The BBC reports..
Cannabis cafes in the Netherlands are to be supplied legally with drugs from regulated producers as part of a trial aimed at tackling the black market.
Under Dutch law, cannabis can be sold over the counter in licensed coffee shops, but it is currently illegal to produce and supply the drug.
The country’s loose policy on cannabis has seen criminal enterprises flourish.
From 2021, cafes in 10 cities will get a legal supply of “quality” cannabis as part of a four-year experiment.
Cultivating cannabis is a contentious issue in the Netherlands, a country famous for its liberal drug laws.
The cities chosen, and still to be approved, are: Arnhem, Almere, Breda, Groningen, Heerlen, Hellevoetsluis, Maastricht, Nijmegen, Tilburg and Zaanstad.
As part of the experiment, cannabis will be cultivated by nationally approved growers. The coffee shops in these towns will be obliged to participate: in other words they will no longer be allowed to procure their produce from growers operating under the legal radar.
Cities in which the drug’s cultivation will remain unregulated will be monitored and the results will then be compared.
Read the full report: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-49508526
