Baaba Qo warns that Afghani landrace seed purchases may fund the Taliban

In the latest from the Why-the-provenance-of-your-cannabis-seeds-matters dispatches, the well-loved landrace preservation journalist from Afghanistan – Baaba Qo – warns that buying cannabis seeds from Afghanistan could end up inadvertently funding the Taliban. Going by Baaba879 on Instagram, he is well known around the cannabis breeding scene for the Baaba Qo Selections of cannabis landraces as well as educational videos and explanations of local cannabis culture from on the ground in Afghanistan. I reached out to learn more and Baaba Qo answered all the questions I threw his way.

Why cannabis breeders want Afghani landraces in seed form

Afghani landraces have been a core part of cannabis breeding projects for years. Called everything from Purple Afghani to Afghan to just plain ol’ Afghani and many more I probably haven’t heard yet, landraces from Afghanistan are now better classified by their historic province or district of cultivation. Landrace seeds with known origins from places like Khash or Panjshir or more famously, Mazar i Sharif – which I most recently spotted in Deep East’s La Menta – are in demand. Needless to say, the Afghan landrace influence on cannabis can be felt all the way from obvious close kin like Sour Afghan to very distant descendants that probably make up 90% of your local dispensary’s shelf. Given the current concern of bottlenecked genetics in the cannabis industry, cannabis breeders around the world are always looking to breed new seed lines with different genetics – and the only way to make those reliably are with original landrace genetics… or as close as still exists. In August 2021, the United States officially pulled its last troops from Afghanistan and the country came under Taliban control. Growers, breeders, and seedbanks around the world rushed to secure their Afghani landrace seeds for future projects with the expectation that no seeds would be coming out of Afghanistan for awhile. The reality a few years later is a little different, and a lot more nuanced. Baaba Qo explained what that transition was like on the ground:

“When the Taliban first entered my area, they destroyed all my friends’ cannabis farms.”

He also emphasized the current state of large scale/commercial cultivation for hashish or seed in Afghanistan where taxes must be paid to the Taliban:

“Just those who have close relationships with the Taliban can cultivate.”

Seed purchases from Afghanseed.com may be supporting the Taliban

Since March 2023, Baaba Qo has been sounding the alarm on multiple cannabis seedbanks which still actively claim to sell landrace cannabis seeds from Afghanistan and Pakistan. These seeds may be grown in Afghanistan or Pakistan, but there is no guarantee that the claimed region of origin actually matches up – especially if the site can’t even get their stolen pictures in order. Baaba Qo posted on Instagram:

“Be aware! Afghanseed.com is a scamming page made to sell or cheat people like most other Instagram pages today selling Afghanistan cannabis seeds. Because today, those who sell Afghanistan seed in the physical and online markets are Pakistanis who have direct connections with the Pakistani Taliban – the only ones who can go directly inside Afghanistan without any permission and document their activities in the border area between Afghanistan and Pakistan. In that area in the south of Afghanistan, smugglers can cultivate and harvest openly only by support of the Taliban. They use this opportunity of power to produce and smuggle low-quality cannabis and chemical mixtures to the world. And they use its dirty earnings to continue killing and perpetuating their cruel regime. Nowadays some child in this industry can open an Instagram page and start selling local seeds and whether they understand or don’t understand, they are serving for the Taliban.”

Baaba Qo warns of established cannabis seedbanks inadvertently in bed with the Taliban

The post continued:

“Two of these Pakistanis that are doing this business are (@Paklandrace) and another guy (@afghan_geneticss). As you can see in their videos, they are not showing any cannabis culture, they are just showing the mass unprofessional production of cannabis (plate method) which was invented by smugglers to get more yield, not higher quality. (I will write about the plate method and Tirah quality hashish in my next post).”

Here’s that followup post, in which the comments show two sides of the paisa coin. While many have taken offense to Baaba Qo’s blanket representation of Pakistani hashish culture, still others have come to point out the visual differences in quality and production methods that are being showcased from these Taliban protected cannabis production regions. Baaba Qo confirmed that he used to work with the well known Indian Landrace Exchange until about “3 to 4 years ago” when the implication of Taliban connections caused him to end all relations:

“Yes, one time I was working with them but when they started working with the Pakistani and Taliban area, I cut relationships with them.”

I asked if he could speak to the legitimacy of his former partners’ landrace seeds from different historical cannabis villages in Afghanistan that have since been reported to have been destroyed by the Taliban – given that they shared common seedstock several years back. He responded:

“They still do business with my seeds.”

But he confirmed that he viewed buying Afghani landraces from Pak Landrace Exchange – which Baaba Qo says is an offshoot of Indian Landrace Exchange, to be equivalent to supporting the Taliban. When asked what sources for Afghani landrace seeds he did recommend, Baaba Qo said simply to “wait a little” in what could be seen as thinly veiled self promotion. Indian Landrace Exchange does not currently list any Afghani landraces or Afghani landrace preservation projects. Another fake seed source besides Afghanseed,com, “Afghan Landrace Seeds” has been called out by seed buyers in other countries on ICMag. Editor’s Note: Baaba Qo Quotes edited for grammar and clarity by Caleb Chen. Pak Landrace Exchange and Indian Landrace Exchange had not responded to comment inquiries prior to publication.