Moldovan government approves new rules for growing, processing, marketing industrial hemp

The government has approved the Regulation on the procedure for authorizing, cultivating, monitoring, marketing and processing industrial/horticultural hemp. The document provides for expanding the possibilities for using raw materials got from industrial hemp, which can increase by up to 40 per cent the value obtained per hectare and provides the private sector more resources for investment and development.

Thus, while until now industrial hemp could be used for fiber, seeds and oil, the new regulation allows the use of more parts of the plant, including stalks, biomass and derived products. Industrial hemp will be able to be used for briquettes, industrial oils, food supplements, cosmetic products and other products permitted by law.

Industrial hemp is a technical plant that cannot be used as a drug, because it contains only trace amounts of psychoactive substances. The regulation also sets out the procedure for determining the tetrahydrocannabinol content. Analyses will be carried out during the flowering period, by collecting representative samples, in accredited laboratories, including the ones outside Moldova.

The National Food Safety Agency (ANSA) will be the authority responsible for issuing authorizations and for monitoring the cultivation process. Authorization will be granted to farmers who legally own or use agricultural land. It will include information about the applicant, the purpose of cultivation, the area and location of the land, the variety used and the ways in which the production will be utilized.

Producers will keep a production record register, which will be stored and archived in accordance with the legislation. ANSA will verify compliance with the requirements through planned and unplanned inspections. In the event of infringements, the agency may order their correction or withdraw the authorization, as applicable.

The production got from the cultivation of industrial hemp may be marketed on the territory of Moldova, as well as exported, on the basis of the authorization. Data on production will be reported annually to ANSA.