European cannabis market worth €240 million in 2019

The legal market for medical marijuana In Europe, it amounted to approximately 240 million € in 2019 according to the report «Medical Cannabis in Europe: Markets and Opportunities.» recently published by MJBizDaily.

Germany continues to be the most important market for medical cannabis in Europe, with an estimated sales value of €170 million, ahead of other major European markets such as Italy (€20 million) and the Netherlands (€10 million).

The number of cannabis prescriptions covered by health insurance rose by 671% between 2018 and 2019 in Germany, while sales in Italy increased by 491% over the same period, and by only 51% in the Netherlands.

Denmark, despite a very small number of patients, sold €7 million worth of cannabis-based treatments in 2019. As the report notes, Denmark succeeded launch a pilot trial of therapeutic cannabis and truly give access to cannabis a small number of patients. Nevertheless, as of the end of 2019, no Danish medical cannabis products had been distributed to national patients or exported abroad, despite 44 production licenses granted.

In addition to dried cannabis flowers, the cannabinoids Isolates are a major product category in Europe, accounting for approximately 30% of reimbursed sales in Germany and the vast majority of sales in Austria. Supply issues persist, although they no longer constitute a major obstacle. In Germany, at least 30 different flower varieties are currently available. However, the availability of full-spectrum extracts could still be improved there.

Although adult-use cannabis is not the subject of the report, it notes that 2019 was a dead year for legalization efforts. Luxembourg did not achieve any significant legislative milestones after the announcement at the end of 2018. of his intention to legalize. Switzerland always has a pilot project underway, far from materializing. The Netherlands has moved forward with its legal cannabis cultivation experiment to supply coffeeshops, which will finally limited to a few small municipalities.