Uruguay to distribute cannabis at 1$ per gram

Uruguay continues its march towards legalization under a state monopoly. Legalized in 2013 to stop drug traffickers, weed is gradually establishing itself as a normal state-distributed product. Uruguay has a different system to the USA, since pharmacies to distribute cannabis recreational. All citizens over 18 will be able to obtain one by providing ID and leaving fingerprints.

To achieve this, the Uruguayan government called in two companies: Pharmacorp and International Cannabis Corp(ICC). These two companies were commissioned to grow 4 tonnes of weed in order to legally supply the Uruguayan market. The mission seems simple enough, but there are some important specifications to be met: produced in Uruguay, without chemical fertilizers that are harmful to health, and available for less than a dollar a gram (30 Uruguayan pesos).

A few drawbacks

As in France, the pace of state administration differs from that of business. The CEO of International Cannabis Corp, for example, complained about the poor timing of the order, citing «a lack of summer sunshine to gorge the flowers and, as a result, increased electricity costs [which] reduce profitability».

According to their spokesman, Carlos Fernandez, pharmacists are not trained to sell drugs: «We are not convinced that pharmacies are the best place to sell recreational drugs, but we are preparing to do so with a counseling and prevention approach».

Even consumers don't fully embrace the state monopoly system. Indeed, being registered in a gigantic state database to smoke a joint doesn't excite everyone.

But CCI CEO Guillermo Delmonte still praises the advantages of this system effective from July 2016 If our cannabis is healthy, cheaper and of better quality, I don't see why people would buy anything else«. At the moment, a gram of illegal cannabis costs around 3 $.

Uruguayans are playing hard to get now that they can possess six feet at home, belong to a cannabis social club and buy up to 40 grams of cannabis per month in a pharmacy. Ingrates.

Théo Caillart