{"id":2322,"date":"2021-07-11T18:42:02","date_gmt":"2021-07-11T18:42:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/?p=2322"},"modified":"2021-07-11T18:39:55","modified_gmt":"2021-07-11T18:39:55","slug":"dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe","title":{"rendered":"Dubbed a \u2018game changer,\u2019 cannabis-growing gathers momentum in Zimbabwe"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press<\/a> – Zambia<\/a>. <\/strong><\/span>Zimbabwe recently scrapped rules requiring sole state ownership for cannabis farming to encourage investment in the plant for industrial and medicinal uses.<\/p>\n

The southern African country is the continent\u2019s largest tobacco producer, but authorities expect hemp export earnings to start replacing tobacco as farmers seek higher earnings from the crop.<\/p>\n

Farmer Jesper Kirk has been growing mainly tobacco since he moved to a 250-hectare farm five years ago. He now plans to increase his hectarage of hemp, a type of cannabis plant that has very low levels of THC \u2013 the intoxicating substance in marijuana \u2013 when the growing season begins in a few months.<\/p>\n

\u201cI went for hemp because it is an export crop,\u201d he said. \u201cMuch more reliable market. Whereas, for example potatoes, local market crop is a little more unstable market in terms of the number of people growing it. So, I wanted a slightly stable market in terms of demand.\u201d<\/p>\n

About five years ago, Zimbabwe Industrial Hemp Trust led experiments raising cannabis and the project has spread to several parts of Zimbabwe. The trust is providing technical assistance and looking for markets for farmers, said the group\u2019s head, Dr. Zorodzai Maroveke.<\/p>\n

She said Zimbabwe is making a smart choice with cannabis, since the tobacco market is shrinking because of anti-smoking campaigns. \u201cIt\u2019s most relevant now considering the threat that the tobacco industry faces and knowing very well that Zimbabwe heavily depends on tobacco production,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s relevant that our economy has to start looking for alternatives. And I think industrial hemp tops the list. It\u2019s a green crop and there is a lot of social impact in comparison to tobacco. I think in 10 years you will see the value chains that will come out of this sector are way more than tobacco.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Kirk is thinking of exporting his crop, Walter Ruprecht has used some hemp produced by farmers this year to produce paper. He said cannabis has a lot of potential for Zimbabwe, both for industrial and even medicinal use.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe advantages are that it is obviously going to create thousands of jobs in the farming areas, just like what tobacco has done for decades. Hemp has many advantages for its medicinal interests at the moment,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHowever, there are other composites that can be available that it can be used such as textiles, pulp and paper. It\u2019s a nitrogen supplement to the soil, it eliminates weeds. It has so many advantages to the small farmers and of course the value chains, which stretches to hundreds of thousands of dollars of opportunities.\u201d<\/p>\n

The global cannabis industry is expected to be a $46 billion business worldwide in three years \u2013 up from $16.47 billion this year, said Tino Kambasha of the Zimbabwe Investment Development Agency.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, it\u2019s a market that is growing fast and we think it\u2019s going to be a game-changer for this country,\u201d Kambasha said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd Zimbabwe has gone a little step further to show that it is willing work with its partners and investors. By coming up with an investor agreement which further protects you against anything like expropriation and change or changes in law, which is quite great. it\u2026 Dr. Zorodzai Maroveke, head of Zimbabwe Industrial Hemp Trust, seen here in a Beatrice farming area on July 7, 2021, says Zimbabwe is making a smart choice with cannabis, since the tobacco market is shrinking. (Picture Credit: Columbus Mavhunga\/VOA)<\/p>\n

Because of the new cannabis regulations, Kambasha added, Zimbabwe has attracted investors from the U.S., Britain, Germany, Switzerland and other countries. That might be a needed shot in the arm for Zimbabwe\u2019s economy, which has been stuck in the doldrums for more than 20 years. \u2013 VOA News<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Zambia. Zimbabwe recently scrapped rules requiring sole state ownership for cannabis farming to encourage investment in the plant for industrial and medicinal uses. The southern African country is the continent\u2019s largest tobacco producer, but authorities expect hemp export earnings to start replacing tobacco as farmers seek higher earnings from the crop. Farmer Jesper […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":2321,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,5,7,8,16],"tags":[234,235,832,833,233],"class_list":{"0":"post-2322","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"hentry","7":"category-all-news","8":"category-economy","9":"category-head-lines","10":"category-homepage-english","11":"category-twitter","12":"tag-africa-press","13":"tag-africa-press-zambia","15":"tag-game-changer","16":"tag-zambia"},"yoast_head":"\nDubbed a \u2018game changer,\u2019 cannabis-growing gathers momentum in Zimbabwe - Zambia<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Zimbabwe recently scrapped rules requiring sole state ownership for cannabis farming to encourage investment in the plan ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Dubbed a \u2018game changer,\u2019 cannabis-growing gathers momentum in Zimbabwe\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Zimbabwe recently scrapped rules requiring sole state ownership for cannabis farming to encourage investment in the plan ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Zambia\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-07-11T18:42:02+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/zambia\/sites\/35\/2021\/07\/img-60eb3aac989ab.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"892\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"501\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Dubbed a \u2018game changer,\u2019 cannabis-growing gathers momentum in Zimbabwe\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-07-11T18:42:02+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe\"},\"wordCount\":630,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/zambia\/sites\/35\/2021\/07\/img-60eb3aac989ab.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Africa Press\",\"Africa Press-Zambia\",\"Cannabis Growing\",\"Game Changer\",\"Zambia\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"economy\",\"head lines\",\"homepage-english\",\"twitter\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe\",\"name\":\"Dubbed a \u2018game changer,\u2019 cannabis-growing gathers momentum in Zimbabwe - Zambia\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/zambia\/sites\/35\/2021\/07\/img-60eb3aac989ab.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-07-11T18:42:02+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"description\":\"Zimbabwe recently scrapped rules requiring sole state ownership for cannabis farming to encourage investment in the plan ...\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/zambia\/sites\/35\/2021\/07\/img-60eb3aac989ab.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/zambia\/sites\/35\/2021\/07\/img-60eb3aac989ab.jpg\",\"width\":892,\"height\":501,\"caption\":\"Dubbed a \u2018game changer,\u2019 cannabis-growing gathers momentum in Zimbabwe\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Dubbed a \u2018game changer,\u2019 cannabis-growing gathers momentum in Zimbabwe\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/\",\"name\":\"Zambia\",\"description\":\"Just another Africa News Agency Sites site\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\",\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"cfeditoren\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Dubbed a \u2018game changer,\u2019 cannabis-growing gathers momentum in Zimbabwe - Zambia","description":"Zimbabwe recently scrapped rules requiring sole state ownership for cannabis farming to encourage investment in the plan ...","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Dubbed a \u2018game changer,\u2019 cannabis-growing gathers momentum in Zimbabwe","og_description":"Zimbabwe recently scrapped rules requiring sole state ownership for cannabis farming to encourage investment in the plan ...","og_url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe","og_site_name":"Zambia","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa","article_published_time":"2021-07-11T18:42:02+00:00","og_image":[{"width":892,"height":501,"url":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/zambia\/sites\/35\/2021\/07\/img-60eb3aac989ab.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"cfeditoren","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"cfeditoren","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe"},"author":{"name":"cfeditoren","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb"},"headline":"Dubbed a \u2018game changer,\u2019 cannabis-growing gathers momentum in Zimbabwe","datePublished":"2021-07-11T18:42:02+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe"},"wordCount":630,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/zambia\/sites\/35\/2021\/07\/img-60eb3aac989ab.jpg","keywords":["Africa Press","Africa Press-Zambia","Cannabis Growing","Game Changer","Zambia"],"articleSection":["all news","economy","head lines","homepage-english","twitter"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe","name":"Dubbed a \u2018game changer,\u2019 cannabis-growing gathers momentum in Zimbabwe - Zambia","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/zambia\/sites\/35\/2021\/07\/img-60eb3aac989ab.jpg","datePublished":"2021-07-11T18:42:02+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb"},"description":"Zimbabwe recently scrapped rules requiring sole state ownership for cannabis farming to encourage investment in the plan ...","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/zambia\/sites\/35\/2021\/07\/img-60eb3aac989ab.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/zambia\/sites\/35\/2021\/07\/img-60eb3aac989ab.jpg","width":892,"height":501,"caption":"Dubbed a \u2018game changer,\u2019 cannabis-growing gathers momentum in Zimbabwe"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/dubbed-a-game-changer-cannabis-growing-gathers-momentum-in-zimbabwe#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Dubbed a \u2018game changer,\u2019 cannabis-growing gathers momentum in Zimbabwe"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/","name":"Zambia","description":"Just another Africa News Agency Sites site","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb","name":"cfeditoren","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"cfeditoren"}}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2322","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/84"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2322"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2322\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2321"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2322"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2322"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2322"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}