In the early nineties Dutch entrepreneur Ben Dronkers learned about the possibilities of industrial hemp. Having discovered the Netherlands' proud and long history of hemp growing and processing as well as its ecological value, he found his purpose: to reintroduce an environmentally friendly, economically sound, traditional crop to his homeland and then to the rest of the world. With this in mind, Ben Dronkers established the HempFlax company in 1993.

In 1994, 140 hectares (343 acres) saw HempFlax' re-launch of hemp in the Netherlands. For a crop that had not been produced for 50 years fundamental adaptations to harvesting and processing machines were required. Like any plant, hemp has specific needs as to planting and harvesting, but the equipment available at the time could not meet these needs. Much time was and still is spent on research and development to adapt the equipment to the highly specific requirements of the tough, fibrous stalks of the hemp plant.