Germany: Market and legal data analysis of the cannabis sector

13th December 2024: Germany: Following recent announcement by the Federal Office of Agriculture and Food (BMEL) about issuing regulations on cannabis research projects, the Berlin districts of Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg and Neukölln announced that they plan to start selling recreational cannabis through several specialist stores by summer 2025 through a scientific model project. The participants need to reside in the districts and meet some necessary health requirements. The products will be sold in selected sale outlets and will last for five years.
12th December 2024: Germany: The Federal Office of Agriculture and Food (BMEL) has issued regulations on cannabis research projects, which will examine research applications of cannabis consumption and industrial hemp. The focus of these investigations is to better protect young people, reduce activity in the black market and organised crime, and increase consumer protection through lower-risk forms of consumption. Applications can be submitted on the authority’s website. The BMEL emphasised that this is not the “second pillar” of cannabis legalisation, which would introduce cannabis specialist stores, as that is the responsibility of the Ministry of Health.
9th December 2024: Germany: Last week, in response to a statement from the Federal Council, the federal government issued a comment about the Industrial Hemp Liberalisation bill. The bill permits indoor cultivation of industrial hemp and eliminates the “intoxication clause”, which states that the use of industrial hemp for commercial purposes must exclude the abuse of intoxication. The federal government emphasised that the bill focuses solely on industrial hemp, leaving other matters, such as recreational cannabis, outside its scope. The Federal Council did not oppose the removal of the “intoxication clause”.
20th November 2024: Germany: The Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM) has published the amount of imported medical cannabis for the third quarter of 2024, with a 72.9% increase from the second quarter of 2024. Germany imported 20,119 kg of cannabis in the third quarter, according to the BfArM. For comparison, it imported 11,634 kg in the second quarter of 2024 and 32,072 kg in all of 2023. The increase in imports is likely due to an increase in demand after key regulatory reforms took effect in April, which simplified the prescription process.
18th November 2024: Germany: A debate on the legalisation of cannabis took place last Friday (15th November) in the Bundestag, with the country's political parties taking their positions months ahead of the February 2025 snap election. Silke Launert of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU)/Christian Social Union of Bavaria (CSU) group, which is expected to form a governing coalition after the February election, argued that recent cannabis reforms have propped up criminal organisations. Meanwhile, federal health minister Karl Lauterbach from the Social Democrats (SDP) contended that criminal organisations are a result of the previous prohibitionist policy and that politicians blocking the cannabis law in some states are not contributing to a solution. Members of the other political parties constituting the current “traffic light coalition” – the Greens and the Free Democratic Party (FDP) – expressed their continued support for cannabis legalisation.
12th November 2024: Germany: Last week, the Bundestag’s Committee on Agricultural Policy and Consumer Protection, Committee on Internal Affairs, Legal Affairs Committee, and Finance Committee published their recommendations on the Industrial Hemp Liberalisation Act. Although the bill does not address recreational cannabis, the committees recommended neutral packaging for all cannabis products (such as seeds) and reduction on the quantity given to members of cultivation associations, among other measures. Regarding industrial hemp, they recommended the retention of the “intoxication clause” and consideration of the alleged potential for abuse in the trade in industrial hemp. The plenary of the Bundesrat will vote on the proposal on 22nd November, although the bill does not require Bundesrat approval.
7th November 2024: Germany: Yesterday (6th November), following the dismissal of the finance minister, Christian Lindner of the Free Democratic Party (FDP), by chancellor Olaf Scholz, the chancellor said he would call a confidence motion in his government for January 2025, which could mean that elections – scheduled for October 2025 – are brought forward to March 2025, press reports. Considering the polls indicate a likely change of government, this could mean that the current government may not have enough time to introduce and approve regional model projects with cannabis commercial supply chains, the so-called Pillar 2, as promised in the government's coalition agreement.
4th November 2024: Germany: The cannabis club in Ganderkesee, Lower Saxony, has made its first distribution of recreational cannabis to its members, press reports. Since the regulation of the clubs in July 2024, the club claims to be the first to harvest and distribute a legal cannabis crop. This was confirmed by a spokeswoman for the Federal Drug Commissioner, although the authority has no official information on the harvest situation of the clubs.
31st October 2024: Germany: The city of Hanover, in cooperation with the city of Frankfurt, signed a letter of intent for a pilot project for the controlled sale of cannabis. The project will run for five years and have three sales outlets in the city. Four thousand participants are expected to take part in the study, which will be supervised by the Hanover Medical School. The mayor of Hanover, Belit Onay, from the government coalition party The Greens, said that the project will improve protection of minors and displace the illegal market. According to information from the press, the plan could be applicable immediately after the federal government clarifies the state’s responsibilities. It is expected to start in the first half of 2025.
22nd October 2024: Germany: An amendment to the authorisation requirement for medical cannabis was published in the Federal Gazette. The amendment was previously approved by the German Federal Joint Committee (G-BA) in July and establishes an exception to the requirement that doctors prescribing medical cannabis have insurance approval for initial prescriptions under the statutory health insurance system. Going forward, insurance coverage will not be required for doctors with 16 specialist titles and five additional titles, including palliative medicine and special pain therapy.
15th October 2024: Germany: The first cannabis club in Lower Saxony has harvested its first 200 plants, and in two weeks the dried flowers will be distributed to members, press reports. According to the club’s chairman, every dispensing of a cannabis product will be documented and accompanied by a leaflet indicating the product’s characteristics. A prevention officer will be responsible for providing advice to members and monitoring their consumption. The state of Lower Saxony has so far issued 15 permits for cannabis clubs.
14th October 2024: Germany: According to a survey conducted by the YouGov Institute and published in the newspaper Der Spiegel, 55% of 2,100 respondents think that legalisation was wrong, while 37% think it was right. In addition, one-third of Germans have noticed an increase in cannabis consumption in their surroundings since legalisation.

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