Hemp Investing in Australia

Is hemp legal in Australia?

In 1998, Victoria was the first state to allow select farmers to grow hemp, but only for exportation to countries in which hemp was legal. Queensland followed by allowing industrial hemp growing under a licence.

It wouldn't be until November 12, 2018, that the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code was changed to legalise hemp seed products as food, as well as safe for human consumption.

Now that hemp products have been legalised, hemp seeds, hemp hearts and hemp seed oil are all popular health products with high levels of protein and omega-3, and they are used in products such as health food bars, supplements, cereal and even beer.

Today, industrial hemp is legal to grow in all of Australia's states and territories, providing the THC content is below certain levels. In New South Wales, Queensland and South Australia, that level is 1 percent. Tasmania and Western Australia cannot have hemp grown with THC in excess of 0.5 percent, while in Victoria and in Australia’s territories, the level of THC must be below 0.35 percent.

Australia’s hemp acreage peaked in the 2019 to 2020 season at 4,200 hectares, according to an Agrifutures report. At that time, New South Wales led the states of Australia for production, with 1,900 hectares of hemp. The 2020 to 2021 season saw a significant reduction in hemp production, down to around 2,500 hectares of farmland being used for hemp growing. This acreage is still up from the 185.5 hectares grown in 2011. Tasmania now leads the Australian states in hemp production, accounting for 1,000 hectares of hemp farming, or 40 percent of the crop.

What are the uses of hemp?

As mentioned, hemp is suitable as a textile for clothing, linen, rope and canvas.

Hemp is also very efficient for carbon sequestration; according to the European Industrial Hemp Association, "One hectare of industrial hemp can absorb 15 tonnes of CO2 per hectare." When hemp is turned into the building material “hempcrete,” it will absorb carbon dioxide as it continues to cure.

Hemp can be considered an alternative to textiles like cotton and wool or to available building insulation materials. It’s also been shown to be effective in decontaminating soil in Chernobyl.

What are the options for investing in ASX hemp stocks?

Since Australia's hemp industry is still so young, there aren't many options for those who want to put money into hemp stocks listed on the ASX.

Below are a couple of options to consider; data was collected using TradingView's stock screener, and was accurate as of October 4, 2022. Companies are listed in order of market cap from largest to smallest.