The plan for 2017
This is an election year and a great one to make significant progress in the iHemp industry.
With access to human foods becoming a realty this year (after a 18 year wait,) the industry can finally begin to scale up to meet the demand.
The Ministry of Health must review the Misuse of Drugs situation and support the iHemp industry, we have a licence issued by the MOH, to grow low THC iHemp. We are not a physcoactive drug. We are just another agricultural crop.
Even when used medically our industrial hemp products should not be further, controlled as they cannot be used as a high THC drug. We need to be able to market all hemp products from our iHemp crop.
This will likely become an election issues as the support for the medicinal use of cannabis, is widely accepted in main stream New Zealand (not as high as the 91% in Australia)
And the proponents and their families calling for change are in serious and immediate need.
This is an opportunity for us, as unlike medical marijuana, which is high in the cannabinoid THC (which causes the high) we are very low in THC.
And we have many other cannabinoids which also have a lot of medicinal uses.
These other cannabinoids can be made available through the diet in hemp foods, supplements and concentrates. Via cosmetics, body oils and balms. And can be used in therapeutic and medicinal doses.
All of these are potential markets for our crop and need to be developed which is easier with Ministry of Health support.
We have the regulations and can grow the crop but we still need government support to reach the market.
Now is the time to make sure the future Government is supportive of the development of a iHemp industry.
The NZHIA promoted iHemp Awareness week in 2016 and held many public meetings throughout NZ, in 2017 we aim to hold more events and inform and promote the industry to the public, starting with the hemp harvest in March April this year.
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