Keywords: Cannabis Distribution, Marijuana Distribution, Marijuana Processing, Cannabis Processing, Marijuana Production, Cannabis Production, Hemp
The Cannabis Production Landscape in Germany Germany focuses on medical cannabis inventory as patient numbers grow from 800 to 79,000 in just over a year. The history of cannabis production in Germany Germany’s history of cannabis cultivation has shown a healthy respect for the medical benefits of marijuana since the stone age. Cannabis seeds were planted 7,500 years ago in Thuringia, and in Wilmersdorf and Southern Germany in the 5th century. Tribal Germany used hemp in ritualistic traditions, and in the 19th century cannabis was celebrated for its medical properties. Much of Germany’s relationship with medical marijuana and hemp is influenced by the writings of Hildegard von Bingen, a 12th century visionary. Hildegard von Bingen wrote on the extensive health benefits of hemp, which expanded in Germany into practical uses like fibres and fabrics, as well as for recreational use. In 1982 hemp and cannabis cultivation was prohibited in Germany, but by 1996, extensive protests saw in the ban on hemp being lifted. Cannabis is now cultivated and imported for medical purposes.
Opportunities for Medical Marijuana Processing and Distribution in Germany The population of Germany sits at 82.2 million, with health expenditures exceeding 425.8 billion Euros. Before legalization on March 10, 2017, approximately 800 patients were prescribed medical marijuana, but within a year since legalization the numbers have shot up to over 79,000 patients. The healthy medical budget, and increased interest in using medical marijuana as a natural alternative to conventional medications, has forced Germany to focus on access to inventory. Inventory has been stabilized through the import of cannabis from Canada and the Netherlands. Recently, the German government has looked to start cultivating medical marijuana within the country and have begun accepting applications for licensing. Companies selected will have access to legally cultivate 6,600 kilograms of cannabis over four years.
International Cannabis Corp’s role in cannabis production and distribution in Germany International Cannabis Corp (ICC) was recently awarded an import license to supply Germany with 35,000 kilograms of medical cannabis over three years. ICC’s Ebersbach facility, located near Dresden, is the epicentre of ICC’s German import operation, where cannabis grown in other ICC sites, worldwide, can be imported, stored and packaged. The facility is EU-GMP certified in narcotics import and wholesale. Annual production of the facility is at least 2,400 kilograms of CBD isolate. Along with
import and packaging facilities, Ebersbach is also fully structured to support potential on-site cultivation with an 820,000 square foot clean room ready and waiting to be used. Germany holds limitless potential for the medical cannabis industry. International Cannabis’ European nutraceutical subsidiary has harvested over 120,000 kilograms of dried hemp for processing into resin. This first harvest used ground-breaking harvesting and drying systems, designed to gain the most from each yield. At 12,000 Euro per kilogram, the estimated wholesale value could reach $21,866,000 CAD. ICC has also applied for an indoor medical THC cultivation license, as well as a 164-hectare outdoor industrial hemp cultivation operation. August 2018 saw ICC commence its first harvest of industrial hemp. Another avenue that ICC has explored is selling CBC capsules through pharmacies in Germany.
Is ICC the new German benchmark? Germany is renowned for its high standard of quality across all industries, and cannabis production and distribution is no different. The opportunities seem endless in a county where the medical benefits of marijuana have been appreciated for millennia. Germany is opening its doors to companies across the world to ensure the demand for supply is met in the coming years. ICC is an early contender gaining the German government’s trust produce the quantities required at the ICC level of quality the rest of the world has come to expect. Ebersbach, as large a facility as it is, represents merely the beginning of ICC’s operational success in Germany. With Germany opening their hearts and medicine cabinets to medical marijuana again, after fourteen years, ICC has the potential to become the German paradigm with their custom strain capabilities and experience in cultivation, processing and distribution worldwide.