Malta Officials To Confiscate HHC Products, UK's Medical Marijuana Private Sector Booms, Germany Advances Licensing

Over the past several years, Europe has become more open-minded about medical and recreational marijuana. Here are some of the latest cannabis developments from Malta, Germany, and the United Kingdom.

Malta: Officials Will Confiscate HHC Products

Malta officials confirmed recently in a press conference that police and officials from the Superintendence of Public Health will start confiscating HHC products in the coming days, writes Times of Malta.

The ban on HHC products was recently confirmed by Joey Reno Vella,the CEO of Authority for the Responsible Use of Cannabis (ARUC). Reforms Junior Minister Rebecca Buttigieg said that “the ban means the shops must immediately cease importing HHC products."

HHC is a semi-synthetic cannabinoid and a hydrogenated form of THC. To bypass the law and offer psychoactive products to buyers some chemists are using legal THC from hemp. Sellers of HHC products claim it provides euphoric sensations, but also mental and physical relaxation. HHC can be found in the form of dried flowers, resins, oils and vaping concentrates.

“I’m not usually keen on bans as I believe in the individual’s freedom to choose, but in this case, expert advice made it clear that banning the products was the safest option for all. It was dangerous to allow them to be sold on the market,” Buttigieg added.

ARUC-licensed cannabis associations were never permitted to manufacture or sell any HHC-infused products or market them, she said.

Vella highlighted that these products were "being sold in a manipulating way as a legal alternative to cannabis. It was being sold as a dried flower sprayed with HHC, as pre-rolled joints, vapes, oils and – worst of all – edible products, usually sweets.”

He added that the products were not tested and potentially contained harmful substances.

Buttigieg pointed out that the the sale of HHC products was affecting the goal of cannabis reform, which was to offer regulated and safe products to cannabis users.

Germany: First Cultivation License In Soest District Approved

The first cultivation license in the Soest district (in the middle of North Rhine-Westphalia) was recently granted to "GrüneWiese" cannabis association from Werl. A total of three out of 18 applications in the Arnsberg administrative district have been approved so far. The remaining 14 are being assessed, writes Born 2 Invest.

"A huge weight has been lifted from our shoulders," said Phillip Dülberg is a board member and is also in charge of cultivation. Members invested a lot of money and time in the project since the association was founded in April. It was established with nine founding member, but now there are around 50, with the eldest member having 77 years.

"Our aim is to get to know each member personally," said Dülberg, hinting that the association will not accept people with a drug addiction problem for example. Moreover, the association is working on prevention of the misuse of cannabis and has appointed and trained a prevention officer, in addition to a doctor who is also on board.

GrüneWiese's cultivation area in the first expansion phase will be a maximum of 200 square meters (2152.78 square foot). The first flower are expected to be harvested in early 2025.

Read Also: Germany’s Most Populous State Approves First Cannabis Cultivation Application

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The United Kingdom: Number Or Private MMJ Prescriptions Doubles Each Year

The number of privately prescribed medical marijuana products has doubled each year since 2021, according to data from the NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA). More precisely, private prescriptions for unlicensed cannabis-based medicines grew from 6,137 in Sep. 2021 to 22,431 in Sep. 2023, writes The Business of Cannabis.

The numbers suggest a compound annual growth rate of 84%.

While it is possible to access medical marijuana through the National Health Service (NHS), this rarely occurs and only in severe cases of epilepsy, chemotherapy-caused nausea or certain cases of muscle stiffness associated with multiple sclerosis (MS). Since medical marijuana is not widely available via the NHS, many families struggle to afford life-saving medicine for their children.

Additionally, CLEAR Cannabis Law Reform issued the third edition of its "How to Regulate Cannabis in Britain" report, calling for the establishment of a “Cannabis Inspectorate” to oversee the cultivation, distribution, and sale of cannabis.

A proposed budget is £200 million ($261.36 million), and the report suggests that legalization and taxation of cannabis at £1 per gram could generate between £3.3 billion and £9.5 billion in annual revenue for the Treasury. The legalization could also save the criminal justice system up to £646 million annually, although compliance costs are estimated between £157 million and £317 million.

Read Next:

• As Number Of Medical Marijuana Patients In UK Skyrockets, Non-Profit Launches Crowd-Funder To Run Cannabis Legalization Campaign

Photo: Courtesy of Bukhta Yurii via Shutterstock