Cannabis is likely to be a cash cow for companies angling to get in on the business and it’s looking more likely that it will also be a full-on, agricultural-crop opportunity for farmers once recreational weed is legalized in October.

Existing licensed cannabis growers have already bought into large greenhouse operations to ramp-up production, but federal regulations approved with the Cannabis Act that allow for outdoor cultivation opens new potential opportunities for farmers.

“There are some who see (cannabis) as a great opportunity and some who see it with a lot of concern,” said Reg Ens, executive director of the B.C. Agriculture Council, the province’s main farming lobby group.

However, if cannabis as a plant is going to be a legal product, Ens said the council’s take is that “farmers should have the choice to grow or raise that product on their farms.”

Where cannabis might fit under Canadian agricultural support programs made it onto the agenda of the annual meeting of federal, provincial and territorial agriculture ministers last week in Vancouver.

Continue reading at Vancouver Sun