hemp. What they found was an island full of people willing to help, starting with Region Gotland and leading straight to Science Park Gotland in February 2021.

The first conversations were about hemp fiber and insulation. Then they looked closer at the seeds, found them packed with protein and fat, and a food company was born instead. It took about a year of testing and re-testing to land their first real sausage, in a category with no playbook to follow.

By early 2023, that sausage was on the menu in every Urban Deli, reaching a younger generation already sold on hemp’s upside.

Through weekly sessions with their advisor Johan Andersson and investment from SPG Invest, Erik and Hans went from idea to launched product to a company standing on its own, with plans now aimed at more stores nationwide and new products, burgers and kebab, already in the works.

“Hemp is a supermaterial the world is ready for, and Hemisphere is a company to watch in the shift toward a climate-neutral future,” says Johan Andersson, business advisor at Science Park Gotland.