WEED CROP TOPS

WINNIPEG -- Flin Flon's highly-touted pot mine has harvested its first batch
of research-grade marijuana, The Winnipeg Sun has learned.

About 200 kilos of marijuana that meets "good manufacturing practices" was
harvested in late December at the government-sanctioned grow operation --
the only one of its kind in Canada, Health Canada spokesman Jirina Vlk said
yesterday.

First Batch

"This is the first batch that is GMP compliant," Vlk told The Sun. "The
stuff that isn't GMP compliant can be used for other purposes, like tests on
(second-hand) smoke."

The pot is grown under high security in a hydroponic lab deep within an old
copper mine 650 km northwest of Winnipeg.

"It's still being processed," Vlk said of the latest batch.

Ottawa amended drug laws in 2001 so people with certain medical conditions
could apply for special exemptions to use pot to relieve their symptoms.
Clinical trials are required first.