EDMONTON -- Forget B.C.  Bud, Quebec Gold or Winnipeg Wheelchair Weed -- what the feds need is a toke of some Alberta government smoke, says an Edmonton greenhouse crop specialist.

Alberta Agriculture's Crop Diversification Centre greenhouse in Edmonton could easily supply the feds with pot, said Dr.  Mohyuddin Mirza, who researches medicinal plants.

"I'm going to talk to some key people and see whether the federal government will consider such a thing," Mirza said.

Public Works and Government Services Canada called for proposals on Friday from those interested in supplying marijuana for Health Canada research on its medicinal benefits.

The provincially funded Edmonton centre already produces industrial hemp -- and experiments with medicinal plants, said Mirza.

Health Canada needs a marijuana producer to supply reliable pot for clinical trials to study what is now only anecdotal evidence of pot's health benefits.

MAP posted-by: Jo-D