Dozens of hemp businesses in Ukraine have registered in the state’s eCannabis system since it began operating in March.
According to UNN, 38 hemp businesses have registered, 16 of which have already sown 1,251 hectares of hemp. Through the eCannabis service, businesses undertaking cultivation and processing of industrial hemp can work in a digital system.
The reintroduction and ramping up of industrial hemp production is a ray of sunshine in a country that has been ravaged by Russia’s invasion – and a testament to the tenacity of the Ukrainian people.
While hemp had been cultivated in Ukraine for centuries, like many other countries it became illegal in the 20th century after the United Nations adopted the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs – even though industrial hemp by definition is very low in the intoxicating cannabinoid THC.
In other recent hemp related news out of the country, Ukraine’s largest industrial hemp processing facility kicked off operations in the country’s Zhytomyr region. Housed in what was an abandoned flax mill, the facility will have a capacity of 14,000 tons per year; producing hemp fiber for the domestic market and the European textile industry.
Ukraine’s permissible THC content for industrial hemp was originally limited to 0.08%, which severely limited choice of varieties and put Ukrainian farmers at a disadvantage compared to those in other countries where the threshold is much higher. But as from August 2024, new legislation in Ukraine raised the threshold to 0.2%, and it may be bumped up again to 0.3% by 2027.
To learn more about the crop’s history in the country, Ukrainian Hemp is an excellent resource.
While Ukraine’s hemp sector is confined to production for food, seed and fiber purposes, medical cannabis has also been moving ahead in the country.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has been a supporter of medical cannabis since prior to his presidency. The country’s unicameral parliament passed a related bill subsequently signed by the President in February 2024 that came into full effect in August last year. The first list of qualifying conditions for Ukraine’s medical cannabis program was released in September 2024, and then in January this year it was announced cannabis medicines should soon appear in Ukrainian pharmacies.
Dozens of hemp businesses in Ukraine have registered in the state’s eCannabis system since it began operating in March. Read More
