As the Nepalese government goes about the process of setting laws and regulations for the hemp industry, people in the ayurvedic medicine space are pushing Nepalese officials to prioritize removing the country’s ban on hemp flowers.
The Department of Ayurveda and Alternative Medicine is a government health agency that presented 21 ayurvedic medicines that are blocked. They said regulatory changes are needed to allow production of the traditional medicines, which have historical roots in the Indian subcontinent.
The health agency raised the issue during a recent multi-stakeholder meeting in Kathmandu held by the Nepal Health Research Council and the Policy Research Institute to explore the medicinal value and economic development potential of hemp.
Participants in the meeting included a cross-section of stakeholders, including agencies working for the prevention and control of narcotic drugs, rehabilitation centers, the Drug Control Section under the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Nepal Law Commission, the Armed Police Force, lawyers, professors, and representatives of civic organizations.
Advocates stressed the economic potential for medical marijuana and said hemp oil could be a significant export from Nepal. Policy Research Institute executive director Bishnu Raj Upreti urged the Home Ministry to draft a regulation regarding the patenting of Nepalese hemp. Home Ministry Joint Secretary Bhishma Kumar Bhusal proposed that hemp from Nepal go by the name “Cannabis Nepaleca.”
companies in Nepal make clothes, bags, accessories, caps, mats and household items from industrial hemp fiber. Hemp seeds are sold as food, and hemp seed oil is used in personal care products.
Hemp has a long history in Nepal as it is common in religious ceremonies and cultural festivals.
Story edited from: Hemp Today
