CANNABIS FOR WELLNESS
Switzerland reformed its law to allow the cultivation of hemp with up to 1% THC in 2016 . The Swiss CBD industry (“Cannabis Light” or “Cannabis for wellness”) has grown considerably since then and has become the CBD hub of Europe.
MEDICAL CANNABIS
While many patients rely on the illicit market instead of the legal pathway, Switzerland is currently reforming its law to broaden and facilitate the access to medical cannabis : patients with a prescription would no longer need “exceptional authorization” from the country’s Federal Office of Public Health. Only 3,000 authorizations were issued in 2019. They were mainly intended for patients suffering from cancer, multiple sclerosis (MS) or neurological pathologies. This impending change in the law, if confirmed, opens up whole new perspectives for patients in therapeutic stalemate, for whom cannabis may be a hope in the relief of their symptoms.
RECREATIONAL WEED
While Luxemburg is expected to become the first country in Europe to fully legalize the production of recreational marijuana, Switzerland has also made some progress towards fully legalizing cannabis lately. In June 2020, Swiss lawmakers gave the green light to a five-year experiment pilot program that would allow temporary cultivation and sales of cannabis for adult use (THC levels will be capped at 20%). The idea behind this experiment program on a limited number of healthy volonteers is to collect data and pave the way on subjects to debate whether the legalization of recreational marijuana is viable for the entire country or not.
