We continue with our celebration of the industry's just-passed 4/20 holiday, and today, four other growers share their insights and opinions on the state of the cannabis industry so far this year. Yesterday, we took a special look at the European market. Before flying away from Europe, we'll briefly stop in Portugal, then move on to South Africa and New Zealand. Growers from South Africa and New Zealand are both eyeing the European market - and considering all that we discussed yesterday, it makes sense.
Ahara - Portugal
After all, the European medical cannabis market is experiencing steady and promising growth, led by the German market, which remains the largest and most dynamic in the region. With recent regulatory reforms under CanG, Germany imported over 72 tons of medical cannabis flower in 2024 - more than doubling its 2023 volume. The UK is also showing encouraging signs, nearly doubling its imports and projecting over 140,000 patients by 2028. However, the rest of Europe continues to lag due to fragmented regulations and limited patient access. A large portion of the current supply still comes from non-EU countries, particularly Canada, but EU-based producers like Ahara are quickly gaining traction. "For European buyers - especially wholesalers and pharmacies - the ability to work with reliable local partners is becoming increasingly important. Faster logistics, fewer customs hurdles, and compliance with EU-GMP standards make EU-based cultivation not only more sustainable but more commercially viable," says Joao Lourenco, founder of Portugal-based Ahara. However, regulatory challenges remain the main bottleneck preventing European medical cannabis from expressing its full potential. "While demand is increasing, the pace of regulatory change across Europe is inconsistent. Each country has its own standards, timelines, and approval processes, which creates friction in the supply chain. Meeting pharmaceutical-grade specifications for a plant-based product adds another layer of complexity. At Ahara, we've built a fully integrated pharmaceutical facility to minimize these bottlenecks - with cultivation and post-processing all under one roof. However, aligning our production pipeline with varying national requirements still requires significant agility and regulatory expertise. It's a constantly moving target."
With Germany confirming that the reforms introduced in April 2024 will remain in place, the German medical cannabis market is expected to continue growing steadily through 2025. It remains the largest opportunity in Europe, both in terms of patient volume and regulatory clarity. The UK is also accelerating, with patient numbers and imports on the rise, "and Ahara will begin supplying that market this year as well," Joao concludes.
Blom Medical - South Africa
South Africa has recently made headlines due to the unexpected - and quickly withdrawn - ban on hemp products. But the country also has a very lively medical cannabis scene, with many growers operating truly top-notch facilities and exporting their products to Europe and Australia, for instance. These two countries have extremely stringent medical cannabis import regulations, and the ability of some South African growers to export to those markets speaks volumes about their level of professionalism. One of these growers is Blom Medical. "All our product is currently exported," says Matthias Bakker, co-founder of the company. "We've seen strong demand from Germany over the past six months. Until recently, we needed to actively market our product, but with the recent surge in interest, most of our crops are now sold before harvest. Through our communication with our German clients, we've gained some insight into the market - particularly how telemedicine clinics and online services have been key drivers of this growth. Australia has also proven to be a solid market for us. While volumes are smaller, orders have been consistent."
However, every grower - not just cannabis growers - has been speaking up about local production and its importance for a country's self-sufficiency. So, why is it that Blom Medical exports all of their cannabis, instead of supplying the local market and joining the trend of favoring local production? "Our local market in South Africa has been disappointing so far. Urgent regulatory changes are needed to unlock the potential of the medical cannabis sector. Currently, patients are required to submit a Section 21 application, making access prohibitively expensive and unnecessarily cumbersome. The government has sent mixed messages — for example, the banning and subsequent reversal of the ban on cannabis-infused food products. Industry leaders continue to call for regulation over repression."
Europe and Australia, in any case, represent good markets for Blom Medical, to the point that increasing production has become a priority - with all that it entails. "With the growing demand for premium flower, we've made the expansion of our cultivation a priority. We're currently utilizing half of our greenhouse (5,000 sqm). The market response to our flower has been extremely positive; we believe the timing is ideal to scale up to full capacity. We've also recently introduced new genetics into our facility - something we're genuinely excited about. While we continue to work with strong-performing cultivars, we're fully aware of the need to continuously improve our genetic offering, with the long-term goal of gaining exclusivity on select strains."
Scaling up is necessary in an industry that is growing, and as more countries come online, demand is bound to increase further. "I believe we're entering golden years for the cannabis industry, largely driven by growing demand in Europe. The greatest opportunities lie with facilities that can consistently produce high-quality flower while keeping costs down — particularly greenhouse operations located in moderate climates with abundant sunlight."
Beyond Buds - South Africa
Blom Medical's sentiment on the local market is echoed by Roy Ingle from Beyond Buds - another South African grower solely focused on export. "Locally in SA the cannabis industry players are still patiently waiting for central government to provide a legal framework for access to patients."
For them too, Europe represents the most interesting medical cannabis market. "Globally, and specifically in Europe, we are witnessing cannabis research projects coming to term (Poland/France/Italy) and reports being presented to parliament. The German market has more than doubled over the past 12 months, and the UK market is rapidly gaining traction. We see France, Poland and Czech as the next big medical cannabis markets in Europe."
© Beyond Buds
Beyond Buds' cultivation is located in the mountains, which brings a whole specific set of challenges - the main one being access to power. That is why the company has come up with solutions to avoid being left without power all of a sudden. "We have started a journey to wean ourselves off the state-supplied electrical grid, and be completely independent and are well down the road. Without constant power, and full redundancy, you cannot grow consistently high quality product."
Beyond Buds is currently laser-focused on Europe, and Roy believes there'll be even more opportunities in the coming period. "Europe will expand its horizons beyond Canadian product and become more competitive for cultivators around the world, with the UK and France being the next big markets in Europe."
Puro - New Zealand
New Zealand and Australia also have quite a lively medical cannabis scene. And while there are still considerable imports into both countries, they're home to many medical cannabis growers bringing something special to the table - like Puro. "In New Zealand and Australia we are seeing a resurgence in industry positivity as patients and consumers learn to discern unique products, quality and brands," says Tom Forrest from Puro. "While there has been challenges for growers and manufacturers, we are starting to hear more 'good news' stories of collaboration, novel product development and companies finding their niche and thriving in their role in the value chain. We've seen several local producers (including Puro!) improve the quality and range of their products, with new genetics, processing and manufacturing technologies being implemented successfully. Quality remains the key to success."
© Puro
We've seen yesterday how many European growers feel there's an increasing need for education and awareness, and it seems as if the same goes for New Zealand and Australia. "I think the biggest challenge faced in the Australian industry is the lack of a cohesive platform for patient and industry feedback. There is too much reliance on Reddit rather than an open dialogue. The regulatory burden on advertising prevents patients and clinics from discussing products, which pushes the industry onto this unregulated patchwork of personal anecdotes, paid reviews, deep knowledge, questionable claims, misinformation and the occasional gold nugget of real insight. As cannabis moves out of the shadows I hope to see platforms for more refined consumer feedback that promotes education. We are still dealing with the misnomer of 'sativa vs indica' and cultivar names that do not reflect their chemotype, which proves difficult when discussing our unique New Zealand cannabis cultivars and our special terroir we are able to produce."
According to Tom, one of the main areas where opportunities abound is in finished products. After all, not all industries market raw material - aka dried flowers - but rather offer finished products that appeal to different consumers' tastes. "Moving forward I see a really exciting industry as consumers are provided more options with novel delivery methods from special cultivars. I think cannabis breeding is only just getting started as we see minor cannabinoids, exciting flavour profiles and desirable agronomic traits that translate into really interesting cannabis products. This will also be complimented by further education in consumers and clinics, so patients can discern exactly what medicines will really improve their quality of life. The wave of solventless extracted products enhances these new cultivars to make something special. While I can't foresee when regulatory evolution will allow a more 'accessible' market and more open dialogue for consumers and brands, I am excited to see that consumer driven improvement will help push cultivators and manufacturers to new heights!" he concludes.
Stay tuned for part 3! Click here if you missed part 1