In Australia, the NT Farmers Association (NTFA) is encouraging agricultural producers in the Territory to take a crack at growing industrial hemp now that it is legal to do so with a licence.

The Northern Territory Government planted its first crop of industrial hemp in 2016, but it wasn’t until May 2019 that the Territory’s Hemp Industry Bill was tabled. The bill passed in August last year and the Hemp Industry Act and accompanying regulations came into effect in early May.

The coronavirus pandemic led to a decrease in the use of party drugs like MDMA and cocaine, but also to an increase in pot use, according to Global Drug Survey.

Forty thousand people from 12 countries participated in the online survey that looked at changes in alcohol and drug-related habits during the global health crisis. The 12 countries included in the study were Germany, France, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Ireland, Australia, the United Kingdom, Austria, Denmark, Greece, Brazil, and Switzerland. 

Based on the data, nearly a fifth of people reported that they used less cocaine during lockdown, while 29% said they used less MDMA, popularly known as ecstasy or molly. 

Australia’s Export Control Amendment (Certificate of Narcotics Exports) Bill 2020 is to improve access to global markets for the nation’s medicinal cannabis and hemp industries.

In 2018, Australia’s Federal Government decided to permit the export of medical cannabis products. But according to Freshleaf Analytics, the lack of phytosanitary certification hampered progress.

While medicinal cannabis has been available legally in Australia for some time, the latest CAMS survey found the majority of patients were still using illicit sources.

The results from the Cannabis As Medicine Survey (CAMS:18), conducted by researchers at the University of Sydney between September 2018 and March 2019* with 1388 Australians, found just 2.7 per cent were accessing legal products.

The most common conditions cannabis was being used for medicinally included pain, mental health issues (mainly anxiety and depression) and sleep problems.

nly 3 per cent of Australians using medical cannabis access it through the government’s regulated program, a new study found. 

Medical cannabis has been legal in Australia since November 2016, when the government created a system where doctors could prescribe weed to treat various ailments.

Donielle Paul BSN, RN follows Dr Ben Jansen along his 500-day journey prescribing medicinal cannabis in Australia.

Dr Ben Jansen’s mission is solid: ‘to do the right thing’. Although this is his third consecutive conference weekend away in a row, he knows that this Monday morning, with his appointment book full of hopeful patients curious to try medicinal cannabis, he’ll have the opportunity to help change a few more lives for the better. Mission almost complete…well, for this morning.

Travelling around the country breaking stigmas and providing education on medicinal cannabis to the medical sector is just a small part of Jansen’s overall mission.

Cannabidiol (CBD) is one of the most popular cannabinoids among cannabis enthusiasts. 

Historically THC was the most popular, however, starting in 2017, CBD was searched for more often than THC on Google and that trend has continued into 2020.

Many patients and consumers want to receive the wellness benefits that CBD provides but without the euphoric effects that THC induces.

Hemp crops can now be grown legally in the Northern Territory as new laws take effect.

NT growers will be able to cultivate and supply low range cannabis for food, fibre and seed production from Wednesday.

Industrial hemp plants differ from regular hemp species in that they contain very low levels of THC - the compound in cannabis that makes people feel high - and if consumed, foods and other products made from industrial hemp have no psycho-active effects.

Australian medical cannabis company Althea Group (ASX:AGH) has announced details of a deal with a major German pharmaceutical wholesaler.

Following on from a previously announced Memorandum of Understanding with Nimbus Health GmbH, the pair have inked an agreement that will see Althea supply its full range of medical cannabis products to Nimbus over a three year period. It’s expected supply to Nimbus will commence in the second half of this year, assuming timely approval by German regulatory authorities.

According to Althea Group, Nimbus Health accounts for approximately 25% of medicinal cannabis sales in Germany; so a significant amount of product may be moved over the three years.