University of Mississippi’s federal pact for cannabis R&D cultivation to be renewed

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) said it again intends to award a federal contract to the University of Mississippi to grow cannabis for federal research purposes.

To date, the university has been the only institution granted such permission.

According to a contract notice of intent published online, the NIDA will award a noncompetitive contract to the university that extends the current contract through March 22, 2022. There’s also an option to renew the pact through March 2023.

The University of Mississippi has held the sole federal contract for growing marijuana – for research purposes only – since 1968.

But the quality of the cannabis grown by the university has come under fire in recent years, and other researchers have been trying to obtain federal permission to grow marijuana for research purposes.

In the notice of intent, the NIDA signaled a willingness to consider others who might want to contribute to the research pool in the future:

“This synopsis is not a request for competitive proposals. However, interested parties may identify their interest and capability to respond to this notice.”