Morocco Approves First Cannabis Seed Imports for Legal Cultivation

In accordance with the law on the legal use of cannabis passed in 2021, the National Office of Sanitary Safety of Food Products (ONSSA) issued on Monday the authorization to import cannabis seeds to the beneficiaries who were previously content with the permit from the National Agency for the Regulation of Cannabis Activities (ANRAC). With this authorization, the beneficiaries will be able to import the first cannabis seeds meeting the required legal criteria (less than 1% tetrahydrocannabinol or THC), which will then be delivered to about twenty farmers who have requested to start the legal cultivation of this plant.

The production of these farmers will be sold to the cooperatives created for this purpose for processing and marketing, under the supervision of ANRAC representatives and other relevant administrations. "It is a circuit with great traceability," said sources from a processing cooperative that will focus on the extraction of cannabidiol (CBD) from the plant for pharmaceutical use. These professionals are optimistic about the regulation of the sector in order to improve the living conditions of farmers and make the kingdom a preferred destination for European industrialists "due to the competitive production costs it presents".

"Within three years, major international pharmaceutical companies will rely more on Morocco in the production of CBD," the same sources assure, adding that the families who lived from the illegal cultivation of cannabis, who earned between 100,000 and 150,000 dirhams (between 9,000 and 13,000 euros) per year, will see their income increase with legal cultivation. In March 2022, the government issued a decree implementing the law on the legal use of cannabis passed in June 2021 by parliament, to designate the north of Al Hoceima, Chefchaouen, and Taounate, as the legal cannabis cultivation areas. These are the provinces historically known for this activity.

The royal decree also requires that the beneficiaries of the various authorizations related to this activity submit monthly reports to ANRAC on the production and sale of cannabis, the status of warehouses, seeds, plants and products, to prevent any use of cannabis for "recreational" or "criminal" purposes. Nine types of permits are currently issued by ANRAC: cultivation and production, creation and operation of nurseries, import and export of cannabis seeds and plants, processing and manufacturing, transport of cannabis and its products, marketing, import and export of cannabis and its products. From October 2022 to date, ANRAC has already issued about 250 permits, a third of which to farmers.