Large plantations, delivery services, weed shops: they all hoped to make big money from legalization. And now? Is the German cannabis industry pretty pissed off.
From
Benjamin Emonts and Lea Hampel
In a former slaughterhouse near Dresden, they had already sensed big money in November last year. Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) had just presented his plans for cannabis legalization in Germany: around 400 tons were to be produced annually for the German market. That would be the equivalent of more than two billion joints. The Berlin start-up Demecan, which until then had only cultivated medicinal cannabis here, felt compelled to boost production. It formulated planning applications to increase the acreage and began looking for investors. By the end of 2024, the company could increase from one to 25 tons a year, it said.