Tasmanian opium industry

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Opium poppies (Papaver somniferum) under cultivation in Tasmania Papaver somniferum-Harford-01.JPG
Opium poppies ( Papaver somniferum ) under cultivation in Tasmania

The Tasmanian opium industry was established in Tasmania in 1966. [1] [2] Tasmania is the world's largest producer of legal narcotic opium, producing more than 50% of the world's supply. [3] [4] Opium produced in Tasmania generally gets produced into opiate medications such as morphine, codeine and oxycodone. [5]

Extractas Bioscience (formerly known as Tasmanian Alkaloids) is Tasmania's largest corporate grower of opium poppies. [6] The father of Jeremy Rockliff, the current Premier of Tasmania worked for Extractas during his life as a poppy producer. [7]

A downy mildew outbreak in the 2014 poppy-growing season led to one Tasmanian company to look into growing poppies in the Northern Territory and Victoria of Australia. [4] Following the outbreak, the Northern Territory Government passed legislation allowing for the supervised production of opium plants for legal wholesale to produce narcotic medications. [3]

References

  1. ↑ "Legislative Council Select Committee Inquiry: Tasmanian Poppy Industry" (PDF). Parliament of Tasmania. November 2012. Retrieved 6 July 2014.
  2. ↑ Chang, Charis (9 April 2014). "States want their cut of Australia's growing opium poppy industry". news.com.au . News Corp . Retrieved 6 July 2014.
  3. 1 2 Government, Northern Territory (1 May 2020). "Poppy Regulation Act". daf.nt.gov.au. Retrieved 6 January 2025.
  4. 1 2 Blucher, Alex (7 November 2014). "A systemic mildew that's causing entire paddock losses in poppy crops across Tasmania has sparked an industry-wide response". ABC Rural . Australian Broadcasting Corporation . Retrieved 14 September 2015.
  5. ↑ Gardner, Jessica (14 January 2014). "Opium poppy venture on a high". The Sydney Morning Herald . Fairfax Media . Retrieved 6 July 2014.
  6. ↑ Ogilvie, Felicity (25 June 2009). "Happy hops damage poppy crops". ABC News (Australia) . Australian Broadcasting Corporation . Retrieved 6 July 2014.
  7. ↑ "Rick Rockliff, Tasmanian agricultural identity and father of Tasmanian premier, dies". ABC News. 29 November 2023. Retrieved 6 January 2025.
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