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Portugal’s GMP export hub status under pressure as Czech Republic moves to fill the gap

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2 weeks ago

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The latest Whitney Economics report The dynamics of the EU cannabis market sees Portugal’s role as the bloc’s main GMP export hub under pressure from enforcement, increasing competition and the Czech Republic moving quickly to absorb processing activity that Portugal can no longer reliably handle.

A disproportionate share of the prescription flower reaching German and British pharmacies comes from or passes through Portuguese GMP facilities. Rebecca Allen Tapp, managing director of RT Consulting Solutions, produced the Portugal section of the report. “Operation Erva Daninha made it clear that there were bad actors at work in the Portuguese cannabis industry, and the consequences have been widely felt,” he says.

Infarmed’s response to the enforcement action went beyond targeting the specific operators involved. Administrative steps that would have previously elicited a warning now risk temporary license suspensions, and high scrutiny is reaching operators as much as bad actors. “Many operators who have made every effort to comply are finding themselves caught in the crossfire of an industry narrative shaped by the actions of a few,” says Rebecca.

More operators are bringing GMP capabilities in-house rather than relying on third-party service providers, and some are beginning to outsource these capabilities. “As the number of service providers continues to grow, consolidation is likely to continue. Vertically integrated operators will be better positioned to maintain margin and remain nimble as prices fall and the number of SKUs in the market continues to rise,” says Rebecca.

With prescription flowers available in Germany for €2.59 and flowers in the UK starting at around £3.50, they mark the commercial reality these operators are navigating. A half-gram vape cartridge in the UK, once out of reach for private patients due to costs, now starts at around £22, which is close to what recreational consumers pay in the US legal states. In other words, margin compression is already structural.

The Czech Republic enters the picture
Portugal also faces a competitive supply that was not part of the original model: Latin America, South Africa, Canada and the ANZ region are serving the same export markets. The country’s export figures hide the extent to which it operates as a processing center for internationally sourced material rather than a mere cultivation hub.

Lukas Hurt, editor-in-chief and publisher of Konopí magazine, the only cannabis print publication in the Czech Republic, contributed to the Czech section of the report. “Portugal absorbed much of this activity, but difficulties there have pushed producers and importers to look elsewhere,” he says.

At ICBC Spring 2026 in Berlin, there were multiple representatives from the new Czech GMP processing facilities. Domestic Czech consumption cannot support a single producer on a significant scale, which means that all serious Czech growers are focused on export, mainly to the EU. “The fundamental challenge is that the current domestic consumption, half a ton of dried flowers and extracts in 2025, cannot support even a single producer on a significant scale,” says Lukas.

Home cultivation of up to three plants was legalized in the Czech Republic from January 1, 2026. Retailers and distributors of plant supplies and seeds have seen a significant increase in sales since the legislation was passed. Konopí magazine’s spring 2026 revenue is forecast to be up more than 100% over the same period last year. “I expect the market to follow the German model, an initial wave of enthusiastic first growers, followed by a consolidation, as many do not grow a second crop. The structural change is real, but the initial spike will correct it,” says Lukas.

There are currently around 15,000 registered patients in a country of 10.5 million, below the realistic potential, with a target population estimated at around 250,000 for chronic pain and neurological conditions alone. Between 2013 and 2024, fewer than 250 doctors were licensed to prescribe, keeping the market artificially limited. April 2025 regulatory reforms allow doctors to prescribe chronic pain; the number of active prescribers has grown significantly since then, and the Czech cannabis market grew by 46% in 2025, the strongest performance since 2021.

Between 2013 and 2022, only one licensed producer operated in the country. About ten are currently operating according to SÚKL requirements, and the volume being built is mainly outside the Czech borders. “The more difficult question is whether they can sustain themselves as lower-cost suppliers from Thailand and Latin America continue to scale,” says Lukas.

What about Spain?
Spain’s position in the same supply network goes in the opposite direction. The country is one of the world’s leading producers of medicinal cannabis, almost entirely for export. Royal Decree 903/2025 established the first clear legal framework for the use of medicinal cannabis internally, covering severe refractory epilepsy, chronic refractory pain, spasticity due to MS and chemotherapy-induced nausea. Patients admitted through the public hospital system pay only the standard pharmacy copayment.

Carola Pérez, founder of Dosemociones and the Spanish Observatory for Medical Cannabis, and founder of We, The Patients, produced the Spanish section of the report. “The decree is a floor, not a ceiling,” he says. “We’ve built one of the largest production bases in Europe, and we’ve built it for someone else’s patients,” says Carola.

AEMPS authorized companies spent years optimizing for demand in Germany, Portugal, Poland and the UK. Commercial infrastructure continues to be export oriented. The implementation of the decree depends on whether each autonomous community chooses to finance the model, and it will depend on the budget and training of specialists of individual hospitals, conditions that vary enough in the regions of Spain to have uneven access. “What is not fulfilled is uniform access. The decree creates a national framework, but the implementation depends on how each autonomous community chooses to finance the model,” says Carola.

Flower is excluded from the decree, as are lozenges and suppositories, formats that are therapeutically appropriate for a portion of the patient population that the decree seeks to serve. AEMPS still operates through manual licensing processes, with no public record of permits. Eleven thousand Spanish patients are still in the gray channels. “Transparency is not pretty governance; it’s market infrastructure. Investors and patients need to see the rules,” says Carola.

“If the model doesn’t work, patients will go back to the illegal market. If doctors aren’t trained, they won’t be able to give prescriptions. If hospitals don’t dispense, all our efforts will be for naught,” he says. Medium-term forecasts place the Spanish health system functioning within two or three years, if implementation is maintained.

For more information:
Whitney Economics
Beau Whitney
(503) 724-3084
www.whitneyeconomics.com

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Columbia hemp business Burning Acre to close and move to North Carolina over new Tennessee rules

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10 hours ago

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June 14, 2026

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Burning Acre, a Columbia, Tennessee-based hemp company, says it will close its retail store and move operations to North Carolina ahead of new state regulations that take effect July 1, according to WSMV.

The business says its last day to open in Columbia will be June 30, the same day the Tennessee Department of Agriculture licenses for hemp-derived cannabinoids expire. As of July 1, businesses that continue to operate in the state will be required to be licensed under a new regulatory framework led by the Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission.

Burning Acre says the changes have forced it to abandon plans for a new sandwich shop and bakery and close its Tennessee retail operations and relocate to Murphy, North Carolina. “I won’t sugarcoat it, it’s a very hard video for me and a message I should never have written,” the business wrote.

The business puts the annual cost of manufacturing, distribution and running the retail store at about $750. Under the new rules, he says, those costs would rise by tens of thousands of dollars, citing new licensing fees, a required $25,000 annual bond and increased testing fees.

The law, which took effect in July, changes the regulation of hemp-derived cannabinoid businesses from the Department of Agriculture to the ABC. The Department of Agriculture stopped issuing licenses at the end of 2025, and the licenses issued by the TDA will remain valid until June 30, 2026.

“Columbia, we absolutely love being a part of this community,” said Burning Acre. “We are truly heartbroken to have to say goodbye to this location.”

Read more at WSMV4










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North Carolina Lawmakers Advance Bill To Set A Minimum Age Limit For Hemp And Kratom Products

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10 hours ago

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June 14, 2026

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“Many other details about cannabis have been debated and will continue to be debated.”

By Christine Zhu, NC Newsline

Lawmakers in North Carolina are considering banning people under 21 from buying or possessing certain hemp-derived consumables, including combustible hemp flower, hemp cigarettes, gummies and drinks, or items that include the drug kratom.

The House Agriculture and Environment Committee approved a rewrite of Senate Bill 59 on Wednesday. This is the latest attempt by state legislators after years of proposals to regulate the sale of hemp products that didn’t work out in the end.

This measure would prohibit companies from selling such products to under-21s. If the seller has “reasonable grounds” to believe that the buyer is under the age of 21, the seller must verify the buyer’s ID.

Rep. Jimmy Dixon (R-Duplin), who introduced the bill, said he was motivated to bring public attention to issues surrounding cannabis. He said there was a 14-year-old boy in his neighborhood who had an emergency after buying a hemp-derived product.

“There are a lot of other details about cannabis that have been debated and will continue to be debated, but ladies and gentlemen, to make sure we have the good sense to be agents of these kinds of issues, that’s the lowest hanging fruit,” he said.

Violators would face a Class 2 felony, as well as a fine of $500 for a first offense, $1,000 for a second offense and $1,500 for subsequent offenses.

asked Rep. Pricey Harrison (D-Guilford). of the bill language resulted in potential changes to hemp-derived products. It is common for manufacturers of synthetic recreational drugs to make changes to the chemical composition of their products to avoid legal bans or restrictions.

“I assume the definition as written is broad enough to capture any future manipulation of molecules,” he said. Dixon nodded.

Legislators also voted in favor correction To add kratom products to the under-21 ban.

Rep. Jeffrey McNeely (R-Iredell), who proposed the amendment, said it was necessary to add those elements to the bill.

“I’ve been working on this for quite some time, trying to get these bills passed,” McNeely said. “We definitely have a problem. So I’m hoping we can keep posting this and we’ll get something done before we get out of the short session here.”

Both the amendment and the legislation passed unanimously without debate.

The bill moves next to the House Rules Committee. Other amendments will be heard when they appear on the House floor, which could be as soon as next week.

This story was first published by NC Newsline.

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GreenTech Amsterdam 2026 in 2026 photos

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1 day ago

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June 13, 2026

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Well, it’s not 2026 photos, but with around 600 photos, we definitely did our best. For the past two days, the Netherlands has been the place to be for the global greenhouse industry. From Flower Trials for the horticulture sector, company visits to growers and technical suppliers, as well as dinners, get-togethers, drinks, knowledge sessions and much more. And of course with GreenTech Amsterdam.

The event brought together professionals from around the world to connect, network, share knowledge and do business.

Next week, we’ll be sharing more information on market developments, trends, what’s on display, news, business news, innovations and whatever else you can think of, but for now we’ll stick to photo reporting.

Click here for the photo report.

© Arlette Sijmonsma | MMJDaily.com










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