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How does the German cannabis industry rate 2025? The actors show themselves torn back and forth. In the medical market, participants report safe patient care despite rapid growth, while at the same time they fear the consequences of a change in the MedCanG. Cannabis club officials are pleased that some licenses were granted in 2025 – at the same time, they criticize the somewhat slow pace at which the clubs are starting. And while those involved in the pilot projects enjoy strong support from municipalities, cities, and academia, this contrasts with the rejected applications from the Federal Office for Agriculture and Food (BLE). 2025 therefore seems like a year in conflict for many.
stability
Luc Richner, co-founder and CEO Cannavigia summarizes that legalization „was not a short-term PR move, but is being brought to life step by step“. This gives „orientation, stability and growth perspective.“ Cannavigia further developed its own platform in 2025 with regard to GACP, GMP and GDP compliance. Finn Hänsel, CEO of the Sanity Group, also expressed positive surprise at how „cannabis medical care remained stable in 2025, despite political uncertainty and growing regulatory debates“. Digital care models in particular are a fundamental prerequisite for therapy in rural regions. Hansel: „The fact that this system worked despite adverse conditions shows how real the medical need is and how professionally large parts of the industry work.“
Falk Altenhöfer of cannabis startups reports that in 2025, various players professionalized their business models. Despite the political uncertainty, “structures have matured“. Altenhöfer also points to the better data situation as a result of the upswing. This transparency about prices, volumes and patient flows has been good for the industry and helped it make data-driven decisions.
uncertainty
Despite more stability and professionalization, Altenhöfer criticized the „enormous regulatory volatility“ in 2025. As a result, some companies slipped into „downright emotional chaos“. Finn Hänsel speaks of massive „planning uncertainty“ and warns of „impending treatment interruptions“ for patients. Thomas Hauk, Managing Director of Linnaeus Partners, expresses surprise at the extent of the anti-investment uncertainty. In his opinion, this was also fueled „by the permanent ‚reversal‘ rhetoric of politics“. International and national investors have been massively deterred by the debate about the cannabis law, Hauk speaks of it as an „ideological pawn“. Linnaeus Partners launched in 2025 and aims to provide advice at the interface of science and genetics.
Henry Wieker, department coordinator of the Federal Association of Cannabis Cultivation Associations (BCAv), therefore criticizes „that our prince riders have completely disappeared from the scene in the SPD“. Kevin Lange of Highperformer420 also considers the SPD to be „quiet“ when it comes to cannabis. On the other hand, it is emphasized that Dr. Nikolaos Katsaras, Managing Director of GCS – German Cannabis Standard, did not hastily destroy the new government „everything that the previous government had put in place“. GCS cultivates cannabis underground for scientific purposes and raised investor funds in 2025 to build a medicinal production facility. At the same time, the company operates several tech products, including Cannaflow, a B2B software for pharmacies.Nevertheless, Boris Moshkovits of Alephsana criticizes the „ongoing regulatory ambiguity and hesitant political readjustment, especially beyond the medical market“.
Against this background, the cannabis specialist lawyer Ferdinand Weiß, partner at Dr. Engelhard, Weimar & Colleagues, is impressed by the „perseverance of many actors who continue to fight despite the greatest adversities, setbacks and stones placed in their path and do not allow themselves to be defeated“. At the same time, he criticizes „sometimes blatant violations of the law“ that provide politicians with „arguments to once again call for stricter laws.“
Evaluation
Wieker, under whose chairmanship a club in Hanover was successfully launched in 2025, speaks of „a defamation campaign – that no longer has any arguments“. The results of the evaluation are, in his view, distorted. This is how Cansativa emphasizes Linkedin, that an increase in consumption among children and adolescents could not be detected. According to the wholesaler’s analysis, other frequently expressed fears such as „an escalation of public consumption or significant burdens for municipalities“ are also not confirmed in the data so far. Antje Feißt, Public Affairs Lead of the Sanity Group, also points to the already surprisingly clear „social effects of decriminalization“. In a survey conducted by the Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences and the Evangelische Hochschule Freiburg, three-quarters of respondents no longer fear prosecution since the law was introduced.
Cultivation associations
Luc Richner welcomes the fact that by mid-2025, over 350 applications for crop consolidation had been approved. In his opinion, structures for legal cannabis are therefore establishing themselves „visibly“ – „with real associations, not just theoretically“. As a company, you can help plan and shape a „growing, legitimate ecosystem“. Consultant Dr. Shabnam Sarshar highlights „that new clubs are increasingly emerging in previously underserved regions, creating real access and community structures“.
On the other hand, Richner, business leader of the Track’n’Trace solution with a special module for cannabis clubs, limits the fact that de facto only a few cultivation associations are already active themselves. This ensures that the black market remains attractive. Henry Wieker also thinks that cannabis clubs are developing slowly. Florian Pichlmaier, Managing Director of Signature Products, on the other hand, points out that the legal market has already been significantly strengthened through targeted regulatory and implementation steps. Regarding the clubs, he rates the overall picture as „fragmented“. „In several federal states, no licenses have yet been granted or cultivation and distribution have been effectively prevented due to construction/official obstacles.“ Signature Products has developed, among other things, the „Hemp app, a software specializing in cannabis clubs.
Medical market
Antonia Menzel, Chairwoman of the Board of the BPC, welcomes the high acceptance of medical cannabis among patients, doctors and pharmacies in 2025. It estimates that there are 15,000 jobs available and 1.5 to two billion in annual sales in the pharmaceutical cannabis industry. However, the currently planned reforms to the Medical Cannabis Act could make access to therapy more difficult and create uncertainty and pressure on business models. Menzel therefore criticizes the current draft for the „blanket interventions in telemedicine and shipping“, which also affect „reputable care structures“ and „endanger the security of care for patients. Finn Hänsel agrees: Instead of addressing structural problems, „digital access and quality-assured pharmacy shipping would be questioned“.Menzel accordingly warns of great uncertainty for a previously stable supply area. From Steffen Geyer’s perspective, there were no supply shortages in pharmacies in 2025 despite „immense growth in demand“. Boris Moshkovits, co-founder of Alephsana, speaks of a grown „pharmacy landscape“ – the wholesaler he co-founded alone now supplies 1,000 pharmacies. In view of this development, it is no longer a „transitional phenomenon“, but a „resilient market“. However, he criticizes the increasing price pressure without clear quality and evidence standards.Co-founder of Alephsana, speaks of a grown „pharmacy landscape“ – the wholesaler he co-founded alone now supplies 1,000 pharmacies. In view of this development, it is no longer a „transitional phenomenon“, but a „resilient market“. However, he criticizes the increasing price pressure without clear quality and evidence standards.Co-founder of Alephsana, speaks of a grown „pharmacy landscape“ – the wholesaler he co-founded alone now supplies 1,000 pharmacies. In view of this development, it is no longer a „transitional phenomenon“, but a „resilient market“. However, he criticizes the increasing price pressure without clear quality and evidence standards.
Niklas Kouparanis, co-founder and CEO of the Bloomwell Group, points to the Epidemiological Addiction Survey, which shows that there can now be 1.4 million cannabis patients in Germany. According to Kouparanis, with regard to the „potential indications in which medical cannabis can be used, actually still far too little“. He also writes down towards the end of the year Linkedin with regard to the initiated reclassification of cannabis in the USA from Class | to Class III to possible new investments and more research. In total, 2025 was an „endurance test“ for the entire industry.
For Thomas Hauk, the positive surprise in the medical cannabis market in 2025 was the „breakthrough of inhalable extracts and certified application forms“. For a long time, Germany has been a pure flower market, but this year „we have seen a maturation process towards true pharmaceutical innovation“, says Hauk. The decisive factor for this was the step towards closed systems with vaporizers certified as medical devices. Demecan refers in a Linkedin-Post on, among other things, a fresh extract using the Live Rosin process and collaborations for the production of THC gummies.
Pilot projects rejected
Richner complains that commercialization is largely blocked. The second building block of the reform, regulated sales through specialist shops or pharmacies, is not currently being implemented. Katsaras therefore regrets that consumers „still cannot obtain cannabis as a recreational product simply through qualified retail stores“. Unnecessarily many, according to Katsaras, still obtain this through the black market on the street.
Antje Feist is nevertheless impressed by the „strong support for scientific cannabis pilot projects among municipalities, science and associations“. She is all the more critical of the rejections that have taken place, after „intensive technical inquiries and considerable investment of time and resources“ – and this despite the fact that science and cities have been „always willing to talk“.
Die deutsche Cannabis-Industrie 2025: Auf der Suche nach Stabilität in volatilen Zeiten
