The EU Common Catalogue of varieties of agricultural plant species is the European Union's official master list of crop varieties that may be marketed and grown across the bloc. A variety earns its place only after a member state has tested it as distinct, uniform and stable and notified the European Commission, which consolidates the national lists into one Common Catalogue.
For hemp the Catalogue does double duty. It is both a seed-marketing list and a legal gatekeeper: growers may only claim Common Agricultural Policy support for hemp if they sow certified seed of a catalogued variety, and every listed hemp variety must stay below the EU THC limit (now 0.3%). Varieties whose crops repeatedly test 'hot' can be suspended from the Catalogue.
By 2024 well over a hundred hemp varieties were registered. The Catalogue is therefore where the EU's agronomic, commercial and drug-control rules meet — a single list that decides which hemp genetics are legal to plant. See certified seed and cultivation licence.
- European Commission — Plant variety catalogues, databases & information systems (EU Common Catalogue)
- European Commission — Hemp (certified seed of catalogued varieties required)
