The marijuana market of North America has taken the world by storm over the past year. With Canada becoming the first G7 nation to legalize the recreational use of cannabis, the rest of the world seems to be benefitting from the domino effect of legislation. Across Europe, South America and parts of Africa, various countries are working to catch up to the examples set by the U.S. and Canada on how successful a legal cannabis industry can be.
Europe has been an integral part of the cannabis market for several years now, but several countries are still waiting on the proper legislation to begin sales. Germany has been leading the charge for legal cannabis since its inception. The country decided to legalize the domestic use of medical marijuana around two years ago which was a large paradigm shift being one of the first European nations to do so. Vic Neufeld, CEO of Aphria stated that “From sales, Germany could have bigger market significance than Canada one day.” This is quite a hefty statement considering the size of Aphria and the Canadian market as a whole. Aphria is one of a handful of companies working to get a solid foothold in this potentially huge industry.
As of now, the country is suffering from a weed shortage due to the fact that all of their cannabis is imported from Canada and the Netherlands. This means that in order to get a functioning weed market up and running, the country will need to begin producing its own cannabis for sale domestically.
One of the other important markets that many investors are considering is the African nation of Lesotho. The country has been growing cannabis illegally for several decades, but a revamp of the industry means that the quality of the product is jumping up tremendously. A little over a year ago, Lesotho became the first African country to legalize the growth of marijuana plants for sale in the medical industry. Since that time, the industry has seen a massive boom due to the high rates of demand and the potential to grow large quantities of cannabis. In addition, this new market has created a large variety of jobs that did not exist prior.
One of the new potential markets that has begun to pique interest is that of Thailand. Many have stated that Thailand currently has some of the best pot in the world, but the country is still lacking as far as legislation is concerned. The global market on cannabis is expected to have turned as much as $12 billion in revenue since 2017 which is quite substantial considering where the industry was only five or ten years ago.
Back in the 1600s, Thailand classified cannabis as an herbal medicine, but since that time it has gone up to a class five narcotic, prohibiting sales, production, and consumption of the plant. Most of Asia currently has a very stark stance when it comes to pot which has halted the industry’s proliferation. With studies going on regarding cannabis in the country, it seems as though the distant future could potentially see the market in Thailand growing to a legal industry where the public can consume cannabis as they so choose.
The international world of cannabis is one of great excitement as we move toward the future. The only thing that still stands in the way is the legislation needed to make these industries a reality.
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