Amongst the many countries that have the potential to become a frontrunner in the cannabis industry, Thailand represents the first Asian country that has made steps towards regulating the in-country production of medical cannabis.
At the end of 2018, Thailand’s government legalized medical cannabis. The licensing guidelines that have been drafted represented a framework that would have also allowed the country to evaluate the impact of the industry on the country. The evaluation period lasts 5 years, and legislation can be changed, or even withdrawn within this period. Not everyone can apply for a license – only if you are part of one of the seven groups that can apply. These groups are state-run research agencies, professional healthcare practitioners, privately-run medicine education institutions, farmers who are legally registered to grow cannabis, trans-border public transport operators, foreign patients, and other people specified by ministerial regulations.
Private companies are not explicitly listed in the seven groups that can apply for a medical cannabis license. Yet, this only means that private companies have to collaborate with one of the authorized groups.
As the report by Cannabis Catalyst states, the Thai medical market looks definitely promising, because of the fast-regulatory developments, and from a cultivation standpoint, for the particularly suitable growing conditions in the country. The unique situation of Thailand as the first Asian country to regulate such matters makes it as a sort of gateway to the Asian market as a whole, as soon as it opens up.