Israel, the world's largest importer of medical cannabis

Israel has officially dethroned Germany as the world's largest importer of cannabis in the world.

According to data reported by MJBizDaily, At the end of May, around three tonnes of cannabis flower were imported into Germany for the distribution of pharmaceutical products, according to responses to a parliamentary inquiry.

For its part, Israel imported almost 4 tonnes of cannabis in early June, and by July, Israel had imported over 6 tonnes of cannabis flowers into the country, according to the publisher of Israeli magazine Cannabis (קנאביס), Oren Lebovitch.

According to Cannabis, One of the reasons why Israel is such an attractive destination for cannabis flower exports is that its import requirements are less stringent than those of European Union countries. Many cannabis growers around the world who do not have EU-GMP certification, and therefore cannot send their flowers to Germany, are considering Israel as a destination for their products.

Oren Lebovitch told MJBizDaily that another reason for high import rates was «insufficient domestic production of THC-rich flowers to meet domestic demand».

Recent legislative changes that have decriminalized cannabis have reduced the obstacles to obtaining a prescription for medical cannabis, which could also explain the rise in demand.

«Current import agreements suggest that more will be imported in the second half of the year,» added Lebovitch.

At the same time, Israeli exports, despite authorization, are in fact still blocked. The fact that domestic production is too low in relation to domestic demand has led to a sharp rise in prices, making it difficult to compete with Canadian or South American cannabis producers. The rule was also to export once the domestic market was filled, which is not the case. A third reason is that Israeli production standards are lower than those in Europe, which are based on the EU-GMP.

Israel will therefore first have to work on its domestic production before turning to international markets.