The CMS Expert Guide allows stakeholders to obtain detailed and updated information on the latest developments in cannabis legislation in key markets.
These new developments occurred between the end of 2021 and the beginning of 2022.
In Germany, a new cannabis control law (Cannabis-Kontrollgesetz) is under discussion, as well as the passage of regulations for the distribution of cannabis to adults through licensed specialist stores or pharmacies.
In Italy in the second half of 2021, the Ministry of Health clarified that hemp plants from certified seeds may be cultivated upon authorisation for the purpose of supplying pharmaceutical companies that are authorised to manufacture active pharmaceutical ingredients. In addition in April 2022, the Italian Defense Industry Agency published a notice with the aim of selecting companies able to cultivate cannabis in order to supply cannabis to the Military Chemical and Pharmaceutical Plant in Florence for the manufacture of medicines and pharmaceutical raw materials.
In the Czech Republic, as a result of the January 2022 amendment to the Act on addictive substances, soon anyone can be authorised to grow medical cannabis.
In Portugal, a new Ministerial Order issued in January 2022 addresses the cultivation of hemp for industrial purposes and differentiates it from the cultivation of the cannabis plant for other purposes.
In Poland, as of May 2022 research institutes will be allowed to grow cannabis in order to obtain raw material for the preparation of prescription drugs.
In the UK industry bodies have commissioned a review to consider the size and nature of the UK’s legal marketplace in cannabinoids, and make policy and industry recommendations (the Hodges Review: Hodges Review). The scope of the report (expected in May 2022) will cover two main areas – medicinal and consumer cannabinoids – and it will take account of the entire supply chain from cultivation and R&D to product development, manufacturing and sale. The report will not consider wider arguments for legalisation of cannabis for adult use, as the UK Government’s recent ten year drugs strategy implies that is not a near-term political prospect at the current time. The UK’s large illegal market in cannabis is therefore out of scope for this project. The final report with recommendations is expected to be published in May 2022.
Click here to view the Expert Guide and examine cannabis regulation across 31 different (EU and non-EU) jurisdictions, including a new chapter for North Macedonia.
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