A Thai state tobacco firm has received approval for a pilot commercial hemp-growing initiative in five provinces, its director said. Daonoi Sutthi-Niphaphan of the Thailand Tobacco Monopoly (TTM) said the approval is for the northern and eastern provinces of Chiang Mai, Chaing Rai, Nan, Tak and Petchabun. The first trial crops will be grown at TTM’s Mae Cho Tobacco Experimental Station. Sutthi-Niphaphan told the Thai PBS broadcaster.
If the trials are successful, hemp will be introduced to farmers currently growing tobacco in the five provinces, all considered to have high-quality soil, TTM said. Plans call for TTM to provide hemp seeds to Thai farmers beginning in 2018.