California: 3 days to cannabis legalization

California, the largest state in the United States with 40 million inhabitants and a GDP equivalent to that of France, will allow any adult of legal age to purchase cannabis from January 1, 2018.

The legalization of cannabis in California voted in November 2016, along with Maine, Massachusetts and Nevada. Medical cannabis has been legal there since 1996.

While France is still debating decriminalization and leaning towards a fines for cannabis users, California will become the world's largest legal cannabis market on January 1, while Canada implements its controlled cannabis regulation. next July.

Regulated and controlled legalization

The legalization of cannabis does not mean the sale of cannabis at the school gate. From numerous rules regulate and control the sale and consumption of cannabis.

A recreational user may purchase no more than 28g of cannabis at a time (224g for a medical user) and may grow 6 cannabis plants at home.

Cannabis-infused products edibles, They must be presented in 10mg THC portions, with a maximum of 10 portions in a pack, to avoid the risk of overdose. Packages should be difficult to open and not childishly designed, to avoid accidents with children who might confuse the product with a cigarette. space candy with a classic candy.

All products sold must be tested for pesticides, heavy metals, molds and solvents.... to guarantee the sale and consumption of healthy products.

In the event of infringement, the fines will remain heavy, both for companies that fail to comply with the rules and for individuals who continue to feed the black market.

What are the effects of legalization?

On our side of the Atlantic, it will be interesting to see the repercussions of this legalization. Uruguay, which legalized cannabis in 2013, is a small country of 3.4 million inhabitants. In terms of size and economic activity, California is more like France.

But cannabis use is already very different there. No one is alarmed by its mere consumption, medical dispensaries are commonplace and people share a joint like they drink a glass of red wine in France. As we found out on our trip last year, California is the future for cannabis enthusiasts.

Since medical cannabis is already very widespread (medical prescriptions for cannabis are very easy to obtain), the actual increase in sales is unlikely to be much. as huge as Nevada. In contrast, black market sales in California are estimated at $13.5 billion, while the medical market is worth $5.1 billion.

The first studies believe that recreational sales will absorb 62% of current cannabis sales, and 30% will remain on the black market, the difference going to medical cannabis. We could therefore see the emergence of a hitherto partly underground market worth $10 billion, on which the state would collect between 15 and 45% in taxes depending on sales (excise taxes, sales taxes, cultivation taxes, different taxes on medical and recreational cannabis...).

Needless to say, Californian dispensaries are in the start-up-blocks for the opening of sales. 42 dispensaries have so far been licensed to open on January 1, while those in Los Angeles and San Francisco are expected to open a little later.

Californian cannabis legalization campaigners have been waiting for this since the 60s. In 3 days, a new world will open up to them!