Tasmania is the only Australian State where poppies can be grown legally; the industry supplies about 40% of the world's legal opiate requirements.
The main varieties of poppy grown are morphine and thebaine, with each plant producing between two and eight capsules. The capsules contain the compounds used in the manufacture of pain-killers. A by-product is the blue poppy seed, which is sold to the food and spice industries.
Growth of the industry can be gauged from the table below; area cultivated has more than doubled in four years. For reasons of confidentiality the ABS publishes only data on area of poppies under cultivation.
OIL POPPIES, Area, Tasmania
|
| Years ended 31 March | '000 ha |
|
| 1996 | 7 |
| 1997 | 8 |
| 1998 | 11 |
| 1999 | 12 |
| 2000(a) | 15 |
(a) Year ended 30 June.
Source: ABS data available on request, Agricultural Survey and Census. |
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