Hamburg's cannabis clubs start: the extension is now official!

Hamburg's cannabis clubs start: the extension is now official!

Around a year after the partialization of cannabis cultivation in Germany, ten associations are now taking up breeding in Hamburg. The first harvests have been announced for the end of June to August 2024, which fuels enthusiasm among the members of the clubs. It is particularly interesting that two of the Hamburg clubs have their space in Lower Saxony and one in Schleswig-Holstein. The Altona district office, which is responsible for the permits in Hamburg, cannot provide any information about the amount of harvested cannabis, as the Borkener Zeitung reports.

A total of 22 cultivation associations have submitted an application for approval. The company is a new challenge for the first two clubs that have already received permits. The "High End Social Club" was admitted as the first facility in October and for the first time in February gave cannabis to its members. In addition, from July 1, 2024, non -commercial cultivation associations with up to 500 members can receive a license, which could give clubs in Hamburg access to a broad membership.

The new cannabis landscape in Hamburg

The "Hansa Cannabis Club", founded by Christian Krüger and Christopher Schultz, already has about 250 members and strives for a maximum permitted number of members of 500. Interested parties have a contribution of 20 euros per month. The club plans to set up a "grow system" in Schleswig-Holstein, even though they are still waiting for the growing permit. As the taz reports, however, you have received your application for approval with change requirements, which delays the process.

The concerns of the Hamburg interior senators and school senator regarding partial legalization give rise to discussion. In addition, the public prosecutor's office in Hamburg has reported increased workload due to the new regulations. Despite these challenges, many clubs are optimistic. The representatives of the Hansa Cannabis Club hope for approval by the end of November to plan their first harvest for March 2025.

social effects and challenges

The legalization of cannabis cultivation should not only strengthen health protection, but also contain illegal drug trafficking. The Cannabis Act (Cang), which has been in force since April 1, 2023, allows over 18-year-olds to have up to 25 grams and the extension of up to three plants per person. It also states that cannabis can be cultivated and released in cultivation associations in order to promote self -consumption without pursuing commercial interests.

However, there are also critical voices. In a survey by the IFO Institute, 34 % of those surveyed stated that they were benevolent to the bill, while 40 % clearly spoke out against it. Some of those come from parents, teachers and the police. Statistics show that 2021 was consumed in 8.8 % of the population of cannabis. The Federal Government plans to review the law in autumn 2024 in order to evaluate possible consequences and developments, which should also go into the fears of critics.

The development in Hamburg is part of a larger trend in Germany where drug policy will rethink. In some federal states such as Lower Saxony and Bremen, cultivation associations have already been approved, while Schleswig-Holstein led behind and have not yet approved social clubs. The SPD in Schleswig-Holstein has launched this, which criticizes that the state government does not respond adequately here.

summarized the situation in Hamburg shows that the new cannabis landscape has both hope and challenges. It remains to be seen whether partial legalization will have a positive effect in the long term-however, the first steps are taken.