poledriver
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First opiate poppy crop blooms in New South Wales
The first opiate poppy crop has bloomed in New South Wales, with the industry expected to boom after a change in law last year.
More than 400 hectares of the poppies have been planted in the state and are due to be harvested this season, Ministry for Primary Industries Niall Blair said today.
The poppies will be harvested for their opiate content, which will then be refined into morphine, codeine and thebaine – drugs used for pain relief, anti-addiction medication and palliative care.
Australia is currently responsible for more than half of the global opiate market, with the growing industry projected to reap $100 million over the next decade in NSW alone.
In 2013, poppy cultivation was estimated to be worth $290 million to the Tasmanian government, and the passing of the Poppy Industrial Bill by the NSW parliament has allowed them to be grown in the state.
"When the NSW Government changed the law in 2016, it was because we saw the potential here for producers and for patients in need," Mr Blair said.
A major health care system serving the US upper Midwest said the number of opioid pills it prescribes has fallen by almost a quarter as it works to respond to America's epidemic.
"The stance that we have taken is clearly opioid overdoses, both illicit and prescription overdoses, are a problem in this country, including in our footprint," said Doug Griffin, who spearheaded the data collection as vice president and medical officer for Sanford in Fargo.
Trump's declaration, which will be effective for 90 days and can be renewed, will allow the US federal government to redirect resources in various ways and to expand access to medical services in rural areas, but won't unlock new funds to fight a scourge that kills nearly 100 people a day.
British documentary filmmaker Louis Theroux issued a warning early this month that an Australian crackdown on painkillers containing codeine could inadvertently spark the next opioid epidemic.
http://www.9news.com.au/national/2017/10/28/09/44/first-opiate-poppy-crop-blooms-in-new-south-wales
The first opiate poppy crop has bloomed in New South Wales, with the industry expected to boom after a change in law last year.
More than 400 hectares of the poppies have been planted in the state and are due to be harvested this season, Ministry for Primary Industries Niall Blair said today.
The poppies will be harvested for their opiate content, which will then be refined into morphine, codeine and thebaine – drugs used for pain relief, anti-addiction medication and palliative care.
Australia is currently responsible for more than half of the global opiate market, with the growing industry projected to reap $100 million over the next decade in NSW alone.
In 2013, poppy cultivation was estimated to be worth $290 million to the Tasmanian government, and the passing of the Poppy Industrial Bill by the NSW parliament has allowed them to be grown in the state.
"When the NSW Government changed the law in 2016, it was because we saw the potential here for producers and for patients in need," Mr Blair said.
A major health care system serving the US upper Midwest said the number of opioid pills it prescribes has fallen by almost a quarter as it works to respond to America's epidemic.
"The stance that we have taken is clearly opioid overdoses, both illicit and prescription overdoses, are a problem in this country, including in our footprint," said Doug Griffin, who spearheaded the data collection as vice president and medical officer for Sanford in Fargo.
Trump's declaration, which will be effective for 90 days and can be renewed, will allow the US federal government to redirect resources in various ways and to expand access to medical services in rural areas, but won't unlock new funds to fight a scourge that kills nearly 100 people a day.
British documentary filmmaker Louis Theroux issued a warning early this month that an Australian crackdown on painkillers containing codeine could inadvertently spark the next opioid epidemic.
http://www.9news.com.au/national/2017/10/28/09/44/first-opiate-poppy-crop-blooms-in-new-south-wales
