Business Cann reports
FURTHER delays to the Dutch adult-use cannabis trial look likely after the selected growers told the Government the proposed timeline is unfeasible.
They highlight their inability to secure adequate banking facilities, their struggle with high energy and other raw material costs and problems with the track and trace system established by the government for the experiment, reports news site NRC.
The Dutch experiment is designed to regulate sales and terminate the supply of black market cannabis to its coffee shops.
Initially scheduled for 2021 the Government delayed it to the second quarter of 2023, but the growers say it is unlikely to begin until at least the fourth quarter of 2023.
Cannabis Policy
Ten growers have been selected to legally grow cannabis for four years for coffee shops in ten Dutch municipalities: Arnhem, Almere, Breda, Groningen, Heerlen, Hellevoetsluis, Maastricht, Nijmegen, Tilburg and Zaanstad.
Their concerns came to light in letters from nine of the ten participating growers to Health Minister Ernst Kuipers and Justice and Security Minister Dilan Yesilgöz.
In a response to NRC, the two Ministries said they are in talks with the Ministry of Finance, growers and a bank about providing accounts, and will provide further details before the end of the year.
Meanwhile ministerial teams from Luxembourg met with their peers in the Netherlands to discuss the experiences of the Dutch recreational cannabis project.
The Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Health and Minister of Justice of Luxembourg were received in The Hague by representatives of the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport and the Ministry of Justice and Security.
The purpose of the visit by the Luxembourg team was to study possible steps towards the legalization of adult cannabis use.
