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Does The WHO Vote On Cannabinoids Change Anything?

Written by Marguerite Arnold on . Posted in Politics.

Despite removing cannabis from Schedule IV of international drug scheduling, the change in policy does very little to move the issue of full reform forward.

Despite a great deal of fanfare in the mainstream press and even the canna specialty trades, the WHO vote on cannabis last week does not mean much. The body voted to only remove cannabinoids from Schedule IV. Schedule IV of the international drug scheduling regime is used to classify drugs with high addictiveness (like Valium or Xanax). 

However, from both a clinical and more tangible logistical perspective, the drug remains under Schedule I. This means, no matter that it shows up in other schedules too still, Cannabis Sativa L, the plant, and all its derivatives, are first and foremost still illegal and of no medical efficacy in the eyes of global regulators and controllers (like law enforcement). Further, the distinctions, from a prescribing end, between Schedule II and IV are almost nonexistent.

This decision, in other words, means that all issues related to access if not the industry beyond that (like banking) remain in a grey zone internationally.

It is incremental politics at its worst and on a global level.

But it is not the only semi meaningless gesture of reform these days. The world is full of them of the cannabis kind. 

In the United States, a lame-duck session of the House of Representatives may have passed the MORE Act, however, it is unlikely that its companion will get past the Senate, much less become law before the end of this Congressional term.

Bottom line? By the end of 2020, cannabis is no longer considered as dangerous a drug like Valium. But the plant is still an international “outlaw.”

What Next?

Given all the setbacks in almost every region, on the medical front, advocates are again calling for full and final recreational reform – even if that too is not quite baked (see New Zealand). It is very clear, however, that as a result, recreational experiments in countries like Mexico and Luxembourg next year will be avidly watched, followed, and reported on. 

The medical discussion is fully underway, but it is still hard in almost every country to gain access via the traditional route – namely covered under health insurance after being prescribed by a doctor. Indeed, many doctors are still reluctant to engage in the cannabis discussion with their patients at all – even after the removal of the drug from Schedule IV.

In Europe there are absolutely bright spots (see the decision last week of the European Commission on hemp), but the march for full and final reform is far from over.

Be sure to attend the International Cannabis Business Conference when it returns to Europe in 2021.

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The European Commission Revises Its Stance On CBD As A Narcotic

Written by Johnny Green on . Posted in Politics.

While the WHO essentially punted on cannabis reform last week, there was a bit of bright news on the horizon in Europe – namely that the European Commission revised its stance on the idea that CBD should be treated as a narcotic.

This is a huge development, although not unsurprising given the recent ruling in Strasbourg on the right to import “legally” produced CBD between European countries based on the trial of a French company engaged in the same.

However, this development is still tempered with the fact that the WHO has kept the plant itself (the genus Cannabis Sativa L) as a Schedule I plant. That includes hemp.

Ultimately, however, beyond this distinction, the jury is still out on whether and when European authorities will also decide that the plant and its extracts, by traditional means, are further not “novel,” but rather governed under other regulations (such as EU-BIO). Stay tuned.

Extraction, Processing And Labelling Are All In The Mix

With hemp products of all kinds hitting mainstream grocery stores in Germany, this development will clearly provide at least some forward motion for an industry that has repeatedly hit regulatory jags across the region since 2016. But the fight is far from over.

Novel Food regulation looms as a bane not only of the hemp industry but also of the entire recreational discussion. The reason? The source of the seed plus the method of extraction, as well as its final addition to the end product are all in the mix. 

This is still, in other words, dangerous territory for just about everyone. Understanding the regulations, and how to apply them, are still the most important aspect of all in the mix.

How Does The EC Decision Interact With The WHO Vote?

The first place this will impact is cultivation. Farmers will have to register and certify their crops – starting with all the regulatory steps around organic production (if bound for anything but industrial purposes) and cultivation in the first place.

Beyond that, within Europe, producers will have to be willing to certify their supply chains – although this again may not mandate that the distinction is one that is “novel.” 

Indeed Europe has become a place, much like the United States, where hemp products are almost, but not entirely regulated.

Regardless of the still remaining bumps along the way, however, it is clear that 2021 is going to be a good year for the industry across the EU.

Be sure to attend the next International Cannabis Business Conferences when they return to Europe.

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United States House Of Representatives To Vote On Cannabis Legalization This Week

Written by Johnny Green on . Posted in Politics.

Federal cannabis prohibition was first implemented in the United States in 1937. The initial legislation that was passed by Congress came after a methodical reefer madness propaganda campaign was waged from coast to coast by Harry Anslinger.

Eventually, the legislation was replaced with the Controlled Substances Act in 1970 which placed cannabis in the Schedule I category, where it remains to this day.

Schedule I substances are defined as having ‘no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.’ Obviously, it doesn’t take a doctor or scientist to know that cannabis is medicine.

A quick search for ‘marijuana’ on PubMed.gov, which is the national database for peer-reviewed studies, returns nearly 35,000 results. Cannabis is absolutely medicine.

Nearly every state in the U.S. has some form of medical cannabis, from CBD-only all the way up to home cultivation and regulated dispensaries. Fifteen states and Washington D.C. have now passed adult-use cannabis legalization measures.

With all of that in mind, federal cannabis prohibition still being in place in the U.S. is unconscionable. In 2021 a number of states are expected to legalize cannabis for adult use through the legislative process, making enforcement of federal cannabis prohibition that much more untenable.

The MORE Act, which would effectively end federal cannabis prohibition in the U.S. and make it a true state rights issue, will receive a vote in the United States House of Representatives this week, where it is expected to pass.

The real hiccup is expected to occur in the United States Senate, which has been less-favorable to cannabis policy compared to the House.

Two seats in the Senate are still to be decided, both in Georgia, so it’s hard to speculate right now what the chances are of the MORE Act passing in the Senate.

But before that speculation even needs to occur, all eyes will be on the U.S. House this week to see if the bill passes in that particular chamber.

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United Nations To Vote On Cannabis Rescheduling

Written by Johnny Green on . Posted in Politics.

This could prove to be a very big week for cannabis at the international level with the United Nations’ Commission on Narcotic Drugs voting on a series of cannabis policy recommendations from the World Health Organization.

The Commission has met on several occasions to discuss the recommendations from the World Health Organization, including a recommendation to reschedule cannabis, however, there has yet to be a vote.

Voting was expected to occur earlier in 2020, but due to various delays, it never happened. That will change tomorrow when the Commission finally votes on the recommendations. Below is what is being considered, as reported by Marijuana Moment:

1. Remove marijuana from Schedule IV of the 1961 Single Convention.

2. Add THC and dronabinol (synthetic THC medication) to Schedule I of the 1961 Convention and, if approved, delete them from Schedule II of the 1971 Convention.

3. If the second recommendation is adopted, add tetrahydrocannabinol to Schedule I of the 1961 Convention and, if approved, delete it from Schedule I of the 1971 Convention.

4. Delete “extracts and tinctures of cannabis” from Schedule I of the 1961 Convention.

5. Add footnote to clarify that CBD products containing no more than 0.2 percent THC are not subject to international control.

6. Add “preparations containing dronabinol” to Schedule III of the 1961 Convention.

Only time will tell what gets approved and what does not. International cannabis policy is extremely outdated, and binding international treaties are often cited by countries as to why lawmakers will not end cannabis prohibition in those countries.

Right now two countries, Uruguay and Canada, have legalized cannabis for adult-use. Dozens of countries have legalized cannabis for medical use. Cannabis is being imported and exported between a growing list of nations.

It is beyond time that international cannabis policy was updated to reflect what is actually happening in the real world.

Cannabis prohibition has failed, and it’s time for a more sensible approach at the global level so that at the national level countries can proceed with getting on the right side of history.

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Presidential Decree Permits Cultivation Of Medical Cannabis In Argentina

Written by Johnny Green on . Posted in Politics.

The cannabis plant possesses tremendous medical value according to tens of thousands of peer-reviewed studies, as well as countless personal experiences among patients.

Cannabis is medicine, despite what cannabis opponents say. The science speaks for itself and outweighs the harmful political views of cannabis opponents.

A number of conditions can be successfully treated with medical cannabis, and fortunately for suffering patients in Argentina they will be able to cultivate their own medical cannabis in some circumstances, as described in a news release from our friends at NORML:

Patients and their caregivers will be able to apply for federal licensure to grow marijuana for medicinal purposes in their homes, according to a Presidential decree issued late last week.

The policy change expands upon a 2017 law that provided a legal exemption under the law for qualifying patients with epilepsy to possess cannabis extracts. However, that law provided to legal source to provide patients with access to plant-derived extracts.

Under the new law, pharmacies will also for the first time be able to provide specific cannabis products to qualifying patients. “We are replacing a black market that already exists with quality control that is key in all medical products, particularly those that are given to children,” said Argentina’s health minister, Ginés González García.

Argentina is one of a number of South American countries, including Chile, Colombia, and Peru, that has moved in recent years to liberalize medical cannabis access. In July of 2017, pharmacies in Uruguay began selling cannabis products over-the-counter to adults participating in the nation’s marijuana registry.

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Israeli Company Panaxia Pharmaceuticals Signs Deal With France

Written by Marguerite Arnold on . Posted in Medical.

The Israelis are moving quickly to take advantage of the opening in the French medical cannabis market. Panaxia Pharmaceuticals has just announced a deal with Neuraxpharm, a leading European company specializing in disorders of the central nervous system. Their collaboration is intended to be a first step in establishing a manufacturing entity to commercial production and distribution of Panaxia’s cannabinoid medicinal products in France.

The model adopted for the collaboration is similar to those increasingly seen in Germany where foreign companies are partnering with established medical products providers in Europe to enter the market.

In the case of France, the companies are also clearly angling to be a medical provider for the national French medical trial, set to begin by the first quarter of March 2021. Indeed, as part of the first stages of their collaboration, Panaxia and Neuraxpharm are already planning on responding to the tender issued by the French government and medications agency ANSM, to regulate the country’s domestic cannabis market.

Panaxia is currently the only Israeli company with EU-GMP certification for the production of medical cannabis products.

The French Trial Is Looming – Will The German Mistakes Be Repeated?

While the French government is clearly copying the model of the German tender bid, it appears that some of the same mistakes will not be present here. Starting with not excluding Israeli firms.

However, given the same issues, not to mention tensions about legalization overall, which France now imports from other countries ringing it as well as the global marketplace, will this kind of alliance be the kind that inspires confidence in the market, if not effectively reaches patients beyond a 3,000 person trial now planned for spring?

The French trial, unlike the German one, expects participating companies to participate for free – rather than allowing companies to import products from another country and charging outrageous prices for the same before price controls had been set by the government, but insurance companies are still on the hook for payment.

Given Israel’s increasing global prominence in the medical market, this is a clear rebuke to Germany, where Canadian companies still dominate a market that is expanding and further requiring higher standards than those seen in other countries so far. And where repeated companies, no matter what country they hail from, have run into multiple and serial problems with quality control as well as a fully compliant supply chain.

The International Cannabis Business Conference is returning to Europe in 2021. Stay tuned!

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North Macedonia Is Making Waves On The Edge of Europe Over Recreational Cannabis Reform

Written by Marguerite Arnold on . Posted in Politics.

The former Yugoslavian country just north of Greece is clearly making a major play for its domestic cannabis industry

North Macedonia is eyeing Amsterdam right now – and in a big way. Namely, using the Dutch city as one of their templates for implementing recreational cannabis reform nationally.

The current legislative proposal, endorsed by Prime Minister Zoran Zaev last week, is designed to give a boost both to the growing certified domestic cannabis market and tourism.

Canna cafes in the Balkans anyone?

The idea is not a slam dunk. Zaev is willing to retreat if the populace is opposed to the idea. But, like Croatia, the country is willing to engage in a public debate and further one which integrates the cannabis industry into the mainstream in ways still unseen widely across Europe.

North Macedonia has a domestic medical market and has since 2016. However, multiple problems have plagued the vertical ever since. As of now, the country cannot export flower (only extract) for the medical market.

Cannabis As Economic Green New Economy Development

Increasingly countries in this part of the world (see Greece) are considering cannabis as the economic development tool they are lacking. The highly specialized pharmaceutical knowledge that has led to market development in many countries at this point, is also now seen as possibly too restrictive for the full-blown industry to develop fully – starting with integrating the drug into health care paradigms that are still, far from commercial if not profit-generating.

In every market, including Israel, the less than accepting attitude of doctors, as well as the lack of coverage from insurers, means that patients are not getting nearly enough access through this channel – also affecting the development of the specific medical industry so far.

The development of a highly encouraged, government-supported recreational industry will do much to solve the problem – even if “all” it does is legalize the ability of patients to obtain product in other ways. Not to mention keeps recreational users out of jail.

As the world begins to face a world where the threat of Covid has receded, but the economic damage caused by the same is ever-present, cannabis as an economic development tool is likely to get more advocates – globally.

North Macedonia’s new direction, indeed, maybe the shape of things to come – and in many markets, including the European Union as a region – which Macedonia is also still angling to join.

The International Cannabis Business Conference returns to Europe in 2021. Stay tuned.

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Cannabis Treatment Admissions Among Youth Decline Sharply In Legalization States

Written by Johnny Green on . Posted in Politics.

One of the favorite talking points amongst cannabis opponents is ‘what about the children?’ They go to that talking point early and often when a state/country is trying to reform its cannabis laws, warning of dramatic spikes in cannabis use among youth.

For many decades that was an effective talking point in that it scared a lot of people, and it was hard to disprove because cannabis prohibition was in full effect and there wasn’t any data to point to in order to directly debunk the claim.

Fortunately, that has changed in recent years due to the fact that a number of states in the U.S. and two countries have legalized cannabis for adult use.

We all now know that the children will be just fine and that regulation is a better public policy approach compared to prohibition, as highlighted in the results of a recent study. Below is more information about the study via a press release from our friends at NORML:

The number of adolescents admitted to drug treatment programs for marijuana-related issues has fallen precipitously in states that have legalized and regulated its adult-use, according to data published by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Commenting on the study, NORML Deputy Director Paul Armentano said, “These findings add to the growing body of scientific literature showing that legalization policies can be implemented in a manner that provides access for adults while simultaneously limiting youth access and misuse.”

The report, entitled Trends in Adolescent Treatment Admissions for Marijuana in the United States, 2008-2017, finds that, nationally, “adolescent treatment admissions for marijuana declined in most of states. The mean annual admissions rate for all states declined over the study period by nearly half, from 60 (admissions per 10,000 adolescents) in 2008 to 31 in 2017.” States experiencing the “steepest level of admissions decline” were among those that had enacted adult-use legalization laws.

While the report’s author suggested various possible reasons for the trend, he did not assess whether declining marijuana admissions rates were correlated with changes in marijuana law enforcement and sentencing. Data published in 2017 in the journal Substance Use & Misuse reported that over half of all young people entered into drug treatment for marijuana are placed there by the criminal justice system.

The CDC report concludes, “[T]his research suggests that a precipitous national decline in adolescent treatment admissions [is occurring], particularly in states legalizing recreational marijuana use.”

Separate studies have similarly reported that the prevalence of problematic marijuana use (so-called cannabis use disorder a/k/a CUD) among young people and adults has declined steadily since 2002.

In addition, a 2019 study published in JAMA Pediatrics concluded: “Consistent with the results of previous researchers, there was no evidence that the legalization of medical marijuana encourages marijuana use among youth. Moreover, the estimates reported … showed that marijuana use among youth may actually decline after legalization for recreational purposes. This latter result is consistent … with the argument that it is more difficult for teenagers to obtain marijuana as drug dealers are replaced by licensed dispensaries that require proof of age.”

Additional information regarding marijuana use patterns among young people is available from the NORML fact sheet.

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NORML advocates for changes in public policy so that the responsible possession and use of marijuana by adults is no longer subject to criminal penalties. NORML further advocates for a regulated commercial cannabis market so that activities involving the for-profit production and retail sale of cannabis and cannabis products are safe, transparent, consumer-friendly, and are subject to state and/or local licensure. Finally, NORML advocates for additional changes in legal and regulatory policies so that those who use marijuana responsibly no longer face either social stigma or workplace discrimination, and so that those with past criminal records for marijuana-related violations have the opportunity to have their records automatically expunged.

Find out more at norml.org and read our Fact Sheets on the most common misconceptions and myths regarding reform efforts around the country.

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The Future Of The Hemp Industry In Europe

Written by Marguerite Arnold on . Posted in Business.

An EU court case over the right of a Czech company to legally produce hemp extracts and sell them, across European borders, in France, has moved the needle on the entire “CBD as narcotic” discussion -and in a big way.

Last week, the European hemp industry got a huge boost at the European Court of Justice. Not only has the Court ruled on a pressing matter at the table across the EU but globally, at the WHO right now (namely that CBD is not a narcotic). 

As a consequence, however, the entire European hemp industry seems to have gotten a boost that so far had largely eluded it. Namely its basic legitimacy.

The Overview And Significance Of The Case

The European ruling came on appeal of a French case wherein vape cartridges containing CBD extract that were legally manufactured in the Czech Republic were shipped to France for sale – and as a result, the company was prosecuted and fined.

As a result, the overturning of the French decision in Luxembourg means that:

– Companies who are legally registered to produce hemp and hemp extracts in one European country are immune from prosecution for the same in their country of origin.

– Companies may ship such products, if not the raw ingredients and unpackaged extracts (in bulk) legally, across European borders without fear of prosecution.

-Companies may market and sell such products legally, across Europe, no matter where they or their customers are located. The online hemp extract marketplace finally got the boost it has been waiting for.

A Rush of Investments Into The Hemp Industry?

While the deck has certainly been cleared of the surrounding smoke on a very basic issue (i.e. whether to treat legally produced and certified hemp as a medicine or whether there could be a differentiation between plants possible at the ground, police inspection level), there are still looming barriers across the entire conversation that have NOT been solved.

Namely, whether hemp and its extracts are indeed “novel.”

While this so far has been the established focus of an industry and its lobby that had no firm place to stand, this too, will begin to shift, particularly as hemp is normalized under European farming policy and thus, firmly, in the realm of EU-BIO.

Regardless, all of these waters will be choppy for the next several years – and will continue to be as the Cannabis sativa L plant, and of all THC concentrations as well as other cannabinoids, continues to top the change agents still active and fomenting in Europe.

Be sure to book your tickets for the International Cannabis Business Conference when it returns to Europe in 2021.