Knesset amends the State of Israel's Dangerous Drugs Ordinance to allow for export of cannabis. Getty
The Israeli Parliament (the "Knesset"), passed the 16th amendment to Dangerous Drugs Ordinance on December 25, that concerns the governance and regulatory aspects of exporting medical cannabis from Israel. Subsequently, Israel is poised to be a top-earning, global hub in the marijuana market.
The Knesset's measure was approved
unanimously by 21 votes. Following the vote, the Minister of Internal
Security, Gilad Erdan, approved. (Minister Gilad previously disapproved such actions; however, his party is currently up for re-election.)
The bill passed the Knesset's internal
affairs committee and two additional votes in the Knesset's grand hall.
The legislation authorizes the Israeli Police to conduct supervision of
cannabis farms, and grant approvals for cultivating, growing and
exporting of cannabis and cannabis-related products.
Police involvement
clears a legal obstacle necessary for the final approval of export of
medical marijuana from the country, during 2019, expectedly.
While the amended bill allows
provisions for future cannabis export, pending government authorization,
recreational marijuana use is still illegal in Israel. A government
resolution is required to authorize export. Minister Erdan hopes to get approval by Sunday or shortly thereafter.
According to the Knesset's website, the bill
states that "any license to engage in medical cannabis will be subject
to a license from the Ministry of Health." Provisions were made
stipulating that each applicant for a license to engage in medical
cannabis will receive a positive or negative recommendation from the
police department. An exemption from police review may occur for foreign
investors. The police will be required to provide its guidance for
domestic applicants within four months, and foreign investors within six
months.
According to the wording formulated in the committee,
"anyone who violates the terms of the license to engage in medical
cannabis is liable to 24 months imprisonment or a fine of NIS 75,000,"
or $19,887 at today's market rate.
There are currently eight companies operating in Israel, and there are dozens of additional requests from business owners to work in the field, which are awaiting the approval of the relevant parties.
Entrepreneurs and researchers, as well as the business owners themselves, cite many requests from all over the world. All are encountering roadblocks because medical cannabis is lumped in with the other types of cannabis in the sweeping prohibition on trade.
“Israel is a medical cannabis power,” said Minister of Agriculture Uri Ariel. “The Israeli research conditions for growth in the field precede most countries in the world by five to seven years due to progressive regulation."
"Furthermore," says Minister Ariel, "the products in Israel are manufactured according to strict production standards, on a medical level, like in the pharmaceutical industry - including strict security rules for the entire value chain, developed following inter-ministerial work which took place over a prolonged period."
Meanwhile, marijuana stocks were sent soaring on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, after the Knesset's announcement, according to Israeli outlet Ynet.
Quite a few Israeli companies stand to benefit from this bill.
Seedo,
for example, developed a fully-automated plant growing device managed
and controlled by an artificial intelligence algorithm, monitored by a
user's smartphone application. The equipment is much more advanced than
the typical "space bucket."
Seedo is well positioned to take advantage
and leverage the opportunity to export medical grade cannabis,
cultivated and grown by its commercial auto-growing facility, which the
company manufactures for the industrial sector. The automated growth
cycle ensures a yield of pesticide-free, high-quality medical grade
cannabis which can be processed and exported from Israel.
"This new legislation removes the last legal
obstacle which remained in the path towards approving export and
signing it into Israeli law," Said Zohar Levy, CEO of Seedo. "By the end
of the year 2019, Israeli companies will be able to take advantage of
our edge technology and leverage the possibility to export high quality,
pesticide-free medical cannabis to the world. We are proud to be able
to offer this solution to the local Israeli and international growers."
The grow box has become so popular that it is currently on back-order.
Israel has a well-earned reputation for
being the Silicon Valley of the Middle East, due to game-changing
Israeli inventions such as video calling and messaging app Viber, the
world's first metered-dosage cannabis inhaler called Syqe, and Water Gen which makes drinkable water out of natural condensation in the air.
With a predilection for inventing advanced
technology, combined with restrictions on cannabis export lifted by the
Knesset, it is only a matter of time before Israel dominates the competitive global marijuana market.
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