8/16/2017
Press Bulletin No. 113, 2017
- Regulations are ready for the complete process of production, cultivation and processing of cannabis for medical and scientific purposes.
- Video, Andrés López, Dir. of National Narcotics Fund, talks about the regulation of Medicinal Cannabis.
Bogotá, August 16, 2017. With the publication of five resolutions, the Government of Colombia has concluded the process of defining the rules for the production and processing of cannabis for medical and scientific purposes.
The resolutions define who will be considered small and medium growers, and therefore, who will obtain benefits. They also establish the technical requirements and the tariffs for the cultivation of the plant and its processing into medicinal, phytotherapeutic and homeopathic products.
As established in Resolution 579, 2017, issued by the Ministries of Health, Justice and Agriculture, growers that cultivate on a half a hectare area (5,000 square meters) or less are considered small and medium growers and, therefore, may access technical advice, priority allocation of quotas and purchase of their production by the processor. The regulation, in effect, establishes that 10 percent of the total production of the processor must come from a small and medium producer.
The resolutions issued by the Ministry of Health establish the fees to be paid by firms that carry out plant transformation processes (Resolution 2891, 2017), as well as the technical standards to be followed (Resolution 2892, 2017).
Among other aspects, the latter defines the safety protocol to be implemented in the facilities where cannabis is researched and processed, the requirements to act as technical director of these facilities, the conditions for transportation, and the maximum authorized amounts of processing (quotas).
Resolutions issued by the Ministry of Justice (577 and 578) technically regulate the evaluation and follow-up of the licensing modalities that are to be delivered to this entity (psychoactive cannabis, non-psychoactive cannabis and seed use) and establish the fees that must be paid to obtain these licenses.
A long normative process now ends, after beginning with Law 30 of 1986, the regulation of which had to wait until 2015, when the Government issued Decree 2467.
From that decree, the Ministry of Health granted the first six processing licenses to the Colombian firms Cannalivio, Pideka, Ecomedics y Econabis, the Canadian Cannavida and the Colombo-Canadian Pharmacielo.
To give greater institutionality to the initiative, Senator Juan Manuel Galán promoted Law 1787, 2016, which meant repealing the previous regulations and issuing a new one. Thus Decree 613 of April 2017 included benefits for small producers and cannabis growers for medicinal purposes, establishing the differences between psychoactive and non-psychoactive cannabis and regulating the marketing and research of seeds.
Competencies of each ministry
| KIND | MODALITY | GRANTING |
| Manufacture of cannabis derivatives | - For national use
- For scientific research
- For export
| Ministry of Health and Social Protection |
| Cultivation of psychoactive cannabis | - For seed production for planting
- For grain production
- For the manufacture of derivatives
- For scientific purposes
- For storage
- For final disposal
| Ministry of Justice and Law |
| Non-psychoactive cannabis cultivation | - For seed production for planting
- For grain production
- For the manufacture of derivatives
- For scientific purposes
- For storage
- For final disposal
| Ministry of Justice and Law |
| Seed | - Marketing or delivery
- Scientific purposes
| Ministry of Justice and Law |
Resolution 2891, 2017
Resolution 2892, 2017
