The cannabis industry is booming, medical cannabis is becoming increasingly popular. We were visiting a laboratory: that's how much the grass from the pharmacy costs.
For security reasons, we cannot say exactly where it is located: The listed cannabis company Cantourage has a production facility in tranquil Lower Franconia. Medical cannabis is produced on site.
The cannabis law that recently came into force is also a stroke of luck for the medical industry. Since April 1st, cannabis is no longer considered a narcotic. “It has become easier to get a cannabis prescription because doctors are opening up to the topic and more doctors are prescribing,” says Cantourage boss Philip Schetter in an interview with
IPPEN.MEDIA.
“Cannabis now has a status like Ibuprofen 600. It is not a narcotic, but it is available on prescription.”
In addition, a new audience opens up for the entrepreneur. “The first consumers are already switching from the black market to the medical system.” This only has advantages: “The product from the pharmacy is better. You know exactly what’s in it.”
Like food, the cannabis delivered to pharmacies is printed with the ingredients. Consumers can see how much THC content the cannabis has or where it comes from. Cantourage does not grow itself, but rather processes hemp plants from partners in Uganda, New Zealand or Uruguay. “The quality and the active ingredient are constant, you get the same product,” explains Schetter. There are currently completely different and often stretched varieties available on the black market.
Medical cannabis: This is how much the grass from the pharmacy costs
Medical cannabis is also convincing in terms of price compared to the black market. “On the black market we are currently at eight to ten euros per gram – depending on where you live. For a low-quality product, that’s crazy.” Cannabis from the pharmacy costs five to 15 euros per gram, depending on the variety.
“For the varieties that you get for 15 euros per gram, you would probably pay 30 to 40 euros in a coffee shop in Amsterdam,” says Schetter. "It's almost ridiculous what's happening in the medical sector right now that the products are so cheap: significantly cheaper than the black market, significantly cheaper than on the recreational market." How the prices will develop at the cultivation associations (cannabis clubs), is not yet fully foreseeable. The first clubs told
IPPEN.MEDIA
to ask for seven euros. However, there is also the membership fee.
Amazon strategy for cannabis: This is why weed from the pharmacy is so cheap
Why is medical cannabis so cheap? “Many of the market participants have raised a lot of money and bet on the cannabis market of the future,” says Schetter. Many companies have invested several million. That's why many companies are currently basing their business model on Amazon's history. This means: “You make the product cheap to get market share and at some point you turn the screw and make a profit.”
Cantourage sells the cannabis to pharmacies throughout Germany. In order to get a prescription, you actually need a doctor's consultation. On site in the practice or, as with Cantourage, online via video call. However, research by our editorial team shows that there are also some providers who circumvent this requirement. Schetter confirms this: “There are the first business models where recipes are created almost automatically.”
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