Thailand’s government is preparing to give its citizens a considerable number of cannabis plants.
Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health recently announced that it would be distributing 1 million cannabis plants to households nationwide next month.
Unlimited Home Grows
Under a new rule starting on June 9, Thailand will permit citizens to grow as many cannabis plants in their homes as they like, as long as they are for medicinal purposes and remain under the 0.2 percent THC limit.
People must also notify their local government that they are growing cannabis.
Unlike commercial businesses in Thailand, people who grow cannabis at home do not need licenses.
In 2018, Thailand became the first Southeast Asian country to legalize closely regulated medicinal-use cannabis.
At the time, Drafting Committee Chairman Somchai Sawankarn called the legalization “A New Year’s gift from the National Legislative Assembly to the government and the Thai people.”
Thailand’s initial cannabis regulations were strict but have relaxed in the years since legalization.
According to the Bangkok Post, people in Thailand filed 4,700 applications with the country’s Food and Drug Administration by late April 2022 to import, possess, grow, and produce cannabis and hemp.
People growing cannabis commercially without a license in Thailand can receive fines and a sentence of up to three years in jail.
Cannabis for Thailand’s Future
Thailand Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul says he would like people to grow cannabis plants like other household crops.
Charnvirakul has been at the forefront of cannabis legalization in Thailand and, in February, signed a measure to officially remove cannabis from Thailand’s list of controlled substances.
The measure goes into effect on June 9.
Charnvirakul believes allowing companies and individuals to grow cannabis will result in financial benefits for the government and bring in international visitors and medical tourists.
According to Charnvirakul, legal cannabis and hemp will enable people and the government to generate more than 10 billion baht in revenue annually.
