KINGSTON – A decision to grant a licence to grow medicinal cannabis on Norfolk Island has sparked renewed calls for the drug to be made available to Australian patients.

Cannabis producer AusCann has become the first Australian company to be granted a license to grow and export medicinal cannabis to an international market.

The company will grow medicinal cannabis on Norfolk Island and export it for sale in Canada.

The company said it hoped it would soon be able to export medicinal cannabis to mainland Australia, with legislation due to come before Federal Parliament in the coming months.

Medicinal marijuana is still illegal in Australia, but many argue that has to change given the growing anecdotal and scientific evidence of its medicinal benefits.

AusCann founder Troy Langman said the company intends to export its entire first crop by the middle of next year and ramp up production from an initial one tonne to 10 tonnes by 2018.

“Obviously it’s very exciting that we get the opportunity to be the first company in Australia to produce medicinal cannabis,” he said.

“I guess for me one of the important things is that I’m pleased that it will be an opportunity for Norfolk Island.

“It’s a place that my family lived for many years. They desperately need employment and industry so I guess I’m mostly pleased for them.”

The Federal Government’s Norfolk Island administrator Gary Hardgrave still has the power to stop the project from going ahead.

Hardgrave vetoed a licence in 2014, citing safety and security concerns, but Langman said he was confident this time would be different.

“The issue has advanced significantly since then, so I’m hopeful that this time around we might be allowed to proceed,” he said.

AusCann says it has the full backing of the Norfolk Island government and the community, with both convinced of the economic and employment benefits.

Norfolk Island was deemed an ideal venue for cannabis production because of its climate and geographical security.

An international security firm, Lockforce International, has been engaged to ensure the site remains secure.

At least eight full-time jobs will be created initially, with more likely during the harvest and processing periods.

AusCann Managing Director Elaine Darby said the new proposal addressed all of the concerns that had plagued the THC proposal, including security at the growing site and compliance with UN conventions on narcotic drugs.

“This really is a world class operation,” she told reporters.

The company says it will consider going public later this year, but for now it was adequately financed as a private company.

While Norfolk Island has historically struggled financially, and as been dependent upon assistance from Australia, the island’s former health minister Robin Adams explained that they are ready to turn that around.

“We are open for investment, we are open for business on Norfolk Island,” Adams said when the idea was first suggested last year.

“We see this as a great opportunity both for the economy of Norfolk Island whilst providing a much needed medical product for export.”

Heavily dependent on tourism to boost its economy, Norfolk Island was hit hard by the global financial crisis. Visitors on the island have dropped from 40,000 a year to 20,000.