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CANNABIS

Four of five Danes support legalising medical cannabis

More than 80 percent of Danes are in favour of legalising the medical use of cannabis, a new survey has found, increasing the chance that a pilot scheme planned for next year will lead to an end to prohibition.

Published: 27 February 2017 15:44 CET
Four of five Danes support legalising medical cannabis
Doctors will be able to legally prescribe cannabis under the new plan. Photo: Yuri Cortez/Scanpix
The survey by Analyse Denmark found that only five percent of people in Denmark opposed medical cannabis, with the remainder saying they did not have an opinion. 
 
“It shows that the population understands that certain patient groups have specific problems that cannot be treated by ordinary medicine, but where medical cannabis can help,” Lasse Skovgaard, health policy manager at Denmark’s Multiple Sclerosis Society, told the Avisen newspaper.
 
“I’m not surprised that there is so much support,” added Mette Bryde Lind, chair of the Danish Arthritis Society. “We see many arthritis patients with chronic pain and a poor quality of life. They have tried several treatments but medical cannabis can help.” 
 
Denmark plans from January 1 next year to launch a four-year trial which will allow “a defined patient group” to be treated with medical cannabis, after an agreement was reached in the Danish Parliament last November.
 
“The pilot project, which takes effect on January 1st, 2018, will make it possible for some of the patients who today medicate themselves to be treated legally with medicinal cannabis within the healthcare system,” a press release from the Health Ministry read. 
 
The Danish Medicine Authority (Lægemiddelstyrelsen) has put forward multiple sclerosis, chronic pain, spinal cord injuries and chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting as eligible ailments. 
 
The trial was voted almost unanimously through the Danish Parliament last November, winning the support of the ruling Liberals Party, the Social Democrats, the Danish People's Party, the Liberal Alliance, The Alternative, the Social Liberals and the Socialist Left Party.  
 
Several political parties in Denmark support the complete legalization of cannabis but the three largest parties – Venstre, Social Democrats and Danish People's Party – remain opposed to legalizing it for recreational use. 
 
Only 36 procent Danes are in favour of legalising Cannabis for recreational consumption, against 45 percent who are against, the survey found. 
 
The agency surveyed 1,040 respondents. 

HEALTH

VIDEO: Why CBD cannabis health shops are blossoming all over France

A recent decision by the European Court of Justice which prevents France from classifying cannabis-derived products (CBD) as narcotics has led to dozens of CBD wellness shops springing up all over France.

Published: 12 March 2021 11:25 CET
VIDEO: Why CBD cannabis health shops are blossoming all over France
Nathalie Pagé, a 52-years-old hemp cultivator, sells her cannabis products at the market of Crest, south eastern France. Photo: Philippe Desmazes, Bertrand Guay/AFP

Tomany Macalou got his green light for a Paris cannabis shop last November, when a European court chided France for cracking down on cannabis products stripped of the THC molecules that get people high.

Moving fast, he joined a new crop of entrepreneurs entering a less-illicit side of France’s cannabis market, offering buds but also teas, candy and oils containing only cannabidiol (CBD), the plant’s other main ingredient.

“Some use it to lower their blood pressure or help with insomnia,” Macalou told AFP at his shop, Cannabillion, just a few blocks from a police station in eastern Paris.

Traditional marijuana remains illegal in France, and even though President Emmanuel Macron’s government lowered fines for its use, it has no plans to join the legalisation trend in many countries.

But strict rules on hemp use — products can be made only from the plant’s fibres or seeds, not the leaves — made CBD sales a risky business.

WATCH THE VIDEO HERE:

Video produced by Alex Dunham

The law also says only trace amounts of less than 0.2 percent of THC can be present, a level that is easily exceeded — though still harmless — when extracting CBD from flowers, and none at all in items destined for human consumption.

Two years ago, authorities shut down dozens of businesses that had hoped to ride the wave of popularity for a compound that promises natural relaxation and other health benefits, though some experts dispute the health claims.

In November, however, the European Court of Justice said France was violating EU free market rules by forbidding imported CBD obtained from the entire plant, flowers and all.

“I knew the decision was coming, so as soon as it came I felt confident enough to go ahead,” Macalou said.

‘Radically changed’

France is already Europe’s largest producer of hemp, though mainly for the construction and textile industries.

The country now counts some 400 CBD shops, according to the SPC alliance of hemp professionals.

That’s nearly four times the number that were operational before the government’s crackdown two years ago, representing a market worth €150 million to 200 million ($180-$240 million).

“The context has radically changed,” said Aurelien Delecroix, the SPC’s president. “At the time, the association with recreational cannabis was incredibly damaging for the sector.”

But a growing appetite for natural remedies is attracting a wider range of clients, he said, and most shops have dropped their transgressive vibes for more a sober ambiance: Think pharmacy or organic grocery, not an Amsterdam coffee shop.

“I find it enjoyable and relaxing,” said Thomas Leclair, an architect in his 30s, who was at Cannabillion to buy tea as well as herb “so I smoke fewer cigarettes”.

“I also bought some oils that you put under your tongue: My roommate says it helps ease the pain when she has her period,” he said.

No high here: A saleswoman with a jar of CBD marijuana buds at “Le Chanvrier Francais” in Paris.

‘Reassured’

Jonathan Msika worked in the pharmaceutical industry for over 20 years before he made the jump to CBD, opening his Perfect Time boutique near the Place de la Nation in the capital.

“I have elderly clients who say they come here because they’re reassured by the atmosphere. They wouldn’t go to stores that are darker,” he said.

But France’s hemp laws haven’t changed since the European court ruling, meaning shops like his remain vulnerable to administrative closures.

The case was brought by two people in Marseille selling a “Kanavape” e-cigarette that used cartridges imported from the Czech Republic, and who were given suspended prison sentences.

A parliamentary panel report released Wednesday called for an easing of the rules, in particular by lifting the limits on trace THC amounts, to help the CBD market catch up with those in Britain, the United States or Switzerland.

The SPC estimates that could create a billion-euro market within just two years.

“If you have a shop that doesn’t bother the mayor, and get along with the police, work with the authorities and don’t attract the attention of a strict public prosecutor, you’ll be alright,” Delecroix said.

“But if you don’t, you could be taking a big risk.”

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