Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Anil Nandlall M.P. yesterday met with members of the Guyana Hemp Asso-ciation which is seeking the Government’s support in cultivating hemp on a plantation scale in Guyana.
Hemp is a variety of the Cannabis sativa plant species that is grown specifically for industrial use.
A release from the Ministry of Legal Affairs said that the Chief Execu-tive Officer of the Guyana Hemp Association, Turhane Doerga, expressed appreciation to the Attorney General and government for their open- minded approach to the hemp industry and for holding a meeting with the Association.
The Attorney General formally thanked Doerga and his team members of one of the small political parties that helped to restore democracy in Guy-ana. The Attorney General told Doerga that the government made many pro-mises which they intend to deliver and exploring the cultivation of hemp on a plantation scale in Guyana is one of those promises.
The Chief Operations Officer, Dr. Asha Kissoon, produced multiple written proposals to the Attorney General setting out all the impacts and projections hemp would have if produced here, the release said. She said that the hemp will be produced and grown in green houses and will be cultivated by professional/trained individuals.
Doerga stated that Suriname has already begun the production of hemp on a large scale. Dr. Kissoon added that hemp cannot be planted with marijuana because the plants would cross pollinate and this would destroy the entire crop.
The team contended that hemp is a multi-billion-dollar industry which can lend to the production of hundreds of items and can create jobs. Dr. Kissoon further explained that hemp does contain tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), but in very low amounts, below 0.3%, which is too low to be psychoactive.
The release said that the Attorney General agreed to study the bundle of documents submitted to him by the association and to incorporate it into his advice to Cabinet on the issue.
