Medical Cannabis in Europe
Author: Vivian Chan Email: [email protected] Mobile / WhatsApp: +86 13237328136
In the past decade, CBD has become more and more popular in Europe, and CBD consumer products have penetrated into all walks of life in Europe, with the continuous application of CBD research results and the continuous expansion of the audience. In the UK, for example, CBD products were used by 11% of UK residents last year, or around 7.3 million people, according to a YouGov survey. The application of CBD in health, wellness, beauty and personal care has attracted more and more British consumers to use CBD products.
Europe has 43 countries or regions and a population of about 740 million. It can be said that the European CBD market still has huge development potential. So, how do European countries differ in their laws regarding medical Cannabis?
The above is an illustration of the legality of Cannabis in European countries or regions. Next, I will introduce the medical Cannabis laws in several key countries such as the United Kingdom, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, and Italy:
United Kingdom
In the UK, industrial cannabis with a THC content below 0.2% (UK standard) is allowed to be grown legally. However, a key condition for granting industrial cannabis cultivation licenses is that only the fiber and cannabis seeds are processed for commercial purposes. And the rest of the industrial cannabis, including the buds and flowers, must be destroyed. In the guidance issued by the UK Home Office in November 2018, it was clearly stated that farmers were not allowed to harvest cannabis flower, only the seeds and stalks of cannabis. Most UK consumers buy related products through online channels.
France
France, which produces 40% of Europe's total cannabis production, is the third-largest cannabis producer in the world, after China and Canada. The French government clarified its position on CBD products in 2018: cannabis for industrial purposes is legal, subject to government approval, but recreational cannabis is illegal, and in France, all THC-free CBD products are completely legal.In France, businesses and individuals can grow cannabis on the premise of choosing one of the 20 approved cannabis varieties with a THC content of less than 0.2%, and only processing cannabis seeds, stems, leaves and fibers.
Germany
In 2017, the German government revised its Narcotics Act to exclude cannabis and CBD from the definition of dangerous substances. Recreational cannabis is still banned in Germany, but patients can buy medical cannabis at pharmacies with a doctor's prescription. However, cannabis flower is prohibited except for scientific research or commercial use.
Netherlands
Since the 20th century, the Netherlands has revised its laws many times, from the strict prohibition of cannabis to the current full legalization. Even personal use of recreational cannabis is legal. In the Netherlands, you can also buy THC in stores in different concentrations. Over 0.05% of CBD products. However, from July 2019, CBD e-liquids have been banned. Currently, it is also legal to buy CBD food and supplements in the Netherlands.
Italy
Italy’s laws on CBD are still in a grey area, and CBD products (except CBD foods and health supplements) with less than 0.2% THC can be purchased online. Currently, only medical CBD is legal in Italy, which can be purchased at local pharmacies with a doctor's prescription.
Spain
Spain's laws on CBD are stricter and confusing compared to other allies. Before the EU's New Food Regulations, you could find a variety of CBD products on the Spanish market, including various CBD foods and health supplements. But after the regulations were introduced, only "topical CBD products" such as cosmetics were legally sold in Spain. If you want to grow cannabis in Spain for CBD extraction, you need to obtain a license in advance from the Spanish Agency for Medicines and Healthcare Products (AEMPS).
Poland
Although Poland is a member of the European Union, Poland has bypassed the European-wide New Food Regulation, which prohibits the production of food products with added CBD ingredients, while Poland allows the purchase and use of all types of CBD products, including CBD food and drinks. In Poland, as long as your CBD product contains less than 0.2% THC, it is legal to buy CBD products in both offline and online stores. However, like many other allies, Poland also bans recreational cannabis.
Facing the situation: supply problems
A constant challenge for the European medical cannabis market is supply.
Take Germany for example. Patients in Germany have a prescription and expect to find the medicine in the pharmacy, or expect the pharmacy to get the medicine from the wholesaler within a day or two, but at present, the patient's demand is still not met, and the cannabis market is in short supply. As a result, there are few types of drugs to choose from, but the situation is improving considerably.
In 2018, there was only one supplier of full-spectrum extracts in Germany, and this total increased to two in 2019; also in 2018, there was only one supplier of dronabinol in Germany, which has now increased to two.
Meanwhile, the COVID-19 crisis, thankfully, doesn't appear to have much impact on the availability of medical cannabis. At least in the European market, as of April 2020, the availability of medical cannabis is as it has ever been, with no major changes for the time being.
Outlook
Europe is expected to have the largest legal cannabis market by 2024, with the total value of the European market expected to reach $39.1 billion in 2024 (driven by its strong medical market, which accounts for 57% of the total value).
Compared with North America, European medical cannabis policies are relatively slow and medical cannabis patients are in the early stages of the growth curve, and no country in the European Union has legalized recreational cannabis. Even so, the European cannabis legalization market cannot be ignored. Just imagine what the European cannabis legalization market will look like if some underdeveloped countries in Europe and the differences in the degree of cannabis legalization are abandoned.
You must know that the current European population is more than twice that of the United States and Canada combined. In the past period of time, the growth rate of the European cannabis industry has exceeded the past few years, and the legalization of cannabis in many countries is progressing smoothly.
At present, there are also data showing that the investment in European cannabis business has exceeded about 500 million euros, so the European cannabis legalization market is developing according to the current trend, and Europe is very likely to become the world's largest legal market in the next five years.
