An Adelaide man has been arrested in Hobart and charged with trafficking in opium poppy capsules.
The 36-year-old was charged after police searched an address in the Hobart suburb of Rosetta on Friday afternoon and allegedly found 2,286 capsules and residue.
The man appeared in an out-of-hours court session on Saturday and is due to appear again today.
In a statement, Detective Inspector Kate Chambers said the misuse of poppies could be fatal.
"Opium poppy crops can be seen growing in Tasmania, however many people may not realise the risks associated with its use," she said.
"There are lethal risks associated with the misuse of poppies."
Tasmania supplies 50 per cent of the raw materials to make opioid painkillers.
The plants grown for commercial harvesting are different to standard poppies and were developed to produce chemicals suitable for industrial processing only.
Since 2011, three people have died after drinking tea brewed from stolen poppies, including a 26-year-old Danish backpacker in 2014.
The Department of Primary Industry's annual report shows that poppy thefts have dropped to 124 in the past financial year down from 1,430 the year before.
In 2016-17 thefts peaked at 12,239.
