Nico Schack had hoped to take advantage of Germany’s new laws allowing the possession of cannabis, but his dream of starting a club to share the drug with others in Berlin has been put on hold.
Instead, he decided to open an office in the neighboring state of Brandenburg, because he believes that The procedure for obtaining a license in the capital was very slow and unclear.
“I think many clubs are very uncertain now, because the demands are very high, and they still want to wait, maybe to have a clear situation and know that the demand will also be positive,” said Mr Schack, CEO of Bunte Blüte.
Visiting a club that grows and shares cannabis has been one of the ways that users have accessed the drug since Its consumption has been made legal in Germany in April, although with restrictions.
However, candidates for the creation of these clubs face different levels of bureaucracy in different states.
Berlin local government told Euronews that the city’s health department should handle their approval, but a cost analysis must be done first. In the meantime, districts handle that, in a process that applicants describe as cumbersome.
The slowness of the procedure is particularly inconvenient for users in Berlin, where cannabis consumption is significantly higher than the national average. A 2021 survey found that More than half of Berliners have used cannabis at least once.
Alex Khourdaji, an analyst at research firm Prohibition Partners, said the challenges could push consumers to turn to illegal sources.
“A lot of people who were going to set up felt it was too bureaucratic, so they decided not to set up cannabis grow associations,” he said. “Now, with fewer cannabis grow associations, a lot of consumers are in the dark, which gives them the attitude or the feeling that they might be drawn back into the illicit market.”
Mr Khourdaji adds that many are turning to growing their own cannabis.
A report from Prohibition Partners says the creation of cannabis clubs is a “long and difficult process”.
Although cannabis possession has been legalised, this has not ended the black market, and residents can buy it illegally in parks in central Berlin.
Make cannabis illegal again?
Continued illicit sale of this drug could play into the hands of those opposed to its legalization and lead to the repeal of the law that authorized it in the first place.
The conservative Christian Democratic Party (CDU), which is leading the polls, told Euronews that repealing the law would be a priority after next year’s elections.
The party said there had been a massive increase in drug-related crime, but the Ministry of Health responded to Euronews that such statistics were not yet available for this year.
“The legalization of cannabis was a huge mistake,” wrote Tino Sorge, a CDU MP and health policy spokesman for the CDU and its sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU), in a statement. to Euronews.
“The consequences for the health of children and young people cannot yet be predicted,” he added. “It is therefore a priority for the CDU/CSU parliamentary group to overturn this law and stop its harmful effects after the next elections.”
As for Mr. Schack, the uncertainty surrounding the implementation of cannabis legalization has dampened the party mood that previously reigned.
“I’ve been waiting for legalization and fighting for it for many years, so of course I was very excited and impatient when it was announced,” he said. “But today, everyone is a little disappointed.”
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