CONCERNS the creation of an adult-use cannabis market will contravene international law have been dismissed by senior members of the German Government.
As BusinessCann reported late last year for its proposals to come to fruition Germany will need to resolve issues surrounding the international status of cannabis.
A recent report in the UK’s Guardian newspaper posits the German Government is struggling to find a suitable pathway though European Union regulations.
Digging deeper into the report it transpires the expert opinion was commissioned by the opposition conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU), which opposes legalisation.
‘There Is A legal Solution’
However in an Instagram live presentation Carmen Wegge and Dirk Heidenblut; two German Bundestag members from the SPD party – part of the ruling Traffic Light Coalition – tackled this issue.
And, in dismissing them, they said: ‘We are very sure … we will find a legal solution’. And ‘it will not affect the timeline’.
These developments come as leading international law firm Dentons – in a report commissioned by domestic producer Demecan – suggested that domiciling the whole production process would shield the adult-use programme from the reaches of International law.
It says: “The legalisation of the cannabis market is most likely to be implemented in Germany if the entire value chain and in particular the cultivation of cannabis can be mapped within the national borders under state control.
“Under the current conditions of international law, cross-border trade in cannabis containing THC for recreational purposes is not feasible without a significant violation of applicable international law.”
BusinessCann will be exploring these issues in more detail over the coming weeks.
Lessons From America
Meanwhile representatives from the Bundestag have visited California and Canada to learn lessons on how to implement cannabis reform.
Delegates included members of the Traffic-Light Coalition – the SPD, Greens and FDP – as well as representatives of the opposition – the Left Party, AfD and CDU.
Green Party politician Kirsten Kappert-Gonther told the GlobeEcho: “A delegation trip like this is good for checking whether the things we thought are appropriate correspond to the experiences on the ground.”
Left politician Ates Gürpinar said: “Decriminalisation will come early next year.” However Erwin Rüddel, of the CDU, said he ‘does not believe that this step will be taken in this legislative period’.
Nine months after Malta voted to establish a legal market for cannabis concerns are growing over a lack of progress by the mediterranean island’s authorities.
A Lack Of Human Resources
A Times Of Malta article criticises the Authority on the Responsible Use of Cannabis (ARUC) for failing to press ahead with measures to support cannabis reform.
Under the laws passed in December last year anyone over the age of 18 will be able to possess up to seven grams of cannabis and cultivate a maximum of four plants at home.
The Times Of Malta highlights a ’lack of human resources’ at the ARUC for the lack of progress in interpreting the best way to deliver cannabis legalisation.
Newsweed reports that the initial French medical cannabis trial will not be immediately followed by the legalisation of medical cannabis.
Instead, the authorities are considering extending the trial and, this time, the companies supplying products would be paid for their products
The current trial will end in March 2023 and at the beginning of July, this year 1,226 patients were included in the experiment.
BASF Lanches CBD Range
German multinational BASF has spoken publicly about its entry into the CBD market with the successful launch of a skin care range.
Its Head of Marketing for Personal Care Kate Drummond said that following extensive in vitro and in vivo trials, CBD had ‘demonstrated impressive results’ in skin care.
She said it was now ‘exploring the benefits of cannabinoids across the board in skin care and other applications’, reports Cosmetics Design.com.
In Ireland, the Food Standards Agency (FSAI) has issued a recall of three Funky CBD Oil products due to the presence of ‘unsafe Levels of Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol’.
Back to Germany and, as the politicians wrestle with ways of implementing cannabis regulations a new poll finds the majority of Germans back reform.
A recent Ipsos poll shows that 61% of respondents are in favour of the controlled distribution of cannabis in authorised stores.
Only 39% see plans to legalise cannabis as irresponsible and oppose legal sale and use on principle, reports Newsweed.
The post European Round-Up: Successful Cannabis Debut For Chemical Multinational, Germany Addresses Hurdles To Reform, French Medical Cannabis Twist, Maltese Hold-Ups et al… appeared first on Cannabis Business Executive – Cannabis and Marijuana industry news.
