Whither The Cannabis Home Grow Movement In Germany Now?

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The world is about to wake up to the German version of what is known here as “legalisierung.” While to “Auslanders” this term may look like a much longer and more vowel confused word for cannabis legalisation, welcome to the world that looks normal, auf Deutsch.

To Germans, this is now what is in the process. Those people who have been super sick, who have fought for access can now buy up to 5 oz every month in their local pharmacy for about $12. Those who are sick, getting sick, and or will be sick, may, with a regular prescription, will not have to fight for it anymore. They will not have to face the police to get their drugs. Or deal with black market street dealers. They will not have to grow it.

However, this is an issue that has two sides to it. And that is and of itself has been a major issue for patients – and further one that has been highly contentious in the reform movement just about everywhere. The reality also is that in a society like Germany, where public medicine is just beginning to win the war on smoking tobacco, they do not want the next one to be about cannabis. Smoking or otherwise ingesting a substance that can change health outcomes is one thing. The Germans are just very aware of not wanting to create the wrong one.

Vaping cannabis

There is little to argue with on a rational basis.

What does this all mean, however, for home grow here?

Just like in the United States, this is an issue not likely to go away, albeit for some different reasons.

That starts with the idea of being prohibited from growing something that you consume, no matter what it is. That is now the law here on a federal level. Even patients are not allowed to grow their own.

That is already being challenged on a more fundamental basis – namely under the banner here of a still vigorous recreational movement. The idea of not being able to grow a crop, no matter what you do with it downstream, is so anti-German (if not anti-human) that there are those who have decided to say, auf Deutsch, kussen mein arsch, and for many reasons.

To a large degree, this also includes growers who have developed a passion for the plant. Cannabis is a fascinating weed on just about every front. Its “androgeny” as it were – literally the plant has hermaphroditic qualities – seem to draw those to its creation who exist in a slightly different place. Growers are just committed and connected to the plant itself – commonly with an overlay of mysticism, no matter how well they hide that behind a daily functioning life unconnected to what they do.

cannabis home growing

However, this is also an agricultural crop that produces a highly valuable commodity. At their core, Germans do not like being told that they cannot do something so German.

Add to this another phenom. Germany may not be the face of the mom and pop, however, defined, anymore. However, it is still very much the country of what is called the “Mittelstand.” These are smaller to medium family run businesses. And their influence is everywhere.

Given the options on the table, Mom, Pop, and the family hund are eyeing cannabis right now with a mixture of emotions that range from “freedom” however expressed, to economic stability.

For this reason, there are many solid Germans right now who are looking up from their daily life, which is pretty good comparatively to what is going on globally and deciding to enhance cannabis reform. This is no casual thing, however, calm the process may look to outsiders.

Even if they are out of the “home-grow” market, for now, they also can see a future where cannabis commoditization is going to happen in ways they can, in fact, reach out and benefit from economically.

For that very reason, “home-grow” is not dead here. There is a high likelihood in fact, that the home-brew movement may join with the “home-grown” cannabis movement.

This is very likely to morph into some kind of registered hobby (much like owning a pet), even if there is no commercial intent. The technology exists now for the seed to end-use consumption, and it is likely that German reform will include some kind of this reform. Even if that is on a state or regional level.

If patients were willing to go through the rigorous process of getting a license to become a patient in the first place, they are not going to just suddenly disappear.

For this reason, the most dedicated growers will organize into licensed collectives bound for a recreational market here that will be tightly restrained by existing regulations. Avid growers who are also patients will end up somewhere in the mix.

Home grow, therefore is not dead here. It is just in a transitory phase where new rules must be defined via dem weg (along the way).


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