Two new CBD hemp cultivars developed in the United States have been accepted for inclusion in the EU Common Catalogue of Plant Varieties. A Bulgarian company is marketing them.
CBD Seed Europe said €500,000 was invested in developing the varieties “Midwest” and “Northwest.” The company claims that the CBD levels in the cultivars can reach around 15%, well beyond most European hemp breeds, predominantly for fibre and grain production, and that the CBD levels are expressed at just 5-6%.
According to the company, the Midwest breed peaks at about 16% CBD five weeks after planting, while the Northwest peaks at 15% CBD around week 8. The new varieties are adaptable to most latitudes on the European continent and comply with Europe’s current THC limit of 0.2%.
THC level to Rise
With the EU THC limit for hemp “on the field” rising to 0.3% next year, CBD Seed Europe said opportunities are now open for developers to create more strains with even higher CBD levels. CBD rises in proportion to THC in industrial hemp plants, making processing more efficient.
“We believe this opens up several unique business opportunities, including exploring joint ventures with other breeders to create new varieties specifically designed for the European market,” said Americo Folcarelli, a Canadian co-founder of CBD Seed Europe.
European breeders have begun developing hemp flower strains specifically for the production of CBD and other cannabinoids in the last few years. Enecta, an Italian-Dutch developer, added two new cannabinoid hemp cultivars to the EU catalogue earlier this year: Enectarol, a CBG-rich strain, and Enectaliana, a high CBD variety.
EU Standards
To qualify for the official EU plant list, new varieties must undergo several scientific tests that show they produce uniform and stable plants. Such tests and certification standards are critical to the overall hemp industry, contributing to transparency, which still needs to be improved at many levels of the hemp supply chain.
For growers, planting approved cultivars guarantees plant quality and is a prerequisite for receiving direct EU agriculture subsidies, a critical factor in farming decision-making.
CBD Seed Europe was founded by Folcarelli and his Bulgarian business partner, Ivailo Staninski.
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