Hanover and Frankfurt Will Be the First German Cities to Legally Sell Cannabis for Adult Use

Frankfurt and Hanover are launching five-year pilot projects for legal, regulated cannabis sales to adults, aiming to reduce illegal market demand, address health risks from contaminated products, and create safer environments with age verification and health monitoring. These projects, supported by public and private institutions, will provide data to guide national cannabis policy in Germany.

Pilot Projects for Legal Cannabis Sales Are Coming to Germany, with two cities, Frankfurt and Hanover, planning to open shops where participants can legally buy cannabis products under regulated conditions, creating what could become a model for national cannabis reform in Germany.

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Hanover Pioneering a Cannabis Project

The Hanover model project, led by Mayor Belit Onay of the Green Party, could launch as early as 2025. The five-year project will allow participants to buy cannabis products from up to three authorized outlets. Open to about 4,000 Hanover residents aged 18 and over, the project aims to evaluate the social, health, and economic impacts of legal cannabis sales.

Participants in Hanover will register online or in designated stores and receive a pseudonymized ID card, allowing them to purchase legal quantities of cannabis.

Research led by Hanover Medical School (MHH) will track participant behavior and health outcomes throughout the project. As the city’s mayor explains, this approach considers the rising cannabis consumption across age groups and acknowledges the ineffectiveness of prohibition policies: “The number of people using cannabis across all age groups in Germany is steadily increasing.”

By carefully monitoring legal consumption, Hanover seeks to address issues such as the rise in THC levels and contaminants in black-market cannabis, both of which pose significant public health risks.

The Frankfurt Model

Similarly, Frankfurt will undertake a five-year study allowing adults to legally purchase cannabis from four licensed stores. The initiative, coordinated by Elke Voitl and Artur Schroers of the city’s drug and health departments, aims to combat the health risks associated with the illegal cannabis market.

Sanity Group GmbH, a pharmaceutical company with experience in regulated cannabis distribution in Switzerland, will oversee the Frankfurt project’s implementation in collaboration with Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences.

A primary goal of the Frankfurt project is to curb illegal cannabis sales and provide safer, tested products. According to Voitl, contaminated cannabis products pose significant health risks, with studies indicating up to 70% of samples contain harmful impurities. The model project aims to mitigate these risks by offering clean, regulated cannabis in a controlled environment with mandatory age verification and health checks.

Participants in Frankfurt will undergo regular health screenings, and certain groups, such as pregnant women and individuals with mental health issues, will be excluded to ensure their well-being.

This medically supervised model aims not only to reduce black-market demand in Frankfurt, but also to provide early support for individuals showing signs of problematic consumption.

Expected Outcomes and Future Implications

Hanover and Frankfurt have high expectations for their model projects. These regulated systems are expected to reduce crime rates associated with illegal drug sales, decrease health risks related to contaminated products, and enhance youth protection.

Unlike illicit vendors, who do not enforce age restrictions, these pilot shops will strictly adhere to German age laws, creating a safer environment for consumers and communities.

The involvement of Sanity Group allows for collaboration between public institutions and private companies to study effective cannabis regulation. The findings from these studies in Frankfurt and Hanover could inform future national policies, potentially expanding regulated cannabis access across Germany and creating a comprehensive framework for cannabis legalization.

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(Featured image by Pixabay via Pexels)

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