House of Hemp SA (Ltd) launches its first retail outlet in Gandhi Square

House of Hemp SA (Ltd) launches its first retail outlet in Gandhi Square, Johannesburg, on Thursday, 10 May 2001.

 

House of Hemp is the trade house marketing arm of the Hemp Poverty Alleviation project of the Department of Arts, Culture, Science and Technology (DACST). Minister Ben Ngubane, as well as top officials from DACST and the Ministries of Agriculture, Health, Trade and Industry, will attend the launch.

Hemp, the low narcotic variety of cannabis, is known as the world's most valuable and versatile resource and has been grown around the world for centuries. House of Hemp stocks only hemp-based niche quality products, including men¿s and ladies¿ fashion wear, home décor, stationery, building materials, and beauty and health products, manufactured by previously disadvantaged entrepreneurs and SMMEs who receive funding through the hemp project, and assistance and support from the CSIR.

House of Hemp SA (Ltd) is an initiative of Hooked on Hemp SA (Ltd), a black-owned small business whose focus is starting up small-scale enterprises for the cultivation, processing, product manufacturing and marketing of South African hemp. Hooked on Hemp SA (Ltd) is a member of the recently launched National Hemp Foundation, set up to coordinate the establishment of a South African hemp industry.

This emerging industry is gaining momentum in South Africa, with spin-offs in the form of job opportunities, black economic empowerment and small business development.

Key stakeholders in the national hemp project include various government departments (DACST, Agriculture, Health, Trade & Industry, Environmental Affairs & Tourism); provincial and national research institutions (CSIR, ARC-IIC, MRC); private sector (Hooked on Hemp, SAHC); development agencies (ECSECC, CIMEC); rural communities (Qamata, Libode, Mtiza, Idutywa, Maluti) and tertiary institutions (Fort Hare University, Unitra, UPE, Wits, UCT), amongst others.

- CSIR