Latest news with #cannabis
Yahoo
16 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Legal cannabis blooms in Morocco but black market still beckons
Legal cannabis blooms in Morocco but black market still beckons By Ahmed Eljechtimi BAB BERRED, Morocco (Reuters) -Beneath the blazing summer sun, Abderrahman Talbi surveyed the neat rows of flourishing cannabis blooms in compact fields, reflecting on how his life has changed since he joined Morocco's burgeoning legal cannabis industry two years ago. Like many farmers in the northern Rif mountains who have long grown the crop illegally, Talbi is relieved that raids and seizures by the authorities are no longer a worry. "I can now say I am a cannabis farmer without fear," Talbi told Reuters. "Peace of mind has no price." Talbi's pivot to legal farming is an example of what Morocco, one of the world's biggest cannabis producers, hoped to achieve when it legalised cultivation for medical and industrial use, but not for recreational purposes, in 2022. Regulating cannabis farming brought with it hopes for fresh revenue and economic revitalisation in the impoverished Rif region. The step made Morocco a forerunner among major producing countries and the first in the Middle East and North Africa to join a global trend that has seen countries like Canada, Germany and Uruguay legalise production and use. It also hoped to lure farmers away from the illegal economy in the restive Rif mountains, where cannabis production has long been tolerated to facilitate social peace. Al Hoceima, a major city in Rif, saw the largest protests in Morocco in 2016-17 over economic and social conditions. BLACK MARKET'S LURE PERSISTS Legalisation efforts have gained traction, with about 5,000 farmers joining the industry this year, from just 430 in 2023, says Morocco's cannabis regulator, or ANRAC. And legal production surged to nearly 4,200 tonnes last year, a 14-fold increase over the first harvest in 2023. Still, the black market remains dominant and lucrative due to demand for recreational use from Europe and regionally in Africa, potentially undermining efforts to fully regulate the sector. Morocco has 5,800 hectares (14,300 acres) of legally planted land, according to ANRAC. That's dwarfed by illegal cultivation spanning over 27,100 hectares, Interior Ministry data shows. While many farmers still choose illicit cultivation, they face the risk of increased crackdowns by authorities, which led to the seizure of 249 tonnes of cannabis resin by September last year, up 48% from all of 2023, according to the Interior Ministry. Mohammed Azzouzi, 52, spent three years in hiding for cannabis-related charges before receiving a royal pardon along with over 4,800 others last year. Now, he is preparing for his first legal harvest and hopes to earn more than the 10,000 dirhams ($1,100) he used to make in the illegal economy each year. RED TAPE The country's prohibition on growing cannabis for leisure use, along with bureaucratic red tape, limit legal farming, with every stage of the supply chain requiring a specific license from ANRAC, discouraging many a farmer from making the switch. A grower who wants to cultivate legally needs to join a licensed cooperative, which buys the farmer's product and processes it into derivatives or sells the resin to other licensed manufacturers. Talbi's cooperative, Biocannat, near the town of Bab Berred, 300 km (186 miles) north of Rabat, bought about 200 tonnes of cannabis last year from some 200 farmers, processing it into resin, supplements, capsules, oils and powders for medical and cosmetic purposes. About 60 km east of Biocannat, in the main producing area of Issaguen, farmer Mohamed El Mourabit was initially hopeful about the legalisation plan in 2021, but is less so now. "The process is too complicated," he said. And money talks, as well, for many farmers, who are lured by the higher rewards of the black market, despite its risks. While cooperatives take months to pay farmers about 50 dirhams per kilogram for the raw plant, on the illicit market, processed cannabis resin can fetch up to 2,500 dirhams per kilogram, farmers and activists say. To close that gap, legalisation advocates say growing for recreational use should be allowed, too. But it's not clear whether that will happen soon. Mohamed Guerrouj, head of ANRAC, said legalising recreational use would only be considered within a medical framework. "The goal is to develop Morocco's pharmaceutical industry ... not coffee shops," he said. Solve the daily Crossword


Reuters
16 hours ago
- Business
- Reuters
Legal cannabis blooms in Morocco but black market still beckons
BAB BERRED, Morocco, July 29 (Reuters) - Beneath the blazing summer sun, Abderrahman Talbi surveyed the neat rows of flourishing cannabis blooms in compact fields, reflecting on how his life has changed since he joined Morocco's burgeoning legal cannabis industry two years ago. Like many farmers in the northern Rif mountains who have long grown the crop illegally, Talbi is relieved that raids and seizures by the authorities are no longer a worry. "I can now say I am a cannabis farmer without fear," Talbi told Reuters. "Peace of mind has no price." Talbi's pivot to legal farming is an example of what Morocco, one of the world's biggest cannabis producers, hoped to achieve when it legalised cultivation for medical and industrial use, but not for recreational purposes, in 2022. Regulating cannabis farming brought with it hopes for fresh revenue and economic revitalisation in the impoverished Rif region. The step made Morocco a forerunner among major producing countries and the first in the Middle East and North Africa to join a global trend that has seen countries like Canada, Germany and Uruguay legalise production and use. It also hoped to lure farmers away from the illegal economy in the restive Rif mountains, where cannabis production has long been tolerated to facilitate social peace. Al Hoceima, a major city in Rif, saw the largest protests in Morocco in 2016-17 over economic and social conditions. Legalisation efforts have gained traction, with about 5,000 farmers joining the industry this year, from just 430 in 2023, says Morocco's cannabis regulator, or ANRAC. And legal production surged to nearly 4,200 tonnes last year, a 14-fold increase over the first harvest in 2023. Still, the black market remains dominant and lucrative due to demand for recreational use from Europe and regionally in Africa, potentially undermining efforts to fully regulate the sector. Morocco has 5,800 hectares (14,300 acres) of legally planted land, according to ANRAC. That's dwarfed by illegal cultivation spanning over 27,100 hectares, Interior Ministry data shows. While many farmers still choose illicit cultivation, they face the risk of increased crackdowns by authorities, which led to the seizure of 249 tonnes of cannabis resin by September last year, up 48% from all of 2023, according to the Interior Ministry. Mohammed Azzouzi, 52, spent three years in hiding for cannabis-related charges before receiving a royal pardon along with over 4,800 others last year. Now, he is preparing for his first legal harvest and hopes to earn more than the 10,000 dirhams ($1,100) he used to make in the illegal economy each year. The country's prohibition on growing cannabis for leisure use, along with bureaucratic red tape, limit legal farming, with every stage of the supply chain requiring a specific license from ANRAC, discouraging many a farmer from making the switch. A grower who wants to cultivate legally needs to join a licensed cooperative, which buys the farmer's product and processes it into derivatives or sells the resin to other licensed manufacturers. Talbi's cooperative, Biocannat, near the town of Bab Berred, 300 km (186 miles) north of Rabat, bought about 200 tonnes of cannabis last year from some 200 farmers, processing it into resin, supplements, capsules, oils and powders for medical and cosmetic purposes. About 60 km east of Biocannat, in the main producing area of Issaguen, farmer Mohamed El Mourabit was initially hopeful about the legalisation plan in 2021, but is less so now. "The process is too complicated," he said. And money talks, as well, for many farmers, who are lured by the higher rewards of the black market, despite its risks. While cooperatives take months to pay farmers about 50 dirhams per kilogram for the raw plant, on the illicit market, processed cannabis resin can fetch up to 2,500 dirhams per kilogram, farmers and activists say. To close that gap, legalisation advocates say growing for recreational use should be allowed, too. But it's not clear whether that will happen soon. Mohamed Guerrouj, head of ANRAC, said legalising recreational use would only be considered within a medical framework. "The goal is to develop Morocco's pharmaceutical industry ... not coffee shops," he said.


BBC News
16 hours ago
- BBC News
Plants and equipment seized in Coalville cannabis raid
Dozens of cannabis plants have been seized from a property in Police said 70 plants and additional equipment were discovered at a property in Forest Road, Coalville on Monday following "information from a partner agency".An investigation to identify who was responsible for the grow is under way following the discovery, the force added all of the plants that were seized will be destroyed.


New York Times
a day ago
- Business
- New York Times
Dozens of Licensed Weed Shops Were Placed Too Close to Schools
More than 100 licensed cannabis dispensaries in New York were allowed to open too close to schools and may have to move, state regulators said on Monday. State law prohibits dispensaries from opening within 500 feet of schools. For the past three years, regulators in the Office of Cannabis Management have measured the distance from the entrance of the potential dispensary to the entrance of a school. However, the agency said on Monday that the distance should have been measured to a school's property line. The announcement has created uncertainty around the future of dozens of dispensaries at a time when suitable locations have become increasingly rare and expensive. A vast majority of the affected businesses are in New York City and owned by veterans, people affected by the state's past anti-marijuana laws and others who were given preference to receive licenses. Felicia Reid, the agency's acting executive director, told her staff in an email obtained by The New York Times that the affected businesses include 60 dispensaries that are currently open and 45 others that are getting off the ground, as well as 47 applicants who were required to secure deeds or leases in advance. Officials said the change stemmed from a review of the agency's practices that Ms. Reid ordered last year. In letters to the businesses, Ms. Reid acknowledged that her agency's decision might have harmful repercussions for people who have poured their time, money and energy into jump-starting the legal cannabis industry. 'To give you this news, and for the weight of it, I am incredibly sorry,' she said. In a statement, the agency said it was seeking an unspecified legislative solution to help the dispensaries stay in place. But in online guidance, officials cautioned that if lawmakers did not act, the agency could not renew the dispensaries' licenses at their existing locations. The agency has also set aside $15 million to help cover the expenses of finding a new location for the affected applicants looking to open dispensaries. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.


Associated Press
a day ago
- Business
- Associated Press
Texans Deserve Choice, Not a Monopoly: Texas Hemp Business Council Urges Lawmakers to Defeat SB 5
AUSTIN, Texas, July 28, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Texas Hemp Business Council (THBC) today issued the following statement: 'As SB 5 heads to the Senate floor during the special session of the 89th Texas Legislature, Lt. Governor Dan Patrick and Senators Charles Perry and Roland Gutierrez are actively looking to gift-wrap the entire cannabis market to a few, select state-licensed marijuana companies, one of which already controls over 75% of the market. 'Their claim that the restrictive Texas Compassionate Use Program (TCUP) can replace hemp-derived cannabinoids is misleading and dangerous. 'TCUP currently serves just over 100,000 patients and requires registration, physician prescriptions, higher prices and fewer options. While HB 46 was an attempt to improve the program, it does little to expand real access to a restrictive and expensive TCUP program that serves an entirely different purpose than hemp. 'Meanwhile, hemp is legal and regulated under federal and state law and serves millions of adult consumers and veterans who rely on affordable, accessible alternatives for wellness, pain relief and more. 'SB 5 would destroy a $10 billion industry that supports over 53,000 jobs and eliminate economic opportunity for thousands of small business owners across the state. All being done under the false flag of 'safety,' while the real goal is market control by a politically connected few. This isn't about protecting public health, it's about protecting a monopoly. 'Governor Abbott's veto message was clear: regulate hemp responsibly, don't ban it. Texans deserve choice, not coercion. SB 5 is prohibition disguised as policy and lawmakers should reject it. Public opinion, economic data and common sense all point in the same direction: this is a manufactured crisis driven by special interests, not public demand. 'At a time when Texas faces real and pressing challenges like strengthening flood warning systems, redistricting and providing meaningful property tax relief, some Senate leaders are spending this special session pushing a hemp ban Texans clearly don't want. It's a clear example of misplaced priorities and misguided policies. 'That's why THBC and the vast majority of Texans strongly support a common-sense alternative that includes 21+ age limits, child-resistant packaging and setbacks from schools. It's the right path forward for public safety, economic freedom and the future of hemp in Texas.' About the Texas Hemp Business Council The Texas Hemp Business Council is an industry organization dedicated to promoting the hemp-based cannabinoid industry in Texas, while advocating for consumer safety, education and stakeholder engagement. More information is available at Media Contacts: Natalie Mu/George Medici PondelWilkinson 310.279.5980 [email protected] [email protected]