Press. voanews.com
Australia is to
become the fourth country in the world to allow exports of cannabis-based
therapies. The federal government hopes the reforms will help Australia become
a world leader in the medicinal cannabis market. Laws to allow exports of Australian
cannabis-based therapies will come into force in February, according to the
federal health minister.
It will allow
Australian produced oils, lozenges, sprays and pills to be sold overseas for
the first time. Advocates have argued the plant-based treatments can relieve
severe pain associated with many medical conditions, including multiple
sclerosis, and to reduce the impact of cancer therapies.
Potential export
markets include South America, Spain, Canada and Germany. Australian federal
health minister Greg Hunt said allowing exports will help the developing
domestic market to expand. "We have a world class reputation for our clean
and green farm products. Put them all together and we are brilliantly placed to
be a world leader in medical development and medical cannabis," he said.
Officials say
medicinal cannabis exports have the potential to create a lucrative new
agricultural industry within Australia, similar to that already established for
the use of Australian-grown poppies for medicinal and scientific purposes. Only Canada, the
Netherlands and Uruguay have so far legalized the export of medicinal
marijuana. Israel has said it intends to do so within months. Victoria became
Australia's first state to legalize cannabis for medical use following changes
to federal laws in 2016. However, there are some concerns doctors have been
reluctant to prescribe the products.
Despite the new
export laws, the use of cannabis for non-medicinal purposes remains illegal in
Australia. Cannabis cultivation in Australia is still relatively small because
recreational use of marijuana remains prohibited.