USDA researchers: hempseed is a “viable alternative feed source for cattle.”
Scientists from the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and North Dakota State University (NDSU) recently conducted a study that examined whether humans could have cannabinoid exposure through consumption of animal products that had eaten, for example, hempseed cake.
For this study, researchers fed groups of heifers either a diet containing 20% hempseed cake for 111 days, or the control diet. Then, they tested for cannabinoid residues. Results showed that hempseed cake is a “viable alternative feed source for cattle.”
“According to our exposure assessment, it would be very difficult for a human to consume enough fat from cattle fed with hempseed cake to exceed regulatory guidelines for dietary THC exposure,” lead researcher David Smith said in a statement.
“From a food safety view point, hempseed cake having low cannabinoid content can be a suitable source of crude protein and fiber in cattle feed while offering industrial hemp producers a potential market for this byproduct of hempseed oil extraction.”
This study was published in the peer-reviewed journal Food Additives and Contaminants.
New York City Council introduces cannabis bills on enforcement, education.
The City Council introduced cannabis enforcement, education legislation this week.
One, sponsored by Council Member Julie Menin, would create a public education campaign focused on the harms of buying cannabis from unlicensed retailers.
The bill would require that the the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) work with the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) on the effort.
The campaign would “target minors and young adults and focus on the risks of consuming cannabis products adulterated with synthetic cannabinoids and other harmful substances and the risk of purchasing such products from unlicensed cannabis retailers.”
Council Member Lynn Schulman introduced legislation that targets landlords who lease to unregulated cannabis retailers. The bill would prohibit owners of commercial properties from “knowingly leasing commercial premises to unlicensed cannabis sellers.” It would also require the city’s sheriff’s office to release a monthly report on their actions against unlicensed sellers.
This legislation doesn’t drop the enforcement hammer on unregulated sellers right off the bat. On the first offense, for example, prompts a warning to the owner.
“If an unlicensed cannabis seller is later found to be operating in the same commercial premises, the owner would be liable for civil penalties,” the legislation notes.
Morocco’s gov’t touts cannabis moves in re-joining UN drug body.
In a little-noticed announcement late last week, spotted by Cannabis Wire, Morocco heavily emphasized its cannabis reforms while sharing that it had been re-elected to sit on the United Nations’ Commission on Narcotic Drugs.
The government first flagged that this decision is a “confirmation of Morocco’s pioneering role in regional and international efforts to combat the global drug problem in all its dimensions and ramifications.”
But then, for three paragraphs, the announcement turns to cannabis.
It reads: “This re-election also confirms the Kingdom’s recent wise choice regarding the legal use of cannabis, medical, cosmetic and industrial, through the approval by the Parliament, in June 2021, of Law 13.21.
Indeed, after reviewing several recommendations of the World Health Organization, the Commission on Narcotic Drugs decided, through a resolution adopted on December 2, 2020, to remove cannabis from the strictest control lists – where it had been for 59 years – which discouraged even its use for medical purposes.
This decision paved the way for the recognition of the medicinal and therapeutic potential of cannabis and the strengthening of further scientific research on its medicinal properties.”
Indeed, as one of the world’s top illegal cannabis producers for decades, Morocco’s shift toward regulated production is one to watch.
+ More: In case you missed Cannabis Wire’s coverage of the aforementioned WHO decision, and the UN’s response, you can catch up here.
