In 2025, Ukraine will plant 8000 hectares of industrial hemp, said Igor Vishtak, Director of the Agrarian Development Department of the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food, during a visit to farms in Khmelnytsky and Vinnytsia regions.
He emphasized that the government is making efforts to revive hemp growing in the country. Law No. 3528-IX on state regulation of hemp plants has already been adopted, which will allow to increase the area under cultivation next year.
“Growing hemp for industrial purposes became possible after the adoption of the law on medical cannabis. Industrial hemp is also a variety of value-added products – food, light, pulp and paper, and other industries,” the press service of the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food quoted him as saying.
Vishtak noted that with the adoption of the law, industrial hemp has become interesting for Ukrainian agricultural producers. Changes in the legislation allow agricultural enterprises to rediscover a niche sector of agricultural production – industrial hemp farming, as hemp for industrial purposes is becoming an almost common crop, which will no longer require licenses or quotas.
The Ministry of Agrarian Policy pointed out that hemp cultivation contributes to soil aeration and cleansing of heavy metals such as zinc, copper, and lead. In addition, thanks to its scientific base, Ukraine has the best varieties of industrial hemp and can become a leading country in breeding. The Institute of Bast Crops of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine and the Institute of Agriculture of the North-East of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine are two of the leading scientific institutions that own hemp varieties. In addition, 11 other private agricultural enterprises are engaged in the cultivation of hemp seed material.
