Uruguay will forever hold the distinction of being the first country to ever adopt a national adult-use cannabis legalization measure. Lawmakers in Uruguay approved a historic recreational cannabis legalization measure in 2017.
Adult cannabis consumers who are residents of Uruguay have three ways to acquire recreational cannabis legally, and have to choose one (and only one) method for legally sourcing their cannabis:
- Home cultivation (up to six flowering female plants at a time)
- Non-profit cultivation associations (sometimes referred to as ‘clubs’)
- Pharmacies (four licensed strains)
Javier Hasse, one of the top cannabis journalists on the planet and the recently announced editor of the resurrected High Times, posted an article earlier this month that included data for the three categories listed above. The statistical breakdown is below:
- 11,465 home cultivators
- 15,162 cannabis association members
- 75,498 pharmacy purchasers
As you can see from the data above, making purchases via Uruguay’s pharmacies is the most popular channel for recreational cannabis consumers. Legal adult-use cannabis pharmacy sales first launched in Uruguay in 2017, roughly four years after the historical legalization measure was first adopted.
According to Mr. Hasse’s reporting, there are currently 460 licensed cultivation associations in Uruguay, and 40 pharmacies selling recreational cannabis products. Regarding cultivation associations, Germany also permits such entities to operate, and there are currently a reported 293 German cultivation association applications approved so far.
It is worth noting that Germany’s population is considerably greater (over 83 million people) compared to Uruguay’s (3.38 million people). Additionally, Germany allows associations to have up to 500 members, whereas Uruguay limits membership to 45 people.