22.8M Europeans Used Weed Last Year, German University Launches Marijuana Cultivation Course And UK's 'Cannabis Martyr'

Over the last several years, Europe has become more open-minded about medical and recreational marijuana. Here are some of the latest cannabis developments from Germany, the U.K., and across the continent.

Germany: University Of Applied Sciences Launches Cannabis Cultivation And Production Course

The University of Applied Sciences Erfurt will be starting a new course as part of its plant cultivation degree program – the cultivation and production of cannabis. This course will be open starting next winter semester, reported ASB Zeitung.

Per the university's announcement this week, this is believed to be the first course of its kind in the country. Following Germany's partial cannabis legalization rise in demand for hemp-based products happened, but also the interest in the plant among horticulture students grew.

“But up until now, there has been an absence of professional production, scientific research and training in Germany,” said Wim Schwerdtner, head of the horticulture department.

See Also: German Company Launches Largest Digital Platform For Medical Cannabis In All Europe

UK: Man Who Went To Prison 4 Times For Running Cannabis Cafe Is Back In The Game

Gary Youds, a 54-year-old owner of a cannabis cafe called the Chillin' Rooms in Liverpool went to prison four times for running this business, writes Vice. After getting out again in February this year, released from a three-year prison sentence, he opened the business again.

"The potheads have been discriminated against for too long," Youds told the outlet. "All revolutionaries go to jail. But cannabis brings community together, that's why I've always gone back to it. I want to build a golden bridge so the authorities can retreat from the war on drugs."

This time he found a way to keep his business without ending up in prison thanks to medical marijuana legislation that happened in 2018. Reopening his business on April 20, he's been running it legally – not selling cannabis but allowing registered medical marijuana patients to vape prescribed weed flower. Youds is now earning from beverages and snack sales plus the entry fee. But still, he is running a place where people can use marijuana, which seems to be enough of a personal victory for him.

Vice calls him a ‘cannabis martyr' and his message is "I will never give up, and now I've won."

Report: Cannabis Is The Most Commonly Consumed Illegal Substance In Europe

The European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) released its annual European Drug Report this week, concluding that cannabis "remains by far the most commonly consumed illicit drug in Europe."

"National surveys of cannabis use would suggest that, overall, an estimated 8 % of European adults (22.8 million aged 15 to 64) have used cannabis in the last year." the authors of the report stated.

The report highlighted that some 1.3 % of adults in the European Union (3.7 million people) consume marijuana daily or almost daily

The research also revealed that in 2022, EU member nations reported 243,000 seizures of cannabis concentrate amounting to 468 tonnes (816 tonnes in 2021), and 234,000 seizures of floral cannabis amounting to 265 tonnes (256 tonnes in 2021). The overall quantity of cannabis concentrate seized in the European Union decreased by 43% in 2022.

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