Thai Cannabis Businesses Grapple with New Ministry Announcement, Fearing Widespread Impact

CHIANG MAI, June 25 (TNA) - Cannabis entrepreneurs across Thailand are urgently calling for government relief measures after new Public Health Ministry announcement effectively ended recreational marijuana use, limiting sales and consumption solely to medical purposes. 

Businesses, particularly in tourist hotspots like Pattaya and Chiang Mai, had invested heavily following initial decriminalization and now fear significant losses and a detrimental impact on the tourism economy. 

In Pattaya, some cannabis shops remain open while others have temporarily closed, awaiting clarity. Pranchai Chaimontree of the Pattaya-Chonburi Cannabis and Medical Economic Entrepreneurs Club highlighted widespread concern among over 100 member shops, fearing a loss of economic opportunities that legal cannabis brought over the past three years.

Chiang Mai dispensaries also face uncertainty. An employee at Cloud Cannabis near Tha Phae Gate warned that reclassifying cannabis as a narcotic could lead to at least 20 million baht in damages for their farm alone. 

There are around 800 licensed cannabis shops in Chiang Mai. Many shop owners have voiced concerns that if cannabis is reclassified as a narcotic, it will make it more difficult for patients who need cannabis for medical treatment to access it. This could also lead to an increase in illegal sales on the black market, which is more dangerous.

The impact extends to cultivation. In Nakhon Ratchasima, farm owner Somkiat Nitiketkoson stated that the announcement severely affects small and medium-sized farms, already struggling with market saturation from foreign investors. His farm has halted cultivation due to unclear policy. Somkiat also criticized the new, costly, and time-consuming Good Agricultural and Collection Practices (GACP) cultivation standard, fearing it could lead to corruption. - 819 (TNA)