In order to develop its own industry for the production of medicinal marijuana and reduce dependence on imports, Germany has concluded contracts for the supply of cannabis grown locally with two Canadian companies.
On Wednesday, April 17, drug trafficking regulator BfArM announced that it would purchase 4,000 kg and 3,200 kg of cannabis from German subsidiaries of Canadian drug cannabis companies Aurora and Aphria within four years, respectively.
Another tender for a four-year crop of 3200 kg was postponed because an unknown bidder who lost the contest challenged the procedure with the regulator. The German drug control agency said in a statement that the first home crop is scheduled for late 2020, calling the tender “an important step in the supply of medical-grade cannabis grown in Germany for critically ill patients.”
Aurora shares rose after the company announced that it was one of the winners of a tender for production in Germany, citing preliminary results. So far, Germany is dependent on imports of medical cannabis, mainly from Canada and the Netherlands. No new barriers to import will be introduced with the start of plant cultivation in Germany.
An increasing number of countries have legalized or are in the process of legalizing marijuana for medical use, including the United Kingdom, Greece, Thailand, and some US states, Canada, and Uruguay have completely liberalized marijuana production.
In Germany, marijuana-based prescription drugs have been available since 2017, but they are all imported.
