New Athlone hemp company plans to create 30 jobs

A new local company which will research, develop and manufacture cosmetics and oils from hemp plants said it hopes to create 30 new jobs over the next three years.

The company, deDanú Limited, is also seeking to encourage farmers in the Midlands to grow hemp as a viable alternative to more commonly-grown tillage crops.

Athlone woman Leah Fletcher and her Canadian husband James DeMello are the couple behind deDanú Limited, which has established a 10,000 square foot pharmaceutical facility in Monksland Business Park.

It plans to roll out its range of cosmetics and oils, made from hemp and other organic ingredients, to Irish pharmacies before the end of this year.

The company currently has four full-time staff and has contracted nine farmers in the Midlands. It hopes to recruit manufacturing and quality assurance staff in August, and has plans to create 30 jobs by 2022.

Ms Fletcher is a mamber of a new Hemp Working Group, supported by farmers' bodies Teagasc and the IFA, and said she was working to "position Athlone as an incubator and hub for cannabinoid and hemp research".

She believes there are significant opportunities for Irish farmers in this sector.

"We live in a time of vast uncertainty," she said. "With tillage crops not yielding positive results as before, and dairy farmers becoming increasingly frustrated with the industry, there is an urgent need for Irish farmers to proactively protect themselves against potential instabilities further down the line.

"Hemp is a renewable and robust alternative to traditional crops. It offers solutions to our challenges around carbon tax, and it fits in perfectly with the newly released Climate Action Plan.

"Our company, deDanu Limited is working to establish itself as a model and example of how industry can build a circular economy."

She acknowledged that there had been a taboo around hemp, which is a strain of the cannabis sativa plant species, but said that when farmers learn about the plants they become more willing to get involved in growing them.

"Once farmers learn about the chemistry in the hemp plant - i.e. that it isn't going to get anyone 'high' - and discover its potential for their farms they are eager to get involved," she commented.

"We are offering significantly more per acre for hemp than they would get for any other tillage crop."

However, she said there were "inconsistencies" in the Irish system which the Government ought to address in order to support the sector.

"There are a number of inconsistencies across Government departments that need to be addressed in order to allow us attract national and international interest in Irish hemp," she commented.

"Policies between the Health Products Regulatory Authority, Customs, and the Department of Agriculture need to be streamlined.

"Additional hemp cultivars should be allowed in order to give Irish farmers the opportunity to compete on an international platform. This is a simple fix that would have huge economic benefit."

In recent years Ms Fletcher's husband, James DeMello, has been working to help Canadian cannabis companies develop business plans, raise capital, advise management and build international business strategy.

Last week, he was among the speakers at a hemp summit which took place in the Teagasc Research Centre in Ashtown, Dublin.

Mr DeMello's speech gave his insight into the global marketplace to identify the research, innovation and job opportunities which he believes are available to Ireland in this emerging industry.

"Multi-disciplinary collaboration is vital in our industry and Ireland has the opportunity to be a major international player," he said.

Ms Fletcher and her husband have also formed a separate company, Arbutus Health, with the aim of removing barriers to medicinal cannabis access for patients.