New Zealand urged to grow cannabis for medicinal purposes

New Zealand should grow medicinal cannabis because of its potentially good returns, a Massey University scientist says.

Dr Mike Nichols, who has also researched hemp growing, said New Zealand risked losing out on a profitable industry, in the same way it once turned down the chance to grow poppies for legal codeine and morphine.

Even though New Zealand scientist Ralph Ballinger was the world's lead researcher into poppy growing in the 1950s, his work never resulted in an industry.

Union advocate Helen Kelly recently highlighted the issue of medicinal cannabis as a painkiller.

 

Instead, Tasmania now supplies 40 per cent of the world's legal codeine and morphine, earning more than $200 million a year for the state.

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