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Industrial
Hemp
Legalized
in
Canada!
3/6/98
Beginning this spring, for the first time since World War II, the cultivation of industrial hemp will be legal in Canada. Health Canada will regulate the crop, with a limit of 0.3 per cent THC in seed samples, and a minimum of four hectares. The decision follows several years of debate over the issue during which pressure on the government mounted in the form of farmers who were eager for a new crop. Senator Laura Milne, a Liberal member who had pushed for an end to the prohibition, told the Ottawa Citizen, "I am delighted that the matter is going ahead. This is an opportunity for Canadian farmers, unmatched in this century." While precious little hemp has been grown in Canada in recent years, there is expected to be a ready market. The U.S. currently imports about $100 million worth of the crop from countries, such as China, where cultivation is legal. The news will be particularly welcome up north, where the promise of a crop with a short growing season and a quick turnaround is important. Some, however, were still unsatisfied with the ruling, claiming that the proposed regulations are too restrictive. Ron Schnider, of West Hemp Enterprises Inc., called the 0.3% THC limit too low. "I think it's actually the THC that protects it from pests, ironically enough" he told the Citizen. Brian Taylor, Mayor of Grand Forks, B.C., told The Citizen that one problem was that "limiting growing to a minimum of four hectares... eliminates a lot of small farmers."
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