delays in getting research approved ranging from months to years. Additionally, the cannabis provided by NIDA has been criticized as being inferior to that which is commonly used by medical cannabis patients in states where it is legal. Criticisms of NIDA-supplied cannabis include high amounts of stems and seeds, high mold and yeast levels, low THC content, and low diversity of strains available. NIDA monopoly From the agency's 1974 inception until 2021, NIDA was the sole provider of cannabis for research purposes in the U.S., contracting with the University of Mississippi for cultivation of the cannabis. The monopoly was maintained by the refusal of the Drug Enforcement Administration to issue additional licenses for the cultivation and distribution of cannabis, which the DEA said was consistent with the terms of the U.N. Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs that was ratified in 1961. Others disputed this interpretation of the treaty, however (including the U.S. State Department), and the DEA's interpretation was not consistent with the fact that multiple licenses have been issued for the production of other Schedule I drugs. The DEA also cited the possibility of diversion from cultivation facilities as justification for not issuing additional licenses. Craker application Critics of the former NIDA monopoly have pointed to the case of University of Massachusetts Amherst professor Lyle Craker as an example of the DEA's undue resistance to granting additional cultivation licenses. Professor Craker's endeavor to obtain a license began in June 2001, when he submitted an application to the DEA, which, later in 2001, the DEA claimed to have lost. After a photocopy was resubmitted, the DEA rejected the application in February 2002 because it did not have an original signature. In July 2002, the original application was returned to Professor Craker unprocessed, with a date stamp showing it had been received in June 2001. The application was then resubmitted in August 2002, upon which the DEA confirmed receipt. On July 24, 2003, a notice regarding Craker's application was filed in the Federal Register, with a public comment period ending on September 23, 2003. In October 2003, U.S. Senators John Kerry and Ted Kennedy wrote a letter to DEA Administrator Karen Tandy expressing support for granting Professor Craker a license. On December 10, 2004, however, following a lawsuit filed over unreasonable delay in responding to the application, the DEA rejected Craker's application. Professor Craker then filed another lawsuit in response to