Spain: Europe's new cannabis powerhouse?

Legislation governing the cultivation, sale and consumption of cannabis in Europe varies from country to country. In Spain, consuming and possessing cannabis in the private sphere is tolerated, provided the quantity does not exceed five grams. Consumption will not be prosecuted, as the country does not consider simple possession of cannabis to be a crime. On the other hand, consumption is prohibited in public places, according to the 1992 civil law.

Cannabis production in Spain has increased dramatically in recent years. The proof is in the pudding: over 300,000 plants were seized in 2015. Cannabis laboratories are established in the country and operated by organized groups wishing to export cannabis to Northern Europe.

Spain: a European source of supply 

The country has long been considered the entry point for cannabis into Europe, particularly for cannabis resin from Morocco. Now, local cannabis production has increased. Cannabis cultivation seizures rose by 53.6% between 2013 and 2014, then by 40.3% in 2015. Two recent cases add to this observation:

Four cannabis seizures in 48 hours in southwest France

On May 23, 2017, customs officers in Hendaye (Pyrénées-Altantiques) a town not far from the Spanish border, intercepted vehicles registered in the Netherlands. They found 167 packets of cannabis weighing a total of 134 kg, concealed in the vans. The Dutch drivers were arrested. The next morning, customs searched another vehicle driven by a Romanian driver carrying 415 kg of cannabis resin. On the same day, another brigade, this time in Millau (Aveyron), inspected a Spanish-registered truck coming from Spain, where they found no less than 408 kg of hashish. Finally, on the same evening, the Narbonne customs brigade (Aude) intercepted a French-registered lorry, also coming from the Basque country. They found almost 313 kg of cannabis.

A new seizure this Thursday, June 8 in the southwest of France

Yesterday, 76 kilos of cannabis resin were found in a rental car near Bayonne (Pyrénées-Atlantiques). A young man from Nantes was driving the car, and was stopped by customs on the freeway coming up from Spain. He is now in police custody and will appear before a judge today. The young man is suspected of being «a trafficker or importer».

Organized groups

Francisca Pérez, 50, is nicknamed «the President». She is said to have a flourishing cannabis business in Marabella in southern Spain, and to have set up various laboratories in the country. «The gangs are taking over the cannabis market because it's so profitable. Prices range from 5 to 25 euros a gram, and penalties are less severe than for other drugs. Given the small size of each plantation, when they are arrested, they are released very quickly,» asserts a Spanish police officer.

Explore all the data and graphics behind the 2017 European Drug Report in our Statistical Bulletin: https://t.co/Q40LNaZ3Za #openData pic.twitter.com/WaMyNz3KPH

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- EU drugs agency (@EMCDDA) June 7, 2017

According to data from the’European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA), Spanish police seized over 379,8000 cannabis plants in 2015, a quantity that far outstripped the UK and the Netherlands.

Laurent Laniel, a scientific analyst with EMCDDA, stated that «cannabis resin has always been a product in abundance in Spain, but also in France and Italy. In this sense, Spain is part of a general European trend», he said. He adds, «As a result, Europe is becoming a large producer of cannabis that it wasn't before. And Spain is certainly one of the countries that has recently been caught up heavily in this movement».

In Valencia in December 2016, a gang was caught by Spanish police selling cannabis in vegetable shipments bound for Germany and Poland. Last month, police again found plantations that were packed and hidden in marble boxes in trucks bound for Liverpool.

Franscico Babín, a Spanish government delegate for drug policy, said: «The number of cannabis-related seizures in Spain has increased considerably, not only in terms of operations, but also in terms of quantities seized, and the production of Spanish cannabis exported to other European countries. There is no doubt that cannabis is a fashionable drug these days.»

Mehdi Bautier