High Tide begins to sell cannabis seeds in United States

(Reuters) - High Tide Inc has started to sell cannabis seeds online in the United States, the cannabis retailer said on Tuesday, after the country's narcotics agency determined that they can be sold openly.

The sale would initially be through its e-commerce units Grasscity and Smoke Cartel, the company said, expanding to its other retail platforms next year.

"This new business venture will greatly expand our U.S. customer base, which already sits at 2.4 million through our ancillary cannabis business lines, and sets us up well to take advantage of federal legalization in the United States when it comes," Chief Executive Raj Grover said in a statement.

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration earlier this year said cannabis seeds fall under the legal definition of hemp, the non-intoxicating form of marijuana. The agency allowed their sales in the country as long as they do not exceed a certain amount of THC, the "high"-producing chemical in marijuana.

Cannabis seeds are consumed for their purported health benefits, but it remains federally illegal to use them to grow the plant.

(Reporting by Ruhi Soni in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)