By Walter Willems and Simone Humml, dpa.
Berlin (dpa) – Imports of cannabis into Germany for medical and scientific purposes increased sharply over the course of 2024, with quarterly volumes nearly quadrupling, the Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM) said on Thursday.
Cannabis imports rose from 8.1 metric tons in the first quarter to 11.6 tons in the second quarter and 20.7 tons in the third quarter to 31.7 tons in the fourth quarter.
In total, more than 72 tons of dried cannabis flowers were imported for medical and scientific purposes in 2024, the agency said.
By comparison, around 2.6 tons were produced for these purposes in Germany itself during this period, the BfArM told dpa.
The annual quantity was determined a few years ago for a period of four years through an allocation procedure, the agency added.
At more than 33 tons, the majority of cannabis imported for medical and scientific purposes came from Canada, according to the BfArM, followed by Portugal with about 17 tons.
Next came Denmark (just under 7.4 tons), North Macedonia (2.7 tons) and Spain (2.2 tons).
The BfArM did not give any reasons for the sharp increase.
Since April last year, the non-medical use of cannabis has been legal in Germany for adults, subject to numerous restrictions.
It is permitted to grow up to three plants in private homes and to store up to 50 grams of cannabis. In addition, non-commercial “cultivation associations” with a licence are permitted to grow cannabis collectively for members.
“Given the sharp increase in the volume of imports, it can be assumed that the majority of them were not prescribed by registered doctors for medical purposes under statutory health insurance, but by online providers,” said Markus Beier, chairman of the German Association of General Practitioners doctors’ group.
Beier said that some of those online providers “are aggressively advertising the simple prescription of medical cannabis on private prescriptions as a private medical service.”
From a professional point of view, only a relatively narrow group of people are eligible for the prescription of medicinal cannabis, including patients with multiple sclerosis and in palliative care, said Beier.
Source: dpa.com