Guernsey Issues Its First-Ever Medical Marijuana License: What It Means For This British Crown Territory

The Bailiwick of Guernsey Cannabis Agency has issued its first license in relation to CBD production. A bailiwick, by the way, is the area of jurisdiction of a bailiff. And Guernsey's BGCA just awarded the license to Celebrated, a company that makes a range of products using cannabis extracts, including oils and chocolate.

Tina Bolding, the company's director said she was delighted to have scored a license for the business and the wider industry on the island in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy. 

While cannabis remains a controlled drug within the Bailiwick and its production is prohibited unless carried out under license, CBD is not illegal. As such, Celebrated needed to show that the company is on the up and up.

“We had to work hard to demonstrate the high quality and professionalism that underpins our business, which is only right in a sector whose credibility comes in part from a robust regulatory framework," Bolding said.

The CBD license allows Celebrated to continue its existing business, but now it will be validated through the new system. 

Last year the Bailiwick of Guernsey established a licensing framework with the U.K. via a memorandum of understanding. In November 2021, the U.K. firm 4C Labs was given the first licence to cultivate medical cannabis in Guernsey.

Medical cannabis was legalized in England in 2018. Recently, London Mayor Sadiq Khan said he intends to stop prosecuting adolescents and young adults caught with marijuana in his jurisdiction.

Cannabis Companies Lining Up In UK

Cannabis companies offering medical cannabis products such as Aurora ACB, High Tide, Berners' Cookies via InterCure INCR, and UK-based GW Pharmaceuticals GWPRF are already functioning in the U.K.

Columbia Care CCHW (FSE:3LP) recently became the first company to formulate medical cannabis extract vaporizer pen products on U.K.-based manufacturing premises.