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Gothenburg sweet shop selling ‘cannabis’

A sweet shop in central Gothenburg has started selling synthetic drugs that have not yet been classified as narcotics but whose effect is the same as cannabis.

The products are a mix of herbs sprayed with the synthetic cannabis compound cannabinoid. When smoked they reportedly prompt a similar reaction in the body to marijuana.

While the products are legally available for the time being, customers looking for an inebriating stupor will have to fork out 379 kronor ($53) for a three gramme portion, reports the Göteborgs-Posten daily.

“As a private individual I can say that I would not like my child to go shopping there,” said Håkan Börjesson, chief investigator in the narcotics division.

The products have long been a thorn in the side of anti-drugs campaigners as police can not intervene and seize substances not formally classified as drugs. When the products are eventually classified as narcotics, manufacturers simply adjust the chemical make up and business continues as usual.

Until recently trade has been restricted to the internet, but now the Gothenburg confectioner has expanded into the controversial sideline.

Kai Knudsen, drug expert and consultant at the Sahlgrenska University Hospital, has warned against all use of synthetic cannabinoids. Several types of the drugs have already been classified as narcotics and a number of variants are currently subject to an investigation by the Public Health Institute (Folkhälsoinstitutet).

“Some synthetic cannabinoids can even be more dangerous than natural cannabis,” Kai Knudsen warned.

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