Cannabis-in-brief: Germany moves closer to reform, Malta grants first association licences and NHS to fund CBD trial

We bring you the news you might have missed from the week just gone.

The top lines this week: The German Cabinet approved a bill to implement the first phase of adult-use cannabis legalisation, while Malta moves to issue its first cannabis association licences.

In the UK, NHS Scotland is funding a six-figure trial into CBD and endometriosis and new research reveals growing support among GPs for medical cannabis as an alternative to opioid medications.

Catch up on the week’s headlines below… 

German cabinet approves bill to liberalise adult-use cannabis 

On Wednesday 15 August, members of the German cabinet passed the draft of a bill which will see the country take its first steps towards cannabis reform. 

The bill, which still needs to be approved by parliament, will see cannabis removed from the Narcotics Act and regulated under the newly-proposed Cannabis Act (CanG), implementing the first phase of Germany’s revised two-pillar approach to adult-use legalisation.

With the cabinet decision, the Federal Ministry of Health launched its first prevention campaign to educate young people and young adults on the potential harms of cannabis consumption.

Read more here 

NHS Scotland to fund clinical trial on CBD and endometriosis

NHS Scotland is funding a six-figure clinical trial to explore the effects of CBD on pelvic pain related to endometriosis. 

The Chief Scientist Office, part of the Scottish Government Health Directorate responsible for funding research in NHS Scotland, will provide £300,000 for the trial, Ananda Developments, announced in a press release on Tuesday 15 August. 

Researchers hope the findings will demonstrate the feasibility of a UK-wide study to determine whether a cannabinoid can reduce endometriosis-associated pain. If successful, it is possible this would provide a pathway for the product to be funded through the NHS. 

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UK GPs support cannabis as an alternative to opioids 

New research suggests a growing awareness and interest in medical cannabis as an alternative to opioid medications among GPs practising in the UK.

Almost two-fifths (37%) of GPs believe that medical cannabis has the potential to reduce patient dependency on other medications and improve quality of life (41%), according to market research on 150 GPs across the UK.

The survey, carried out on behalf of Sapphire Clinics in May 2023*, also found that despite this just 2% have ever recommended it to a patient and more than two in five are aware that patients are choosing to self-medicate with cannabis accessed illegally.

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Malta issues first two Cannabis Association licences ‘in principle’

Two years after Malta first moved to allow the consumption and cultivation of cannabis for adult-use, the Authority for the Responsible Use of Cannabis (ARUC) has issued its first licences, marking a major milestone for the country’s liberalisation campaign.

According to the head of the ARUC, Leonid McKay, who spoke with the Times of Malta, a number of other associations are ‘currently in the final stages of vetting and authorisation’.

In June it was revealed that 26 groups had now applied for licences to launch a cannabis association, but that number is now thought to be higher, with the first clubs expecting to be launched in full in Q1 next year.

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Researchers identify safer way to produce HHC

A new paper takes a closer look at hexahydrocannabinol, or HHC, an emerging cannabinoid which is gaining popularity in the recreational cannabis market in the US and Europe.

For the first time, researchers at UCLA systematically evaluated how well HHC binds to receptors in the human body, finding that only one version of the HHC molecule binds to the cannabinoid receptors as well as THC does.

The paper also highlights the variability in HHC products currently being sold to consumers and proposes a safer and more consistent method for producing it. 

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