Paws for wellness
So far, we have raised $8,550 in our campaign, still a way to go.  This initiative spreads the cost of certification across the whole industry, thus making it affordable for those businesses in this market.
Please consider contributing and at the very least, share our posts to raise awareness.  More information on our Paws for Wellness page. We also have a short video to help get the message across to the whole community, view here.
I would also recommend reading the Federation of International Hemp Organisation’s (FIHO) paper Hemp in Livestock Feed. It includes plenty of evidence to support our case.
iHemp NSW has enlisted support from Jeremy Buckingham (NSW MLA) who is raising this issue personally with both the NSW state and federal ministers for agriculture, in addition to speaking to the issue in the NSW parliament.
This is of vital importance to our industry and is an opportunity to show how committed we are in establishing hemp as a mainstream Australian agricultural industry.

AHC Winter Forum – save the date
The AHC will be facilitating a hemp industry forum at La Trobe University on 26^th and 27^th of June 2025.  More details will follow in time.

Carbon accounting
There are some positive developments in the Carbon space. Winton Evers has been doing a mountain of work developing a Hemp Data Platform that will be of enormous benefit to our industry.

The Emissions Reduction Assurance Committee (ERAC) is an independent statutory committee established under the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative) Act 2011.  The ERAC assesses the compliance methodology determinations against the Legislated Offsets Integrity Standards to ensure the continued integrity of the Australian Carbon Credit Units Scheme (ACCU).  Winton had submitted a methodology proposal to ERAC for the carbon tracking of hemp.  It was determined that the carbon content of hemp is not currently eligible as it comes from a source which is not accounted for in the Inventory.  This means the industry and the AHC will need to advocate for the inclusion of hemp on the inventory.

In discussions with the CSIRO who help formulate the guidelines for Full Carbon Accounting Method (FullCAM), Winton received the following statement:

“You are correct, hemp is not a recorded crop in FULLCAM and there are no current plans to implement this as a new feature. However, because your request has come through and been circulated, our researchers working on FULLCAM are going to nominate this as needed in future development”.

We will continue to support Winton’s valuable work for the Australian hemp industry.  View his full report here.

Australian Bureau of Statistics
The AHC has also been in discussions with the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) to organise the annual publication of national hemp crop planted, this is another step towards establishing industry data to support hemp’s inclusion in the carbon inventory.

We have also been in discussions with Ben Wark from Downforce Technologies on the subject of establishing supporting data on the hemp crop’s ability to sequester carbon in the soil.  We will be looking for farmers across Australia who have been growing hemp as a rotation crop for over 3 years.  Downforce technologies will be able to assess changes in carbon levels in the soil as a result of growing hemp.  This is yet another important step in establishing the hemp industry’s carbon sequestration credentials.

APVMA Permit Approval
The AHC has secured a vital agricultural chemical permit renewal from the APVMA.  This will allow the continued use of these essential tools for productive crop production.  If we hadn’t facilitated this action, it would have brought the whole industry in Australia to a standstill.  Click here to view the permit details.
The AHC needs to produce further data over the next 2 years to meet the permit requirements.
We also have other permits we would like to apply for, however we need funds to be able to pay for these applications, hence the need for more industry sponsorship.  This is for the benefit of the entire Australian hemp industry.

Agrifutures
We were presented with a brief report from Agrifutures on the issue of the dangers of silicosis. This is a most important OH&S issue for the industry and is one of the reasons we why we include this subject in our industry forums.  You can see the full report here.

AHC Working Groups

Agronomy – Rob Eccles
Varietal development in SE Queensland has continued to improve grain yields. I was privy to a trial in which individual heads on single-stemmed plants had over 1.0 kg of grain. Also, grain yields in seed multiplication block have exceeded 4.0 t/ha.

We have discussed that the optimal harvest timing for fibre and grain production needs to be refined from what is stated in the AgriFutures 2023 BMP in light of the variety of manufacturing requirements

The APVMA proposed banning of diquat has been discussed between members, and it is deemed to be a disaster for grain recovery in the majority of scenarios across Australia. I have drafted a comment and a letter for the AHC to sign.

Herbicide Use Permits are in need of renewing. Peter del Santo has forwarded the likely protocol for trials to satisfy the APVMA.

Testing of seedling and vegetative hemp frost tolerance is at the “proof of concept” stage at various sites around Australia. John Muir is championing this.

For any questions or additional information, please contact Rob Eccles on 0429722341 r.eccles@uq.edu.au

Food – Mick Andersen
Mick Andersen has started a template based off other oil seeds in the AOF standards document for hemp. Standard testing methods need to be documented for processing seed, vegetable oil, meals and hulls. Quality specifications need to be agreed by industry and set for all quality parameters for the commodity components such as moisture, seed size, oil content, protein level etc.

A pricing grid will take the form of a price adjustment scheme outlined for other commodities in the AOF standards whereby a premium or deduction will apply for various quality parameters above or below the prescribed limit.

Imported seed can fall under these standards, however compliance to any standards will not be mandatory.

There is discussion around an organic certification for hemp seed, or “chemical free” status. We’ll need to examine the different compliance protocols of the numerous organic certification organisations in Australian, but it’s important to have international recognition/acceptance.

In any case, AOF standards will include residue testing for ag chemicals, heavy metals, micros and certain allergens.

Similar to wheat, separate standards could apply for a number of grades of hemp grain eg. high oil/low protein and low oil/high protein.

Ken Dods reported that the hemp protein project is 6 to 8 months away from starting. It is Agrifutures funded and may be based at Perth University, Charles Sturt or Adelaide University. It’s noted that Adelaide Uni’s food research department was the best in Australia.

State Reports

Victorian Hemp Association – Sherri Smith-Hoyer
Lyn Stephenson has stepped down as President of the Association.  On behalf of the Committee, we wish to express our sincere appreciation and gratitude for the contribution, efforts and work Lyn has put into promoting the Industrial Hemp industry and its community over the past 25 years.

The VHA’s AGM will be held on the 10^th of November.  Vice-President Matt Lariba is acting President until the AGM.  Sherri Smith-Hoyer remains as Secretary and Dan Waler Treasurer.

David Brian and Stuart Gordon recently met with Godfrey Hurst Carpets in Geelong.  Specifications for the hemp require it to be shorter and finer.  Investigations are underway to identify the type of decorticator that can do this.  An assessment of the sample will be made within CSIRO.  The carpet type will comprise of 80% wool 20% hemp.  The Fibre committee are also involved in this collaboration.

Sherri Smith-Hoyer visited the first hemp-spray installation in Yandoit last month. The hemp and binder are fully imported from France and Jo D’alo from the Hemp Building Company  has an exclusive arrangement with Americhanvre.

iHemp NSW – Jaimie Milling

iHempNSW webinars
IhempNSW held its inaugural webinar on 12 August with agronomist Rob Eccles. Registrations exceeded 85, demonstrating a strong interest in this area. The webinar is still available to watch on the website (scroll to the bottom of the page). A big thank you to Rob Eccles for generously sharing his knowledge.

Field Trips
IHemp NSW is holding a two day Field Trip to Narrabri and Moree on 11-12 September. The event includes a day with the team at Sydney Institute of Agriculture for their Partnering for Impact, Annual Narrabri Field Day. Day two involves a farm visit to Keytah, with David and Danielle Statham, showcasing their state of the art renewable energy solution on their large cotton farm and gin. There will be lots of time for networking and learning across the industries.

Northern Rivers Hemp Cooperative
iHempNSW Business Member and cooperative, Northern Rivers Hemp, reported that they have recently obtained access to a new testing machine that can test for many more cannabinoids and terpenes. They have been surprised that the King Gee Cultivar variety that all seven farms grew last year, has the lesser known cannabinoid, Cannabicyclol (CBL). It is a lesser studied minor cannabinoid, but is believed to have pain relieving and anti-inflammatory properties. They have also launched a new t-shirt designed by NRHEMP farmer and tattoo artist Chris, with the slogan “Support your local farmers” and it’s selling like hot cakes. It will be available on their website soon.

Members
We’ve responded to member’s feedback and have developed a new vision statement and values. These are available on the website homepage. We also are the proud owners of a new banner – our first piece of marketing collateral!

Excitingly our membership is growing with a number of new businesses and individuals joining the Association to learn about growing hemp, or to collaborate on new product development. It is encouraging to see that there is a steady interest in collaborating and being part of the Association and we warmly welcome anyone who is interested in growing or learning more about industrial hemp to sign up.

QHA – Lauchlan Grout
Following are notes on developments in Townsville, Northern Queensland.

Revolutionary Partnership Announced: How Wandarra and PAPACKS® aim to turn the tide on Plastic Waste in Australia
Steve Tiley of Wandarra Pty Ltd and Tahsin Dag of PAPACKS Sales GmbH have announced their partnership and collaboration to eliminate plastic waste in food and beverage packaging materials in Australia.

PACKS® is a pioneering company dedicated to developing and producing sustainable, plastic-free packaging solutions. PAPACKS® specializes in molded fiber packaging made primarily from fresh fibers from trees and hemp plants, which are approved for use with food. Through advanced technologies and a commitment to environmental protection, PAPACKS® drives the shift towards a circular economy and significantly reduces plastic pollution.

Quote from Tahsin Dag, Founder & CEO of PAPACKS® “Our partnership with Wandarra is a significant step towards eliminating single-use plastics and protecting valuable ecosystems like the Great Barrier Reef. By combining Wandarra’s resources with our innovative technologies, we will sustainably influence the packaging industry in Australia and the Asia-Pacific region. This collaboration demonstrates, and practically implements, our shared commitment to sustainability and environmental protection.”

You can view the full press release here.

IHASA – Mick Andersen
Six varieties will be sown at Mundulla for the winter dryland hemp trial. Excalibur, MS77, Bundy Gem, Ruby, Henola and Bialobrzeskie. There will be 2 times of sowing – mid August and late September

Tasmania
The reviewed and updated hemp legislation is to be put to the upper house this week, it has already passed through the lower house quickly and with full support.

There will be a jump in area planted for seed for food this year as the seed stockpile has been reduced to nought.  We estimate that there may be 300 ha scheduled for planting which is great for the Tasmanian industry.

Tim Crow has stepped down from the AHC, we have appreciated his constructive and thoughtful contributions.

The AHC is continues to play an expanding role in its support for the hemp industry. This is possible due to the significant voluntary work by Council members and numerous industry experts who contribute through the various AHC  Working Groups

The more support we receive, the more we can do, so join up to your local association and share our reports and spread the word to help build support for this amazing hemp industry.with friends and colleagues.

Be sure to stay up to date with all events supported by the Australian Hemp Council by subscribing to our mailing list.