OFFICER BIDS FOR POT PACT

City cop wants to grow marijuana

A 15-year veteran of the Calgary Police with dozens of marijuana busts under
his belt is looking to start growing pot himself.

Brad McNish, who left the Calgary force three-and-a-half years ago, is
bidding on a $5-million federal contract to produce marijuana for Health
Canada medical research.

"Does marijuana have medicinal value?

It is prudent for us to determine if it has other applications apart from
stimulating appetite and the desire to enter 7-Eleven at midnight to buy a
Slurpee and a Wigwag chocolate bar," he said.

Saskatchewan Health and Sensemilla Acres of Blaine Lake, Sask., are also
considering bids on the contract.

Ex-policeman McNish, 42, is uniquely positioned to grow the drug.

He owns Natural Farmworks of Blackfalds near Red Deer, which produces
mineral supplements from hydroponically grown barley, wheat and oats.

"We already have our own lab. We already know what is required in order to
monitor the active ingredient in plants," McNish said.

The five-year contract requires production of 100,000 marijuana cigarettes
and 100 kg of bulk marijuana in the first year, and double those quantities
for the following four years.

The pot will be used in Health Canada trials to find out how safe and
effective THC is in treating medical problems such as nausea from
chemo-therapy.

But the government's strongest dope, at 6% THC, will be weaker than pot
grown illegally in basements all over Calgary. Calgary hydroponic bud has a
potency ranging from 10% to 25%, said drug unit Sgt. Dick Nyenhuis.