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Tag: Uruguay

Is Uruguay’s Cannabis Industry About To Evolve?

Written by Hazel Norman on . Posted in Policy.

Over nine years ago Uruguay made history after passing the world’s first-ever national adult-use cannabis legalization measure. In December 2013 Uruguay’s President José Mujica signed a measure that permitted residents of Uruguay to cultivate their own cannabis, to join a private cannabis clubs, and eventually to purchase cannabis from pharmacies.

Being that Uruguay serves as the oldest national adult-use cannabis policy experiment, many cannabis observers from around the world have watched everything that has happened in Uruguay with a very close eye. By virtually every measure legalization has succeeded.

Since it’s initial passage Uruguay’s legalization model has evolved at a slow pace. As an example of that, legal sales at pharmacies began in Uruguay in the summer of 2017, with consumers being able to choose from two different strains. Late last year, Uruguay finally permitted a third option with higher levels of THC to be purchased from pharmacies.

As the nation approaches the ten year anniversary of the passage of the historic legalization measure, leadership is indicating that the nation’s legalization model could further evolve. Per La Diaria Politica:

Round anniversaries have an unconscious effect on people that leads them to take stock and review some things. In 2023, for example, it will be ten years since the approval of Law 19,172, which at the time put Uruguay at the center of the international debate on drug policies, and Juan Ignacio Tastás, executive director of the Institute for Regulation and Control of Cannabis (Ircca), believes that it is a good opportunity for the political system to propose to rediscuss the law, remove some fears and make access more flexible.

All this would also take place in a pre-electoral year, with previous questioning of the law within the same government coalition, chiaroscuro in police action with some self-cultivators, more and more pharmacies and a bill that intends to sell to tourists. After ten years and a long way to go, is it time to change the regulations?

The excerpts are from an interview with Juan Ignacio Tastás, executive director of IRCCA. IRCCA is the regulatory body that oversees Uruguay’s emerging cannabis industry. In the interview Tastás talked favorably about legalization, pointing out that many of the fears leading up to legalization have since proven to be unfounded.

Arguably the biggest change that Uruguay could make to its legalization model to help the domestic industry reach its full potential would be to open up legal sales to non-residents. Currently, only residents of Uruguay can make legal purchases.

Whether or not that will happen soon, and what access to legal cannabis for tourists will ultimately look if/when it happens is unclear. In theory, tourists could make purchases at pharmacies fairly quickly if the law changes, as pharmacies are already heavily regulated.

Clubs are another option, however, they are not regulated in the same manner as pharmacies, so setting up access via that route could take longer to implement. A fourth option at pharmacies is expected to occur later this year, and hopefully tourists will be able to partake in the new option by the time it goes live.

The Amount Of Legal Cannabis Planted In Greenhouses In Uruguay Nearly Doubled In A Year

Written by Johnny Green on . Posted in Business, Policy.

Uruguay’s legal cannabis industry may not be as large as industries in other nations, however, it will always hold the distinction of being the first regulated national adult-use cannabis industry in the world’s history.

Lawmakers in Uruguay first passed a legalization measure back in 2013, nearly ten years ago. It took a handful of years for the first legal transaction to occur, and these days consumers of legal age in Uruguay have several options for legally sourcing cannabis, including via pharmacies.

By many reasonable measures the legal cannabis industry is succeeding in Uruguay, and that is reflected in statistics that were recently released regarding how much cannabis is being planted in greenhouses in Uruguay. The rate of increase is impressive. Per La Diaria Politica (translated to English):

The Directorate of Agricultural Statistics of the Ministry of Livestock, Agriculture and Fisheries (MGAP) published this week the 2022 Yearbook, which includes the current status and evolution of agricultural production and provides other related data, such as the volume of exports and imports. of agricultural products, the price of land and registered purchase and sale operations.

The document reports a significant increase in the area of ​​cannabis in greenhouses, which went from 120,000 to 239,782 square meters between the agricultural years 2020/21 and 2021/22. In the same sense, the number of licenses granted for the plantation of cannabis went from 80 to 167 in the same period. In contrast, open-air cannabis plantations have been on the decline since 2020, and went from 580 hectares to 513 in the aforementioned period.

Greenhouses are a much more sustainable method for cultivating cannabis compared to cultivating cannabis inside of a building being that they use less non-renewable resources. The climate in Uruguay is favorable for cultivating cannabis in general, and greenhouses help keep pests and rain off of the plants while also maximizing exposure to sunlight.

As we previously reported, Uruguay recently expanded the number of cannabis options at pharmacies, with a higher-THC option rolling out last month. Another cannabis option is expected to come to pharmacies in Uruguay in late 2023, although it is still unclear what cannabinoid levels will be involved with the new variety.

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Higher THC Percentages Are Finally Coming To Pharmacies In Uruguay

Written by Johnny Green on . Posted in Policy.

One of my biggest cannabis public policy pet peeves is when governments institute THC percentage caps on products, primarily due to the negative impact it has on the suffering patients that desperately need cannabis products containing higher amounts of THC. I extend my distain for THC percentage caps to the adult-use industry because whether people realize it or not, many suffering patients obtain their medicine via the adult-use industry when possible, including in Uruguay where low-THC percentage limits have been in place jn pharmacies since legal sales began in 2017.

Uruguay first passed a national adult-use legalization measure back in 2013, making it the first country on the planet to do so since the dawn of prohibition. The historic legalization measure provided for various ways for consumers to obtain cannabis, including private clubs and home cultivation. It also provided for eventual legal sales through pharmacies for two varieties of cannabis flower, “alpha” and “beta” flower. Both options have a THC level of less than or equal to 9% and a CBD level of greater than or equal to 3%. Thankfully, a third option is on the way, and the cannabinoid limits are much more favorable.

“Gamma” Cannabis Flower

Juan Ignacio Tastás, the executive director of the Institute for the Regulation and Control of Cannabis (Ircca), announced recently that Uruguay is set to launch a third variety of cannabis to be sold through pharmacies. The new variety is called “gamma” and will contain a THC percentage that is less than or equal to 15%, and a CBD percentage that is less than or equal to 1%. The new option is expected to be available to consumers in Uruguay starting around December 20th.

To put things into perspective, cannabis flower that tops 30% THC is common in many legal states in the U.S. and in Canada. For some consumers, anything less than 30% is often deemed as not being strong enough. For patients in particular, especially those that suffer from chronic and severe pain, high-potency cannabis flower is an optimal form of medicine.

A huge benefit of adult-use legalization is that patients don’t have to jump through all of the hoops of a medical cannabis program to obtain their medicine. In Uruguay, they simply have to be of legal age and go to a licensed pharmacy that sells adult-use cannabis. However, that only works out if the pharmacy actually sells cannabis that is strong enough to help the suffering patient.

An Evolving Model

Part of the reporting out of Uruguay indicates that yet another strain, a fourth option, is being considered for pharmacies, with a potential release date being next December. No details seem to be available regarding what cannabinoid levels will be involved. It’s definitely possible that an option with an even higher level of THC could be involved, however, without any details surfacing I suppose it’s also possible that it could be a low-THC, high-CBD strain. We will all just have to wait and see.

One thing that is clear is that Uruguay’s adult-use cannabis regulation model, the first one in the history of the world at a national level, is still evolving. That in itself provides a learning moment for other countries that are exploring which components to include and exclude for their legalization frameworks. Lawmakers and regulators in those countries need to approach cannabinoid level limits objectively. By doing so they will no doubt realize that THC percentage limits do not serve any actual scientific purpose, but rather, are born out of reefer madness and as a result they should never be a part of any sensible cannabis public policy.

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Senator Proposes Cannabis Tax In Uruguay

Written by Johnny Green on . Posted in Policy.

Uruguay will forever hold the title of being the first country on earth to pass a nationwide adult-use cannabis legalization measure. Lawmakers in Uruguay made the historic move in 2013, with regulated sales launching in 2017.

Regulated sales are still limited to residents in Uruguay, with tourists currently being prohibited from making legal purchases. It’s one disadvantage to Uruguay’s legalization model compared to Canada’s, where anyone of legal age can make purchases regardless of their residence status.

One distinct advantage that Uruguay’s model has over Canada, at least from a consumer standpoint, is that there is no tax on cannabis purchases in Uruguay. When Uruguay’s law was initially passed, the lack of taxes on cannabis purchases was geared toward directly undercutting the unregulated market.

Lawmakers in Uruguay recognized at the time that the more regulated cannabis costs at the point of sale, the less likely consumers would be to take the regulated route versus making their purchases via unregulated sources. This is not to say that Uruguay’s cannabis industry is free from fees. Producers have to pay licensing fees and people in the industry still have to pay income taxes on profits.

A Senator in Uruguay is proposing a new tax on cannabis to help fund, among other things, athletic competitions. Per El Observador Senator Sergio Botana is proposing a 1.5% tax on cannabis in Uruguay to help generate funds for the Uruguay Olympic Committee.

By comparison, cannabis taxes in Canada are much more complex than the flat percentage rate being proposed in Uruguay by Senator Botana. Still, a 1.5% tax rate would effectively be lower than what is required in Canada, and significantly lower than many (if not all) of the state-level tax rates in the United States.

With that being said, cannabis taxes are always a risky area of public policy and involve a very slippery slope. If/when Uruguay implements a 1.5% tax rate, how long until it is raised even higher? Whenever lawmakers need to drum up more public revenue, cannabis taxes will likely be a popular target, and that is true not only in Uruguay but also everywhere else that cannabis is legally sold.

Every dollar that gets added to the price of regulated cannabis results in some amount of consumers and patients seeking out cheaper, unregulated options. Also, keeping cannabis tax-free hinders the cannabis industry’s ability to pay for its own regulation and to benefit society beyond regulation, such as generating taxes that go to schools. It’s a delicate balance that lawmakers everywhere need to be mindful of.

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Why Uruguay’s President Is Wrong About Cannabis

Written by Johnny Green on . Posted in Archives, Policy.

Late last week the President of Uruguay, Luis Lacaille Pou, reportedly stated that it was a mistake for Uruguay to have passed an adult-use legalization measure back in 2013, and subsequently, launched legal adult-use sales four years later. Both moves by Uruguay were the first of their kind by any country on earth since the start of global cannabis prohibition. It’s worth noting that Uruguay’s current President was elected in 2020, well after the country legalized cannabis for adult use.

As expected, cannabis opponents are pointing to the President of Uruguay’s statements as loudly and as often as possible. They are touting it as some type of ‘proof’ that adult-use cannabis legalization does not work, and that the first country to ever legalize cannabis for adult use has buyer’s remorse. According to the President, the government should not be part of the process of growing or selling “drugs” because he considers legal cannabis to be “unprofitable.”

Why Did Uruguay Legalize Cannabis?

When Uruguay passed its national cannabis legalization measure, the public policy shift had three main objectives, two of which were specified in the law itself:

  • Reducing cartel-related violence by moving cannabis into a regulated market
  • Promoting public health through education and prevention
  • Eliminating the catch-22 of allowing possession but effectively blocking consumers from accessing cannabis

Contrary to the spin-doctoring that Uruguay’s President seems to be currently engaging in, the goal of Uruguay’s historic cannabis policy shift was never to maximize profits. Prohibition is a failed public policy, and a regulated model will always be a better approach to cannabis policy.

Drug cartels have caused an enormous amount of misery and suffering in Uruguay and throughout the region. Cannabis is obviously only one of the many facets of a drug cartel’s operations, however, giving consumers a regulated option to legally acquire cannabis hurts cartels’ bottom line to some extent, and from that perspective, legalization is clearly working.

Improve The Legalization Model

Legalizing cannabis purely for monetary gain is not a solid reason for such a public policy change. People should support cannabis legalization because it is the right thing to do being that cannabis prohibition literally ruins lives. No one should ever be subjected to the criminal justice system due to possessing, cultivating, and/or buying a personal amount of cannabis.

With that being said, if Uruguay’s President is truly concerned about the profitability of the nation’s emerging cannabis industry, then he should seek to improve it rather than destroy it. The first thing that the President should seek to do is open up the nation’s cannabis system to tourists. Unlike Canada, Uruguay only allows sales through pharmacies and private clubs, and those sales are only open to residents. That is obviously going to limit the size of Uruguay’s potential customer base and hinder industry profits.

One thing that the President seemed to disregard in his statements is the cost savings to Uruguay by the country no longer enforcing failed public policy. Enforcing cannabis prohibition is expensive. It costs money to pay law enforcement to identify and investigate unregulated cannabis activity. It costs money to then prosecute cases through Uruguay’s court system. Incarcerating people also costs money. When Uruguay stopped enforcing prohibition, it yielded obvious cost savings for the government. Legalization is working in Uruguay, whether the country’s President wants to admit it or not.

No Sustained Changes In Uruguay Youth Cannabis Use After Legalization

Written by Johnny Green on . Posted in Archives, Policy.

Uruguay will forever hold the distinction of being the first country on earth to pass an adult-use cannabis legalization measure. Uruguay made the historic policy change in 2013.

Nearly a decade later, only two countries have joined Uruguay on the legalization list – Canada and Malta. Out of the three countries that have passed legalization measures, only Canada and Uruguay currently allow legalized sales.

Researchers around the globe have kept a close eye on Uruguay to see what, if any, significant public health outcome changes occur due to legalization, with a particular focus on youth cannabis consumption rates.

Cannabis opponents always predict doomsday scenarios regarding youth cannabis consumption whenever cannabis reform measures are being proposed, including in Uruguay leading up to legalization.

A team of international researchers recently explored data specific to Uruguay and youth consumption rates, and fortunately for sensible policy advocates, there appear to be no sustained changes in youth consumption patterns. Below is more information about it via a news release from NORML:

New York, NY: The adoption of nationwide regulations governing the retail sale of cannabis to adults is not associated with sustained increases in young people’s cannabis consumption, according to data published in the journal Addiction.

An international team of researchers from Chile, the United States, and Uruguay assessed cannabis use trends in Uruguay among those ages 12 to 21 following legalization.

Uruguay initially approved legislation legalizing the use of cannabis by adults in 2013, although retail sales in licensed pharmacies did not begin until 2017. Under the law, cannabis sales are restricted to those age 18 or older who register with the state. Commercially available cannabis products may only be produced by state-licensed entities and sold at specially licensed pharmacies. THC levels are capped by regulators and government price controls are imposed upon flower. Limited home cultivation is allowed in private households.

Consistent with prior studies, researchers reported no significant changes in cannabis use patterns among either adolescents or young adults. Among those under the age of 18, marijuana use fell following legalization. Among those ages 18 to 21, cannabis use initially rose, but then decreased.

Authors concluded, “The legalization of recreational cannabis in Uruguay was not associated with overall increases in either past-year/past-month cannabis use or with multi-year changes in any risky and frequent cannabis use among young people.”

Numerous North American studies have similarly failed to identify any significant upticks in cannabis use by young people following the adoption of adult-use legalization in either US states or in Canada.

Full text of the study, “Does recreational cannabis legalization change cannabis use patterns? Evidence from secondary school students in Uruguay,” appears in Addiction. Additional information is available from the NORML fact sheet, ‘Marijuana Regulation and Teen Use Rates.’

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Which Country Has ‘The Best’ Cannabis Legalization Model?

Written by Johnny Green on . Posted in Politics.

Cannabis prohibition, thankfully, has not always existed. For thousands of years, humans used the cannabis plant for various purposes, and it was only in the 1900s that cannabis prohibition first became a widespread public policy around the globe.

As I have said many times and will say until the day that I die, cannabis prohibition is one of the most harmful public policies in the history of humans. Countless people have had their lives needlessly ruined because of the cannabis plant, despite the fact that cannabis is safer than many of the products people have in their homes.

Fortunately, the walls of cannabis prohibition are slowly but surely crumbling, and now there are multiple countries within the global community that have legalized cannabis for adult use. Lawmakers in Uruguay, Canada, and Malta have all passed adult-use legalization measures, and all three countries have different legalization models.

Buying And Cultivating

All three countries that have legalized cannabis at the national level currently have the same legal age, 18 years old, and all three countries permit adults of legal age to cultivate cannabis at home, although Canada has seen some local bans that are working their way through various legal challenges.

The real difference between Uruguay, Canada, and Malta’s legalization models can be found in how people legally purchase cannabis for adult use. Uruguay, the first country to ever legalize cannabis for adult use, limits purchases to clubs and pharmacies, and only citizens and permanent residents can make purchases (although that is changing at some point).

Malta is still setting up rules and regulations after becoming the first country in Europe to legalize cannabis for adult use late last year. When sales do begin in Malta, they will only occur via private clubs – no dispensaries. From a purely purchasing standpoint, Canada has the best legalization model in that anyone from anywhere can make a purchase as long as they are of legal age, and those purchases can be made through the mail, via storefronts, and virtually any other way that people can buy cannabis.

More Legalization On The Horizon

Uruguay was the first country to ever legalize cannabis at a national level. Canada was the first G-7 country to legalize cannabis for adult use. Malta was the first country in Europe to pass an adult-use legalization measure. All three of those countries have a claim to being the first to legalize cannabis in some manner, however, none of them will be the last.

Multiple countries (Denmark, Switzerland, the Netherlands) are launching or expanding adult-use legalization pilot programs that create localized legalization. Multiple other countries (Mexico, Italy, South Africa) have had their top courts render decisions against cannabis prohibition policies and lawmakers there are working to fully implement legalization.

Germany, which is home to one of the largest economies on planet earth, is trending closer to legalization every month. The largest prohibition domino, the United States, is witnessing the continued spread of legalization at the state level with every passing year either via the election process or the legislative process. With that in mind, more legalization models are on the horizon and while all of them are likely to incorporate some policy components that are already implemented in current legalized nations, there will be new policy components introduced as well as more countries get on the right side of history, with some new policies being more nuanced than others.

Trying to determine what is ‘the best’ is a subjective measurement, and largely in the eye of the beholder. That is true of cannabis legalization policies just as it is with virtually anything else. What is considered to be ‘the best’ cannabis policy in one region may not work at all in different regions. With that being said, every legalization model is better than locking humans in prison cells due to them being caught with cannabis.

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Uruguay Likely To Allow Legal Cannabis Sales To Tourists

Written by Johnny Green on . Posted in Politics.

Uruguay made history in 2013 when it became the first country on the planet to legalize cannabis for adult use. Various countries had enacted cannabis decriminalization measures prior to 2013, or cannabis was ‘tolerated’ in certain countries, or in the case of the U.S. cannabis was legal for adult-use in some jurisdictions as of 2012 (Washington State and Colorado).

However, the title of ‘first country to legalize cannabis for adult use at a national level’ will forever be bestowed upon Uruguay. Since Uruguay legalized in 2013 only one other country has passed somewhat similar legislation – Canada. However, whereas Canada legalized cannabis sales to all adults of legal age, Uruguay’s model still does not provide for legal sales to non-residents.

It’s an interesting difference that has played out for several years now, and it is likely that most countries that legalize in the future will adopt a model that is more in line with Canada’s model versus Uruguay. Even Uruguay appears to be moving closer to a Canadian model. To be fair, Uruguay was the first to ever enact such a historic cannabis policy, so it is understandable that they wouldn’t get that part right at first. Fortunately, it’s likely that tourists in Uruguay will get to make legal purchases in the near future. Per Hindustan Times:

The first country in the world to legalize most uses of marijuana is looking to capture business away from illicit sellers and bolster its cannabis industry by allowing foreign visitors to buy pot.

The administration of Uruguayan President Luis Lacalle Pou could release its plan as soon as this year in a bid to build political consensus and support, said Daniel Radio, secretary general of the National Drugs Board. The aim isn’t to promote Uruguay as a destination for cannabis tourism, but rather to steer tourists away from the black market and into the regulated market, according to Deputy Tourism Minister Remo Monzeglio.

It is no secret that currently cannabis can still be easily obtained by tourists in Uruguay. It’s not as if since legal sales are not permitted that tourists aren’t purchasing cannabis in Uruguay. Many tourists purchase cannabis every day in Uruguay, it’s just that the sales are from unregulated sources.

Uruguay, like every other country on earth, should allow legal, regulated sales. Consumers benefit from being able to purchase lab tested products in well-lit areas without the fear of prosecution. Local regions benefit from the creation of good jobs, and all levels of government benefit from tax revenue and fee generation. Hopefully Uruguay makes the shift sooner rather than later.

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53% Of Uruguayan Doctors Recommend Medical Cannabis

Written by Marguerite Arnold on . Posted in Medical.

A survey carried out by the Catholic University of Uruguay reveals that the majority of the country’s doctors are willing to recommend the use of medical cannabis.

A study entitled “Medical cannabis in Uruguay: a study on the medical community and persistent challenges,” conducted by interviewing 275 domestic doctors, has revealed highly encouraging results. The majority of those surveyed said that they would prescribe the drug (64%), and only 21% are undecided, with only 15% responding that they would not administer the drug at all. Neurologists, internists, rheumatologists, and surgeons are the most likely to write prescriptions for their patients.

The most common conditions for which cannabis is prescribed medically in Uruguay are rheumatism, neurological diseases generally, cancer, chronic pain, palliative patients, and those with mental illnesses.

Even more encouragingly, more than 90% of the respondents said that it was relevant to include the endocannabinoid system in both undergraduate and graduate medical education.

Even more intriguingly, even though Uruguay was the first country in the world to legalize recreational cannabis, medical cannabis generally, is lagging in the country.

Encouraging Medical Developments Amid Greater Reform

The survey is certainly welcome news in a world where the medical community has not warmed particularly quickly to the idea of cannabis as a legitimate medical drug. Most doctors in places like Canada or even across Europe still view the drug with a considerable suspicion – due mainly to their unfamiliarity with cannabis not to mention the enduring stigma that still exists in many medical programs.

As of this April in fact, a study from Ontario suggests that the majority of doctors in the province are still reluctant to prescribe cannabis to treat chronic pain. This survey tracks findings also found back in 2019 on a national basis, from the Canadian Medical Association. 

That said, the lack of acceptance from the medical community has not slowed down the growth of the overall industry. Indeed, the number of Canadians who admitted to using cannabis, for any purpose, swelled from under 24,000 in June 2015 to over 370,000 by September of last year.

In places like Germany, where medical cannabis covered by insurance is still less than five years old, doctors remain reluctant to prescribe the drug too, but for reasons beyond its medical efficacy – namely the financial liability they still face for prescribing too much.

Cannabis education – for both doctors and insurers – remains a high priority in almost every legalizing country – but perhaps Uruguay can continue to show the way.

Be sure to stay tuned to more developments from the International Cannabis Business Conference.