The hemp industry, once touted as the next billion dollar industry, is contracting as companies are hamstrung by legislation, Bradley Lake says. Photo:
A hemp company says it's dumping tonnes of a by-product that could be used as animal feed.
Christchurch based The Brothers Green processes hemp for its oil, hearts and meal.
The meal is milled down and about 40 percent is turned into protein powder, however, the by-product, the other 60 percent of the meal, is dumped.
Managing director Bradley Lake said they were dumping tonnes of the nutritious rich meal which he would like to see saved from landfill and used as animal feed.
"We just want the opportunity at least to explore what the options could be, overseas it's used in the equine industry.
"The meal is very similar to other meals fed to animals in New Zealand, so we'd love to see more testing done to see how it goes and if there would be any benefits."
Associate Minister for Agriculture (Animal Welfare) Andrew Hoggard said to feed animals hemp or hemp-derived substances would need to be approved under the Agricultural Compounds and Veterinary Medicines Act.
"So far, no companies, including The Brothers Green, have applied to use hemp by-products in animal feed."
He said regulation was important because hemp contained small amounts of THC and CBD, which are both controlled substances under New Zealand law.
"THC and CBD pose a potential risk to food safety and suitability, and to animal welfare because the effects of exposing food-producing animals to these compounds has [sic] not been fully investigated.
"There is also a risk to New Zealand's trade in animal products where THC and CBD are concerned. These compounds will be absorbed by the animal and may be present in their meat and milk."
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Lake agreed more research was needed but pointed out that it could be used for companion animals or those that weren't used for exports.
"It's got a high protein content, it's high in magnesium and zinc and has been processed for human grade consumption, we could be feeding it to cats, dogs and chickens.
"We rely on imported grain and palm kernel to feed to livestock when we could be using this."
He said the hemp industry, once touted as the next billion dollar industry, was small and contracting as companies were hamstrung by legislation.
Hoggard said there hasn't been any regulatory change around animal feeds, however, if there was compelling new evidence that changes should be made, he would consider that.
"I note that the Ministry for Regulation is currently conducting a regulatory review into the approval path for agricultural and horticultural products.
"The Ministry is seeking submissions to help it assess whether the current approval path is maintaining an appropriate balance between access to these products and managing risk."