Tasmanian Hemp Assoc Newsletter November 2025 – THA submission to the Senate Inquiry

THA submission to the Senate Inquiry

The Tasmanian Hemp Association (THA) welcomes the Senate Inquiry into Opportunities for the Development of a Hemp Industry in Australia, describing it as an opportunity to establish national consistency and unlock the full potential of Australian Hemp.

64 submissions from around the nation were received to the Inquiry. The THA submission highlighted five key priorities to enable growth in the industry (summarised below):

  1. Establishment a National Hemp Strategy to coordinate action
  2. Investment in processing infrastructure to support manufacturing
  3. Greater Research and Development and plant breeding investment 
  4. Development of education and workforce training pathways
  5. Positioning Australian hemp as an environmentally sustainable export industry

See THA media release and link to submission here.

Welcoming new team to the THA staff and Board
The Tasmanian Hemp Association (THA) is pleased to welcome new members to the staff team and THA Board. Anne Gigney and Vanessa Scott have joined staff as Executive Officer and Events and Partnerships Coordinator. They are supported by Administration Manager Sam Pini.

These appointments mark an exciting new phase of growth and will help grow industry capability and champion hemp as a key part of Tasmania’s future economy. Thanks to the Tasmanian Government for its support of these appointments.

We also want to welcome the new THA Board, elected at the 2025 AGM. 

President: Andi Lucas
Vice-President: Ian Whitehouse
Treasurer: Fingal Lian
Secretary: Penny Domeney
Committee Member: Ahbi Gupta
Committee Member: Andrias McMahon
Committee Member: Konrad Chung
Committee Member: Robin Tait 
Committee Member: Nick Mills 

Our thanks to outgoing Board Members Chris Bayles, Morgan Leath and Jessie Liu.
Read more here

Tasmania’s Industrial Hemp Regulations

The Industrial Hemp Regulations 2016 automatically expire in March 2026. They are being remade with minor updates to wording and style, but with no changes to how they work.

AgriGrowth Tasmania will be providing a briefing on this process for any interested THA members – details to come.

Advanced Manufacturing Productivity Grant (Tasmania)

The Tasmanian Government is offering funding to help local manufacturers improve productivity, sustainability, and competitiveness through the Advanced Manufacturing Productivity Grant Program.

This program may interest some of Tasmania’s hemp manufacturers. It supports Tasmanian manufacturers to strengthen business capability, streamline processes, achieve accreditation, or invest in staff training that leads to measurable productivity improvements.

Tasmanian-based manufacturing businesses with a turnover between $500,000 and $55 million and who are registered for GST and holding a valid ABN can apply, as long as they meet full eligibility criteria for relevant activities.

 Full details via the State Growth website: Advanced Manufacturing Productivity Grant Guidelines

News from overseas – Hemp Fire Trial from the US
Hemp-lime (hempcrete) construction in US residential building codes took a major step forward in the US this week when proposed updates to Appendix BL of the 2027 International Residential Code (IRC) were unanimously approved during the International Code Council Committee Week proceedings.

Incredibly, an online fundraiser successfully raised more than $12,000 to pay for the code adoption. Worth a read at Hemp Building Mag

Planning for 2026
Planning for THA’s 2026 events and activities are well underway.

The dates for the THA outreach events are locked in:

  • Student Education Day on Friday 6 March
  • Community Education Day on Saturday 7 March

Add these to your diary and we’ll provide further updates via our events page soon

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