The legal cannabis market continues to expand in Spain. A report by Canna Monitor, the main consultancy firm in the sector in Spain, has revealed the figures of the legal marijuana industry, in which it places revenues above 500 million euros, with an increase in demand of 12% compared to the average for the last five years. The figures correspond to 2022, the last year available. With an investment of 370 million in the last five years, the industry has implemented, through new R&D strategies, a development plan with which it hopes to reach 8 million consumers by 2030.
The exploitation of legal marijuana in Spain is made up of more than 450 companies that are developed in different markets, such as medical cannabis, hemp and CBD (the acronym for cannabidiol) and technical agriculture completed at this time. harvest. The final product is marketed through 515 specialized points of sale, such as consumer associations or herbalists and pharmacies (specifically 40).
The sector denounces that illicit sales and illegal domestic consumption amount to around 2,000 million euros. “Spain has opportunities to position itself as a center of talent and knowledge in the sector, lead the genetics market in Europe and improve its regulations based on the evidence and data available,” says Arnau Valdovinos, spokesperson for Canna Monitor. He defends the positive impact that the regulated industry has on the labor market, by “creating almost 7,000 jobs and contributing more than 130 million annually to the treasury and social security coffers,” he adds.
The consultancy claims to have public opinion on its side: “Up to 9 out of 10 Spaniards support allowing the medical use of cannabis.” With this statistic in hand, the forecast is that investment will increase to reach higher figures in the coming years: “Sales of legal cannabis for medical use could exceed 300 million euros in 2030 and require more than 30 tons of flower or equivalent to supply the market,” concludes Valdovinos.
Medicinal products are the most sought after items. These are “non-psychoactive cannabinoids”, mainly used in oils, creams, flowers, resins and cosmetics, with the intention of helping to relieve stress, promote relaxation and offer benefits for various conditions. Defenders and promoters of the use of cannabidiol point out that it “has therapeutic properties such as analgesic, anti-inflammatory, anti-epileptic and antioxidant effects.”
Health professionals do not deny these arguments, but they do add that “it is true that some benefits have been found for epilepsy, mobility difficulties caused by multiple sclerosis or pain, but the reality is that the cannabidiol industry does not wants to be subjected to randomized clinical trials and they do not allow themselves to be regulated by the Spanish Medicines Agency, like any other drug, to officially decree that there is real evidence of their performance,” comments Rosa Calvo, member of the Col·legi Board. Barcelona Metges official.
However, cannabis associations maintain that the products they promote are based on CBD and do not contain THC, which is the substance that generates addiction and has more psychoactive principles, something that Dr. Calvo, on the other hand, questions: “These products have not been subject to any official analysis, it is not possible to affirm that they are non-psychoactive substances.” Furthermore, she adds, “in many cases CBD is sold and promoted as pure, but it has been shown to also contain THC concentrates.”
