A Bangalow-based company which is now the largest exporter of hemp foods in the southern hemisphere is wondering when its products will finally be recognised as food in Australia.

Hemp Foods Australia chief executive Paul Benhaim recently met with the First Lady of Japan Akie Abe at a hemp forum in Kyoto and discovered that she was a great supporter of the industry.

However, while Japan is importing huge amounts of hemp from Hemp Foods Australia, the products are still not recognised as food in Australias due to legislation against the consumption of hemp.

Regulatory hurdles seen hindering expansion of acres.

An explosion in demand for Canadian hemp out of South Korea is welcome news for the industry, but strict regulations may hamper just how much of that demand will be met this year.

“The doors have blown off the market in Korea for hemp,” said Kim Shukla, executive director of the Canadian Hemp Trade Alliance at Steinbach, Man.

Six months ago, South Korea was unknown as a market for Canadian hemp; now, “that market requirement is outstripping the requirements for the U.S.,” said Shukla. A promotion on a home shopping channel in South Korea led to sales of 40,000 pounds of hempseed in one hour, according to reports.

SEOUL, Jun. 25 (Korea Bizwire) – Korean police have uncovered the largest indoor cultivation of cannabis in Korea.

Namdaemun District Police arrested a man in his thirties for growing 46 cannabis plants in his 109 ㎡ apartment space in Yongin, and confiscated the plants as well as 135 grams of end-products, worth a total of 2 billion won (US$ 1.8 million) on the black market.

It is reported that 46 plants can make end-products that can serve up to 92,000 individuals.

The police said that the unveiling of the man’s indoor farm shows that transactions involving cannabis in Korea turned out to be quite large in scale, in stark contrast to Korea’s reputation as a relatively drug-free country.

WEDNESDAY, June 24, 2015 (HealthDay News) -- Virtual reality therapy may help alcoholics battle their addiction, a small study from South Korea suggests.

Researchers recruited 12 people being treated for alcoholism for the study. The volunteers went through a week-long detoxification program and then did two sessions of virtual reality therapy a week for five weeks.

The patients were presented with three virtual scenes: a relaxing environment; a high-risk setting in a restaurant where other people were drinking; and an aversion situation that featured the sights, sounds and smells of people getting sick from drinking too much.

In a brightly lit sealed room at Celltrion's headquarters near Seoul, a man in white overalls and a hairnet squats next to a huge steel tank, extracting a beaker of brown liquid resembling stale beer.

The substance is hazardous to people; emergency showers are nearby in case of accidental exposure. But it is the source of nutrition for the genetically engineered cells used to make biological medicines, as Celltrion spearheads a push by South Korea to become a force in the pharmaceuticals industry.

Disruptive businesses make the headlines, but they also face real risks. Why you need to tread carefully around the law

Years ago, I worked as a waitress at a popular independent brew pub with an origin story that was the stuff of local legend. The proprietor had bought a heritage building, outfitted it with expensive brewing equipment and hired a full-time brewmaster to develop premium ales and lagers. He had just one problem: It wasn’t yet legal for an establishment in Ontario to produce and sell its own beer on-site. He started the business anyway, shilling sandwiches and sodas until the law changed and allowed the pub to sell the suds that have made it a prosperous business for nearly 30 years.

It all started at a music festival at Hawaii’s Diamond Head in 1972.

For a little extra spending money, Don Maile rented a booth to sell roach clips, pipes and bongs — devices for smoking marijuana.

Maile is almost 80 years old.

“I’ve always believed marijuana was created for healing mankind,” he said.

He is amazed that he can finally bring his craft out from under the radar and advertise it to potential customers.

“We are just starting to get used to the idea that I can do this legally now,” Maile said.

He makes the smoking paraphernalia in his garage workshop in the Madrona area of Camano Island.

Maile was 17 when he joined the military in 1952.

Lack of crackdown helps make marijuana readily available in South Korea

Police take a photo of marijuana plants, found at a house in Seoul earlier this year. A simple online search can connect potential buyers from Korea with sellers of illegal drugs, which is increasingly becoming a problem. (Korea Times file)

Marijuana sellers advertise their goods online, not only for those who can use it legally in their home countries. As a result, in Korea home delivery of “top quality weed” is just a few clicks away.