MEDIA RELEASE 28 April 2017

The Greens welcome the decision to allow the sale of hemp food for human consumption which was made today by the Australia and New Zealand Ministerial Forum on Food Regulation at a Council of Australian Governments (COAG) meeting.

The Greens have campaigned for this rule change for many years as a key to making hemp cultivation viable for Australian farmers and providing consumers with a good source of nutrition.

NSW Greens agriculture spokesperson, Jeremy Buckingham said:

“A year and a half ago I admitted in parliament that I occasionally eat hemp seeds on my breakfast cereal – effectively breaking the law.  It is pleasing to see this silly law has been dropped and Australia has joined with the rest of the world in accepting hemp food consumption,” said Greens MP Jeremy Buckingham.

“This is a big win for farmers, consumers, and the Greens.  Finally COAG has stopped dragging its feet, got beyond the stigma, and recognised hemp as a crop and food product with enormous potential.

“Allowing farmers to sell both the seed and the fibre will make hemp a viable crop for farmers to grow and potentially create a new export market for Australia.

“The Greens look forward to working with the government to pass any required legislation to implement this decision.”