This review examines eight of the world’s principal narcotic plants in order to assess their prospects as sources of pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals, and functional food components. The marijuana plant (Cannabis sativa) has already proven to be promising in these respects, particularly with regard to seed constituents. The opium poppy (Papaver somniferum), like the marijuana plant, also produces seeds and seed oil with considerable probability of providing nutraceuticals and functional foods. Tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) is proving to be an excellent molecular farm crop, furnishing a variety of medicinally and nutritionally significant materials, especially recombinant proteins of pharmaceutical and nutritional importance. These three species are undergoing development as non-narcotic crops despite the danger they pose from a narcotic perspective and the consequent strong bias against them. Their success has been due to the demand for the beneficial products they have been shown capable of producing, as well as to the fact that they are adapted to temperate areas of the world where substantial investment has been available. The situation is quite different for five popular hot-climate narcotic crops (coca (Erythroxylum coca), betel nut (Areca catechu), khat (Catha edulis), kava (Piper methysticum), and peyote (Lophophora williamsii)). Their lack of suitability as crops for temperate regions, where the heaviest investment is presently occurring in plant biotechnology and product research, and their apparent lack of alternative, profitable uses, considerably diminishes their prospects of attracting political and investment support. Experience with the marijuana, opium, and tobacco species has shown that they can, with appropriate research and regulation, be used for the benefit of society. Is it not desirable to examine whether other narcotic plants can be converted to production of legitimate products, particularly to assist those in Developing Countries with very limited choices regarding the crops they can profitably grow?
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