ANGER HAS erupted after it emerged that Canada has been granted a licence to import cannabis into Jamaica.
Jamaican cannabis farmers are furious that their local industry is being overlooked in favour of a Canada.
Members of the Jamaica Cannabis Industry Forum – a WhatsApp Group – noted they are were not allowed to export cannabis to Canada.
President of the Jamaica Cannabis Licensed Association (CLA), Rear Admiral Hardley Lewin, described the move as “scandalous.”
“I learnt and later confirmed that the CLA Board has approved the importation of ganja into Jamaica from Canada. A licensed (sic) applied for & was granted the necessary permits. I will not fault the licensee but I find it disturbing and indeed scandalous that we could allow imports from a state to which we cannot export.”
“I brought this to the attention of our members and the industry. And also to the CLA; who confirmed it. I made a lot of noise about it, because I am very angry that a country that does not allow Jamaican imports or exports from Jamaica into their market could be granted permission to export to Jamaica,” he told the Jamaica Observer.
The Cannabis Licensing Authority (CLA) was established in 2015, with a specific role to establish and regulate Jamaica’s legal cannabis and hemp industry.
The WhatsApp group has approximately 60 members from across Jamaica.
Mr Lewin who is the former head of the Jamaica Defence Force said traditional farmers in Jamaica are seeking ways to enter the growing legal medical cannabis market.
He added initiatives like a deferral of fees are meant to encourage them to transition into the legal sector.
According to Jamaica’s Dangerous Drugs Act, those wishing to import cannabis into Jamaica require an importation license granted by the CLA. This license should be granted to the holder of a valid cultivation licence, processing licence, retail licence or research and development licence.
Those who provide analytical services in regards to cannabis are also eligible for an import licence.
The news of Canada’s right to import cannabis into the Caribbean country has not gone down well with Jamaicans online, with many calling for a reform in laws relating to cannabis in Jamaica.
Last year, Caribbean twin-island nation St Kitts and nevis announced plans to establish a medical cannabis industry.
Prime Minister Terrance Drew told the St Kitts-Nevis Information Service that the country was behind other Caribbean countries in developing a medical cannabis industry.
Mr Drew said his aim to ensure citizens and residents of St Kitts and Nevis will be the first beneficiaries of the new cannabis industry.
“Antigua is ahead, St Vincent is ahead, Jamaica is ahead, and we know that people travel to these countries because they would have an industry that is well-controlled, well-monitored and so forth that allows for the use of marijuana.
And so, we will be on that path, and we will see a lot of action in that area within the first year,” he said.
The PM also said he would also “move to expunge the records of those who have criminal records for possession of marijuana.”
The PM added that cannabis convictions “should not be used as a means to limit people’s advancement in their own lives and so we will put the necessary legislation in place to get us there.”
The Medicinal Cannabis Authority of St Vincent and the Grenadines was established through the Medicinal Cannabis Industry Act, 2018.
On June 14, 2021, the Government of Antigua and Barbuda, through the Medicinal Cannabis Authority issued the first official licence for the production of medical cannabis.
The first licence was issued to Grow Antigua – a public/private hybrid company that includes the government, Rastafari communities, and private enterprise as central Stakeholders.
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Jamaican politicians will not enact policies or legislation, through which they cannot line their own pockets. That is the reason why, despite having a fairly well off DIASPORA which remits billions of US dollars each year, the Ja govt prefers to do their borrowing from international loan sharks. That way they avoid any local scrutiny. They use the remittances from the DIASPORA to meet the foreign exchange requirements while laughing all the way to their banks.
In 2018, the Jamaican Authorities were given an opportunity to benefit from California’s and Canada’s estimated $5B medical cannabis develop.
All the Jamaican Authorities had to do was help; grade and formalise Jamaica’s independent cannabis farmers.
The Jamaican authorities failed.
The only Caribbean nations who responded professionally to California’s and Canada’s medical cannabis offer was the Caribbean island of St., Vincent.
Imagine the benefits to Jamaica, if the Jamaican Authorities had sought to benefited from the $3B medical Cannabis development.
Today, Jamaica has issued import licences for Cannabis.
Jamaica produces the highest quality cannabis.
However, questionable leadership has caused Jamaica to import cannabis.
Shockingly, Voice readers, Jamaica today imports’ sugar.
Jamaican sugar helped to transform England into the wealthiest nation on planet Earth.
However today, Jamaica now imports cannabis and sugar.
It will not be long before Jamaica is importing bananas.
Political independence has not be good for Jamaica.
Correct me if I am wrong but the licenses to grow Ganga legally was only granted to the very wealthy foreign investors so in essence the Jamaican Ganga farmers shouldn’t be affected by something that we weren’t a legal part of in the first instance. Now that licenses is granted to another wealthy investor to import weed it is now the Jamaican farmers that will be affected such hypocrisy..
Controversy has erupted in the Jamaican cannabis industry after comments made by Aubyn Hill, the former head of the Cannabis Licensing Authority (CLA), have been refuted by the cannabis establishment. Hill’s comments, which were made during a hearing in the Jamaican House of Representatives, have been described as “untrue and misleading” by industry insiders.
According to the cannabis establishment, Hill was either uninformed, misled, or simply failed to have sufficient interest in the industry. The bottom line is that his statements to the House and media were deemed to be untrue and misleading.
Adding to the controversy is the recent opening of multiple new dispensaries by a company across the island, which are reportedly selling cannabis at a shockingly low price of $100 JMD per gram. This has raised eyebrows within the industry, with many experts claiming that it’s not possible for Jamaican growers to produce cannabis at such a low price.
The product sold by CannaVivo has been imported under the flag of research and development (R&D), which allows for a maximum of 150 kg for R&D purposes. However, the cannabis establishment claims that this product should have never been allowed to end up in commercial stores, which they say shows a lack of governance, track and trace, and oversight.
In recent discussions surrounding the importation of cannabis products into Jamaica, legal experts have pointed to the potential implications of the practice known as “dumping.” According to the World Trade Organization (WTO), dumping can be defined as a situation of international price discrimination, where goods are sold to a foreign market at a price that is lower than the price charged in the domestic market.
Under Article VI of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994, anti-dumping duties can be imposed on imported goods in cases where dumping is determined to be causing or threatening injury to a domestic industry, or materially retarding the establishment of a domestic industry. This means that if the practice of dumping is found to be occurring in the Jamaican cannabis industry, specific anti-dumping duties may be imposed on imports from the offending source.
Legal analysts suggest that one potential solution to address the issue of dumping is to impose heavy anti-dumping duties and taxes on imported cannabis products. Additionally, they recommend applying the same stringent testing for pesticides, fungicides, and heavy metals that is required by the Ministry of Health and/or the Bureau of Standards to all imported products, with the cost borne by the importer. Another measure that may be considered is the implementation of European Union Good Manufacturing Practice (EUGMP) certification to ensure that imported products meet high-quality standards.
It is argued that implementing these measures would prevent inferior products from flooding the Jamaican market and prevent the country from becoming a destination for substandard products. As the cannabis industry continues to evolve in Jamaica, ensuring fair trade practices and the protection of domestic industries will be essential to its success.
The controversy has led to calls for greater oversight of the Jamaican cannabis industry, with some experts calling for a review of the regulatory framework to ensure that it’s able to effectively oversee and regulate the industry. Despite this, CannaVivo continues to sell cannabis at a low price, and many are eagerly watching to see how this controversy will play out in the coming weeks and months