Cannabis Products Act: Our assessment of the draft

A lot of work has gone into the draft of the Cannabis Products Act (CanPG). The result is a monster of paragraphs: 92 articles on 47 pages, plus a report of 188 pages. Is it really that complicated with hemp? Not really. But the draft wants meticulous control.

A first overview

It takes several hours to read everything. In the policy group, it took us seven hours to discuss the provisions. In addition, there were several discussions with other organizations. It's a lot, which is why this page provides an initial rough assessment before we look at the various areas in more detail on one page each.

Consumption finally unpunished!

The regulations for consumers are good: consumption is free, possession and cultivation are legal within limits. A maximum of three plants in home cultivation is restrictive. Nevertheless: That would be a big step forward!

Cultivation and sale

Commercial cultivation and production is possible with a federal permit, similar to the pilot projects already in place today. The first big catch is the sale: this will only be possible with cantonal licenses, which is very restrictive. A company receives a permit if it meets the conditions. A license, on the other hand, can be refused even if the conditions are met. This restricts competition. The cantons can arbitrarily decide who receives a license and who is denied one.

Decisive decisions only in the regulations

Many details will only become clear with the CanPG regulations. There are no drafts of these yet. This leaves open exactly what the regime for production and sales will look like.

However, the biggest known problem is the level of the incentive tax: this will be determined and adjusted by the Federal Council in an ordinance. The amount is therefore not laid down in the law. However, there is an illustrative table in the report that contains such high rates that a gram of weed or hash with 20 % THC would cost over CHF 20. This is hardly a serious threat to the black market (and, incomprehensibly, this goal is not mentioned anywhere in the law). But if not the abolition of the black market, what is the purpose of the whole exercise?