No highs for Tim as he ploughs in hemp crop
1.5 hectares of hemp grown by Deloraine farmer Tim Schmidt must be ploughed in because its THC content is too high. Tim is seen here, hosting the Tasmanian Hemp Association’s Community Education Day in February 2021, at Woodlands Farm, near Deloraine. Photo by Darren Harris
Sharon Webb
DELORAINE FARMER Tim Schmidt said he was ‘pretty surprised’ to be told testers found his hemp crop’s THC content was too high.
Testers notified Tim that his crop was over the one per cent THC content allowable for industrial hemp.
‘I was surprised because last year’s seed from the same supplier produced a crop with only 0.5 per cent THC’, he said.
The result means that Tim, who is president of the Tasmanian Hemp Association, cannot harvest the hemp, worth around $5000.
He’ll plough the crop back into the ground, but he’s not too worried.
‘Luckily it was only 1.5 hectares. I harvested another 14 hectares earlier.’
The loss of the high-THC crop indicates the fledgling nature of the hemp growing industry in Tasmania. Farmers are learning as they go along.
Currently, Tim said, every crop must be tested for its THC level, measuring tetrahydrocannabinol content which is the psychoactive drug component of both hemp and cannabis. Cannabis can have a THC content of more than 20 per cent.
‘We’re hoping to set up an Australia-wide seed certification system but that’s down the track’, he said.
While a crop of hemp takes only 100-120 days to grow,
Tasmania’s climate means farmers can only grow one crop a year. Tim’s lost crop cannot be replaced.
Instead, he will plant again on 20 November and hope the harvest in March 2022 will produce a lower THC count.
Optimistically, Tim believes the publicity around his lost crop means community has learnt more about hemp through media coverage of his misfortune.