Synthetic plastic pollution has exacerbated environmental degradation and the depletion of fossil fuel resources. Transitioning to biodegradable, sustainably sourced alternatives such as polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) bioplastic can help alleviate the crisis. Currently, PHB production relies heavily on expensive and limited food crops as feedstocks, hindering its upscaling and commercial viability. To overcome these challenges, this dissertation examines the potential of lignocellulosic industrial hemp (Cannabis sativa sp.) waste from the cannabidiol (CBD) industry as a sustainable, low-cost feedstock for PHB production and advances bioprocessing methods for its efficient conversion.

Innovative bioprocessing strategies were developed to upcycle two major waste fractions of the CBD industry, fibrous hemp stalks (HS) and leafy and flowery biomass (LF), for enhanced PHB production through fermentation by recombinant bacteria E.coli LSBJ.