While there are various goals for Germany’s cannabis policy modernization efforts, the main underlying premise of recent reforms is to effectively combat the nation’s unregulated cannabis market. When consumers and patients use regulated cannabis products instead of unregulated cannabis products, public health outcomes are boosted.

With that in mind, it is as important as ever for lawmakers in Germany to support, rather than hinder, the nation’s regulated cannabis market in 2026. As long as cannabis opponents inside of Germany’s government continue to work to try to create harmful roadblocks to industry progress, the nation’s unregulated market will continue to thrive.

There is zero proof that cannabis prohibition policies prevent cannabis consumption and commerce. All that prohibition policies do is cede the German cannabis market to unregulated sources who then supply the demand, with some of those sources being nefarious actors.

Germany’s legal cannabis model is based on various components, the largest of which is currently the nation’s medical cannabis supply system. The medical side of the industry equation is booming, and despite what cannabis opponents claim, there are no objectively major issues being caused by the rise of safe access in Germany.

The progress made in recent years for medical cannabis access in Germany must be maintained in 2026. Minor tweaks and adjustments to regulations may not have a major impact, but significant overhauls that are being pursued by cannabis opponents in Germany’s government will clearly result in suffering patients being the biggest ‘losers’, and the unregulated market being the biggest winner in the potential fallout.

Another key component of Germany’s legal cannabis industry model is cultivation associations. Cultivation associations involve adult cannabis consumers becoming members of the associations and sourcing their cannabis products legally.

The total number of approved cultivation associations has ticked upward since prospective operators could start applying on July 1st, 2025. However, significantly more approvals are needed if the cultivation association sector is to reach its full potential, and with it, effectively help combat the unregulated market.

Cannabis opponents in Germany’s government have created a ‘catch-22’ situation when it comes to cultivation associations. Opponents are doing their best to hinder the number of approved cultivation associations while simultaneously pointing to the ongoing existence of the unregulated market as ‘proof’ that cultivation associations are not working. The hypocrisy was recently called out by the Federal Association of Cannabis Cultivation Associations earlier this month, and rightfully so.

“On the occasion of the three-day Conference of Interior Ministers (IMK) beginning today in Bremen, the Federal Association of Cannabis Cultivation Associations (BCAv) expresses its concern regarding the draft resolutions reportedly submitted by the CDU/CSU interior ministers. The demands to categorically halt approval processes for new cannabis cultivation associations and drastically reduce legal possession quantities, in the BCAv’s view, demonstrate misguided symbolic politics that directly contradict the objectives of the Consumer Cannabis Act (KCanG).” stated BCAv in a press release (translated from German to English).

“The interior ministers justify their initiative with alleged “negative developments” and point out that growers’ associations have so far contributed little to meeting demand. This analysis is cynical: It is often precisely these restrictive state authorities and excessive bureaucratic hurdles that have massively delayed the start of the associations for months.” BCAv also stated.

“The fact that growers’ associations only cover a fraction of the market is not proof of the concept’s failure, but rather the result of a politically motivated obstructionist stance in many federal states,” explained Heinrich Wieker, coordinator of the BCAv.

An absolutely vital need in 2026 for Germany’s cannabis industry is the long-overdue approval of regional adult-use cannabis commerce pilot trials. The concept of pilot trials was approved by German lawmakers in 2024, and cannabis opponents must stop acting like Germany would be doing something unheard of by approving pilot trials.

Pilot trials are already operating in several jurisdictions in the Netherlands and Switzerland, with no major issues reported. If those countries can do it, so can Germany. The wheel doesn’t need to be reinvented. Only time will tell if 2026 proves to be the year that pilot trials finally get off the ground in the European nation. Hopefully common sense wins out, and the dozens of pending German pilot project proposals are approved.