Australian Hemp Council seeks funding to legalize animal feed production with cannabis

Leaders in the hemp industry in Australia have launched a fundraising campaign in response to growing concerns that bureaucracy could destroy a once promising sector of the market. The initiative aims to legalize the use of hemp in pet products, including livestock feed.

The Australian Hemp Council (AHC) is seeking to raise A$ 50,000 to finance regulatory processes that may allow the legal commercialization of these products. The campaign, named Paws for Wellness, comes after repeated failed attempts to negotiate with the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA). The discussions aimed to ease the financial and regulatory burdens imposed on the sector.

In January of this year, the APVMA effectively banned the sale of hemp products for pets, putting jobs and the future of several small businesses at risk. According to the AHC, regulators have maintained an inflexible position, forcing companies to bear the high costs of research and approvals.

The classification of hemp as a 'veterinary chemical product', which requires expensive registrations and testing, was deemed alarming and illogical by the AHC. 'The decision by the APVMA ignores established science, treating these hemp products similarly to medicinal cannabis and CBD products,' the organization stated. 'Products derived from industrial hemp contain little to no CBD or THC, but are rich in essential amino acids, fibers, and omega 3 and 6 fatty acids.'

Tim Schmidt, president of the AHC, strongly criticized the regulation: 'This bureaucratic excess is harmful not only to companies producing hemp for pets, but to the entire hemp industry. Millions of dollars and thousands of hours of work have been invested, only to see our efforts hampered by inadequate regulations.'

Efforts to ease regulations were led by Dr. Bronwyn Blake, chair of the AHC Forage Group. She described the APVMA's stance as 'regulatory overreach at its worst'. Blake emphasized that hemp products for pets are safe and widely researched overseas. 'We understand the need for data from the APVMA, but the process is financially burdensome,' she said.

Blake also criticized the APVMA's financial reliance on permit and registration fees for its operation, questioning the agency's impartiality: 'It is the responsibility of the federal government to ensure that all departments have adequate resources to serve Australia, not themselves.'

The AHC plans to pursue two application pathways: the first involves a technical assessment by the APVMA of the hemp fractions used for subsistence purposes; the second, the determination of the ingredients in these fractions. The combined costs of these processes are expected to exceed A$ 50,000, according to the AHC.

'If you care about your pet's health, or if you are tired of seeing Australian industries crushed by unnecessary bureaucracy, we need your support now,' appealed Blake. 'This is not just a fight for hemp, but against the advancement of bureaucracy that puts our farmers and small businesses at risk, denying our animals the nutrition they deserve.'

The APVMA, in turn, previously stated that products not registered or approved by the agency 'may not be safe for use in animals... and may be dangerous.'
 

Originally published at cannabiz