Australian farmers in Tasmania increase hemp seed production for food

As a result of changes in the current legislation, production was significantly reoriented and the production of food products based on hemp grain became one of the main accents of the Australian hemp industry.

The number of hemp producers in the Australian state of Tasmania (producing about 66% of the industrial hemp crop in the country) has almost doubled. Experts predict that it will continue to increase due to the drought, causing a shortage of supply of hemp raw materials in other regions of Australia. In particular, according to Tim Schmidt (Tim Schmidt) President of the Hemp Association of Tasmania (Hemp Association of Tasmania), the number of producers of low-narcotic cannabis in the region in one season increased from 29 to 49.

Amendments to the Australian and New Zealand Food Standards Code in 2017 provided an opportunity to sell and use products made using cannabis seeds with a low content of tetrahydrocannabinol. As a result of changes in the current legislation, production was significantly reoriented and the production of food products based on hemp grain became one of the main accents of the Australian hemp industry.

According to Australian experts of the hemp market, the intensification of production, including the use of more productive varieties of technical hemp, can significantly increase last year's average value of harvested per hectare of industrial planting (up to a ton of seed yield). On average, Australian farmers spend up to $ 3,200 per hectare for crop production and receive $ 3 dollars per kilo of marketable seeds.

Commentary of the Association "Ukrainian technical hemp"

The farmers of the Australian state of Tasmania cultivated and processed hemp fiber and other plant components to produce high-quality fiber and cosmetics since the 90s of the last century. After amending the current legislation, not only the number of agricultural producers engaged in the cultivation and processing of hemp increased, most of them focused precisely on the cultivation of commodity lots of hemp grain. The harvest of hemp seeds grown in Tasmania is estimated at $ 3.6 million, and the international food market for hemp grains is a billion dollars.