30 Investor Report Industrial Hemp Sector New Zealand ’ s New Export Opportunity 2020
4 . hemp food products - in new zealand
Regulation
As previously noted , New Zealand remains at the proscribed end of the cannabis continuum . Like many countries which are signatories to the UN Single Convention on Narcotics 1961 , the cultivation and use of Cannabis Sativa has been illegal in New Zealand for decades .
Specifically , it is a specified substance under Schedule 2 and 3 of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1975 ( MoDA ).
Also similarly to other signatories , New Zealand legislators have slowly drawn back from that position , although there is still a ban on recreational cannabis cultivation and use .
There is also confusion around the status of products which contain CBD and / or other cannabinoids , but are neither medicines nor considered to be psychotropic .
MODA REGULATIONS 2006 AND AMENDMENT 2018
A slight softening in regulations was seen in 2006 under the MoDA , which exempted “ Industrial Hemp ” from the ban . These regulations defined hemp as “ cannabis plant , seed or fruit ”, and “ industrial hemp ” as hemp in the form of plants with a THC content that is generally below 0.35 % and is not above 0.5 %. The regulations apply to Cannabis Sativa only .
The Misuse of Drugs ( Industrial Hemp ) Regulations 2006 allowed general cultivation , research , and plant breeding to be carried out under a licence from the Ministry of Health . It has been a highly regulated system .
The 2006 regulation was subsequently amended by the Misuse of Drugs ( Industrial Hemp ) Amendment Regulations 2018 . These extended permission to possess , use , and trade in :
• Hemp products ( a product derived in