 | NORML News: hemp on trial |
 BY CHRIS FOWLIE, CO-OWNER, THE HEMPSTORE AOTEAROA
NORML News Winter 2003
The Hempstore Aotearoa is taking the Customs Service to court following a seizure of imported hemp products that we believe has thrown the legal status of all hemp products into doubt.
After a decade of hemp being sold in New Zealand, and two years of local cultivation, the Customs Service is now trying to reinterpret the rules. Simon Williamson, drug investigations operations manager, was quoted as saying "all hemp is cannabis and cannabis is illegal. The amount of THC is irrelevant."
While it is true that hemp is cannabis, it is not the kind that will get anyone high. Our hemp tea was tested in Germany as being 0.0047 percent THC, well below the usual 0.35% level used for hemp growers in New Zealand, Europe, Canada and Australia, and 8-10% found in most marijuana.
We had received Customs clearance for previous shipments of the hemp tea and "Knaster" hemp smoking blend imported from Germany, and have always been open about it. The Misuse of Drugs Act prohibits "cannabis except a part from which all the resin has been extracted".
It is clear that the intention of this clause is to allow the trade of hemp products, and we have a precedent. Motueka hemp grower Steven Burnett was acquitted in June 2000 on a cannabis cultivation charge because his plants measured 0.1 to 0.3% THC. The court agreed that this was industrial hemp.
Customs emphasised that our shipment weighed 56kg, like it was a big drug bust, but not even a tonne of hemp would get anyone high.
It doesn't matter what the actual product were, the fact remains that this seizure threatens the entire hemp industry in New Zealand. Are they going to come after all the other hemp products we and other stores like the Body Shop sell, or Nandor's hemp suit, or those taxpayer-funded hemp curtains?
So on behalf of the entire hemp industry, The Hempstore is challenging the Customs Service's decision. We have asked barrister Marie Dyhrberg, who represented Peter Lewis, the billionaire "functioning pothead", to seek a court order disallowing the seizure. A court date is yet to be set. In the meantime, you can help by supporting local hemp businesses, and we're also gratefully accepting any donations towards our legal costs.
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