The advantages of using straw-bale for construction are increasingly well documented. The two main benefits are:

Improved insulation.
Reduced environmental impact.

Insulation
Straw works on the principal of thermal retention and straw bales provide insulation of between R7 & R10, traditional wall batts provide R 2.2
As a result Straw-bale walls allow greater efficiency in heating and cooling.

Straw-bale walls:
• increase the efficiency of a solar-passive construction thus reducing the need for heating and cooling equipment
• allow installation of smaller heating or cooling systems than those in conventional homes.
• provide substantial savings in power and wood-fuel bills.

Environmental impact
Straw is generally a waste product and is generally burnt by farmers. This produces carbon dioxide and an increase in greenhouse gases.
Straw burning causes air pollution through smoke and particulate emission.
For example:
For every 1 million tons of straw burned 56,000 tons of carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere.

Straw can be grown in less than half a year in contrast to timber which can take up to 20 years to grow timber for a house. A much more sustainable material.

Little Pig Building Company, more than just a builder.