Ever since Japan’s first lady Akie Abe spoke out in support of reviving the country’s hemp culture in an interview last year, the topic of cannabis cultivation has become a hot topic in Japan. While marijuana and hemp can be produced from the cannabis plant, the country’s Cannabis Control Law strictly bans the purchase, cultivation, and trade of marijuana. However, a very small number of legal hemp farms exist in Japan, and with the Prime Minister’s wife herself saying she’s considered applying for a permit to grow hemp, mainstream use of hemp products looks set to grow throughout the country.