Argentina completes its first harvest of hemp, a derivative of cannabis

Argentina completed its first harvest of industrial hempa variety of the plant cannabisin more than 50 years, thanks to the approval of a new regulatory framework that allowed the cultivation of this species, official sources reported this Saturday.

The Argentine company Industrial Hemp Solutions (IHS) was in charge of carrying out this harvest, by importing seeds from “cutting edge hemp” from different parts of the world, according to a statement from the Ministry of Agriculture and the National Service for Food Health and Quality (Senasa).

“Argentina does not have its own germplasm bank for the cultivation of hemp, which is why INASE (National Seed Institute) authorized IHS to enter the materials to carry out their respective validations in different latitudes of the country”explained the text.

Distributed in the Buenos Aires towns of Ferré, Chacabuco and Balcarce, this first harvest was made possible by an agreement signed between IHS and the University of Buenos Aires last September, the purpose of which was to evaluate different varieties of hemp and check which ones were best suited to the different climates.

“We have the objective of achieving the growth of hemp crops for all its legal uses with the contribution and innovation of our decentralized organizations and Argentine universities”assured the Secretary of Agriculture, Juan José Bahillo, in statements included in the statement.

Hemp, a variety of the cannabis plant, can be used in the clothing industry for its highly resistant fibers, as well as in the construction of houses with a low ecological impact and in the manufacture of paper due to its high cellulose content, among other uses.

The Argentine government promulgated a law last year that authorized private producers and marketers to initiate strategies that guarantee the safety, quality, control and traceability of the cannabis production chain, something that since 2017 was reserved for the State.

Source: EFE