Pune has now welcomed its first cafe serving hemp-based food. Among the delectable treats on offer in its menu are bhaang sandwich, hemp smoothies and hemp biscuits. And it is not only completely legal but also very healthy, according to its 30-year-old co-founder Amruta Shitole. Hemp, or Cannabis sativa, is known to be a powerhouse of vitamins and healthy fats, she says.

“I learned about hemp during my trip to Uttarakhand four years back. Uttarakhand became the first state in the country to legalise hemp for industrial use. During the trip, I came to know about the regular day-to-day use of hemp seeds in chutneys and ayurvedic medicines. I decided to understand more about hemp and started learning about its various uses and availability,” says Amruta, who runs the cafe with her brother Vishal in Sadashiv Peth.

Unlike cannabis, hemp contains low levels of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in quantities less than 0.3 per cent. This prompted the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India  (FSSAI) to issue a notification on November 15, 2021, stating, “The hemp seed, hemp seed oil and hemp seed flour shall be sold as food or used as an ingredient in a food for sale subject to conforming standards.”

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Taking the opportunity, Amruta decided to bring all her knowledge about hemp seeds, and flour to this cafe, which opened in May 2022. “We use seeds of cannabis and not leaves. Most of us have misconceptions about hemp. Hemp is magical but why are common people not eating hemp foods? One is the cost involved, and the other is its bad reputation. Our cafe’s venture is to break these myths and misconceptions,” says Amruta.

Amruta and her chef serve freshly prepared snacks each day. “Using hemp seeds and flour is very easy. A little bit of experimentation and some feedback from people helped me come up with the recipes,” says Amruta, who makes 1-2 kg of fresh hemp chutney every day.

The cafe also hosts a hemp museum to showcase “all factual information about cannabis”.

While Maharashtra has not legalised hemp cultivation, cultivators say that compared to other cash crops, hemp consumes less water and also increases soil fertility, which makes it a promising venture.

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Jayashree NarayananJayashree Narayanan is a Senior Sub-Editor working with The Indian Exp... read more