When biotechnology entrepreneur Manu Caddie heard about weraroa – an indigenous fungus known to contain psilocybin – he wanted to involve a marae before investigating further.
"I thought 'well, the way we work is to make sure kaitiaki [guardians] are at the centre of all of these things … in this case, who's the most progressive marae in Tairāwhiti that might be open to such a thing?"
Psilocybe weraroa - an indigenous fungus containing the psychedelic compound psilocybin Photo: Alan Rockefeller / CC BY-SA 3.0
His answer was Rangiwaho Marae, 30km south of Gisborne, where Jody Toroa is a trustee.
In partnership with the marae, Caddie is co-ordinating an exploration of weraroa's potential as a treatment for methamphetamine addiction.
Co-founder of Rua Bioscience, Manu Caddie. Photo: Supplied
Weraroa (aka Weraroa novae-zelandiae and psilocybe weraroa) is not the only indigenous NZ fungus containing the psychedelic compound psilocybin – and therefore classified as a Class A drug – but it may be the only one not named in our Misuse of Drugs Act.
When Caddie discovered this, he contacted the Ministry of Health to enquire about its status as a taonga that, in turn, must be managed and utilised by mana whenua.
"I pointed that out to them - what right does the Crown or government have to control a taonga if Māori haven't given government the right to do that?"
While the legal status of weraroa remains a grey area, Caddie says, he's busy building a body of evidence for its therapeutic benefits.
"We're working with clinical researchers, medical researchers on the protocol design for the clinical study and that would [then] goes through that mainstream approvals process."
Mycologists, health professionals and rongoā practitioners are also involved in the project.
Jody Toroa, whānau of Rangiwaho hapū of Ngāi Tāmanuhiri iwi. Photo: Tom Kitchin
Jody Toroa is hopeful about the healing power of indigenous treatments for meth-affected whānau.
"This is kaupapa Māori, so what that means is the weraroa is a taonga and within that taonga there are tikanga [protocols] that have to be maintained for the wairua [spirit], the healing.
"We're not talking about an off-the-shelf, down the road at the chemist. We're talking about committing to oranga, well-being, and with well-being comes wairua [spirit]."
It was a very special moment for Toroa, finding the fungus on her own whenua [land] for the first time.
"We went into some of our tūturu ngahere [ancient forests] … and we bring in what is tika [correct] for us.
"It's very much a part of honouring and respecting where we are … our atua [higher power], our tupuna [ancestors] and the kaupapa itself. And this kaupapa is about oranga, it's about whanau, wellbeing."
"We found a beautiful weraroa, it's not an easy exercise, we were just so blessed.
"When you find a weraroa, they're actually, for me, like looking at your brains. You're looking at your roro."
A karakia was given in thanks for the find before the fungi headed off to Auckland University for scientific testing, Toroa says.
