99.7% Of Cannabis In France Remains Unregulated
As of 2022, the European Union Drugs Agency estimated that France had the greatest cannabis consumption rate of any of its member nations, with a reported 10.6% of France’s population having consumed cannabis at least once within the last year.
Unfortunately, cannabis use by adults for recreational purposes remains illegal in France, and only patients enrolled in the country’s medical cannabis trial experiment are permitted to consume cannabis legally. As such, nearly all of the cannabis consumed in France comes from unregulated sources.
“Despite a strict prohibition policy in France, the figures are clear: after the Place Nette operations, 99.7% of the cannabis circulating in France remained on the black market.” reports Newsweed (translated from French to English).
“This observation highlighted by the NORML France association in a report entitled “Why legalize cannabis in 2025” aims to show the ineffectiveness of repressive measures and raises the question of their relevance in the face of a market that continues to prosper.” the outlet also reported.
Health authorities in France announced late last year that the nation’s medical cannabis trial experiment will be extended until July 31st, 2025. The announcement is welcomed news to the reported 1,800 suffering patients estimated to be currently participating in the trial.
“The experiement was due to end on 31 December 2024, but at a meeting on Thursday between patient associations and the health authorities, the Ministry of Health gave the green light for it to run for a further six months, FranceInfo reported.” stated RFI in its local coverage.
The French medical cannabis experiment received initial approval from the federal Senate back in 2019, however, the launch of the trial was delayed until the spring of 2021 due to various reasons.
Initially slated for two years, France’s medical cannabis experiment was eventually granted a one-year extension and was set to end in 2024 before receiving the latest extension pushing the estimated end of the trial to the summer of 2025.
According to a recent newsletter sent out by international cannabis economist Beau Whitney of Whitney Economics, France is home to the largest total addressable cannabis market in the European Union with a value of $11.3 billion (midpoint).
A previous study by an economic advisory board within the nation’s prime minister’s office determined that the French government spends roughly €570m annually on cannabis prohibition enforcement. The study recommended that France adopt adult-use cannabis legalization and launch a regulated recreational industry.
Emmanuelle Auriol, a professor at the Toulouse School of Economics who authored the study’s report and findings, estimated that such a policy change could create as many as 80,000 new jobs, and generate €2.8bn in taxes annually.
