STA given green light from FDA to grow hemp, with digital traceability system to make a difference, first harvest expected in early 2022 to launch a new line of business

Mr. Veerasith Sinchareonkul, Managing Director of Sri Trang Agro-Industry Public Company Limited or STA, the world's leading producer and distributor of integrated natural rubber products, reveals that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has given Sri Trang Rubber and Plantation Co., Ltd. (SRP) - an subsidiary of STA - a permit to grow hemp. The company had earlier applied for a permit to engage in the upstream business of growing industrial hemp, using its expertise and resources, such as land, to support the initiative. This is in response to the government's policy to promote hemp as the country's new economic crop.

The FDA approval is a significant step toward a full-fledged hemp growing business for STA. It enables the company to begin planting hemp in Thoen District of Lampang Province. All the harvest, including seeds, leaves and roots, will be delivered under contract to customers. The plantation has been tested and found to be free of contamination from heavy metals such as arsenic, cadmium, lead and mercury. This ensures that the produce will be of high quality and suitable as raw materials in the midstream and downstream processing. The company expects that the first harvest could begin in early 2022.

SRP has invested in a new technology to distinguish itself from other hemp growers and ensure sustainability of the business. "Digital traceability" will be used with all of the company's hemp products to be delivered to its customers. The technology could trace the origin of the seeds and allow real-time viewing of the hemp plots. This will add value to the SRP plantation, ensure customer confidence and help build good customer relations in the long run.

"We aim to upgrade hemp growing to a particular standard so as to help our company grow in the future in addition to our current line of business of producing and distributing natural rubber. If there's a sustained demand for hemp seeds, leaves and roots, we are ready to increase the acreage of hemp production. Currently, we have large areas of land that could be turned into hemp plantations," Mr. Veerasith says.