New Thai regulations to control use of cannabis come into effect a week after legalisation
Fri, June 17, 2022
BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand hastily issued a raft of new regulations for cannabis use this week after a long-planned decriminalisation raised alarm at the potential for unchecked use of the substance anywhere and by anyone - including children.
Soon after the country became the first in Asia to legalise growing and consumption of cannabis in food and drink on June 9, businesses began openly selling marijuana, with strains called "Amnesia" and "Night Nurse" on offer from a truck in Bangkok.
The rapid rise in cannabis sales sparked concern from a Bangkok city official: Deputy Permanent Secretary Wantanee Wattana said at least one person had died and several were hospitalised this week after consuming or smoking marijuana.
A draft cannabis bill is making its way through parliament, but could be months away from becoming law.
"There are no control measures other than word of mouth," lamented Mana Nimitmongkol, head of the Anti-Corruption Organization (Thailand), in an online post earlier this week.
This week, the central government has been issuing piecemeal rules to try to bring some order to cannabis use.
On Friday, new regulations went into effect forbidding all public smoking of cannabis as well as the sale of marijuana to people under the age of 20, pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers. The rules were published overnight in the Royal Gazette.
Several other rules included banning cannabis from schools, requirement for retailers to provide clear information on usage of cannabis in food and drinks and the application of a health law that defined smoke from marijuana a public nuisance punishable by jail and a fine.
Critics have said the government rushed to remove criminal penalties on marijuana before passing a law to ensure the substance is regulated.
Thailand's health minister Anutin Charnvirakul, a leading advocate for the legalisation of cannabis, has defended the government's approach to legalisation.
"We legalised cannabis for medical use and for health," Anutin said at Government House on Friday.
"Usage beyond this are inappropriate... and we need laws to control it," he said.
Anutin's Bhumjaithai Party campaigned on legalisation of marijuana ahead of 2019 election and is a main partner in the ruling coalition.
(Reporting by Panu Wongcha-um and Panarat Thepgumpanat: editing Kay Johnson and Philippa Fletcher)
Doctor of weed? Thailand now offering cannabis science degrees after marijuana legalization
Waldo 18, a medicinal cannabis supply chain company in Thailand, is partnering with Filipino-Thai restaurant Toto Inasal to give individuals an opportunity to obtain a degree in cannabis science.
Hemp and cannabis were officially decriminalized in Thailand on June 9.
With Thailand’s decriminalization of cannabis on June 9, a company that distributes medicinal plants is offering degrees in cannabis science.
Waldo 18, a commercial supply chain company that grows and sells medicinal plants, is teaming up with Jongkasem Julakham-Platon, the owner of Filipino-Thai restaurant Toto Inasal in Bangkok, to provide cannabis science degrees at the Waldo Institute of Petchburi. The institution is accredited by Thailand’s Office of the Higher Education Commision, making the degree officially recognized. According to Julakhan-Platon, the institute will be offering bachelors, masters and PhDs in cannabis science.
“They are also developing a new breed named Rocher Breed. It’s a highly resistant and high survival-rate cannabis breed,” Julakham-Platon told Mashable. “Toto Inasal will also help in the experimentation of Cannabis products with food and beverages.”
Thailand is the first Southeast Asian country to decriminalize cannabis, permitting people to grow their own cannabis at home, although they must be of medical grade and for medicinal purposes only. Cannabis products must also contain less than 0.2% of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive ingredient that produces the sensation of being high.
Although the Thai government stated that cannabis is only legal for medicinal purposes, many food and beverage establishments are serving edibles and cannabis-infused teas and coffees.
The country’s public health minister, Anutin Charnvirakul, previously announced on Facebook that 1 million cannabis plants would be given away for free in celebration of the drug’s legalization.
Feature image via Pexels
Waldo 18, a medicinal cannabis supply chain company in Thailand, is partnering with Filipino-Thai restaurant Toto Inasal to give individuals an opportunity to obtain a degree in cannabis science.
The Waldo Institute of Petchburi, officially accredited by Thailand’s Office of Higher Education Commission, will offer bachelors, masters and PhDs in Cannabis Science.
Hemp and cannabis were officially decriminalized in Thailand on June 9.
With Thailand’s decriminalization of cannabis on June 9, a company that distributes medicinal plants is offering degrees in cannabis science.
Waldo 18, a commercial supply chain company that grows and sells medicinal plants, is teaming up with Jongkasem Julakham-Platon, the owner of Filipino-Thai restaurant Toto Inasal in Bangkok, to provide cannabis science degrees at the Waldo Institute of Petchburi. The institution is accredited by Thailand’s Office of the Higher Education Commision, making the degree officially recognized. According to Julakhan-Platon, the institute will be offering bachelors, masters and PhDs in cannabis science.
“They are also developing a new breed named Rocher Breed. It’s a highly resistant and high survival-rate cannabis breed,” Julakham-Platon told Mashable. “Toto Inasal will also help in the experimentation of Cannabis products with food and beverages.”
Thailand is the first Southeast Asian country to decriminalize cannabis, permitting people to grow their own cannabis at home, although they must be of medical grade and for medicinal purposes only. Cannabis products must also contain less than 0.2% of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive ingredient that produces the sensation of being high.
Although the Thai government stated that cannabis is only legal for medicinal purposes, many food and beverage establishments are serving edibles and cannabis-infused teas and coffees.
The country’s public health minister, Anutin Charnvirakul, previously announced on Facebook that 1 million cannabis plants would be given away for free in celebration of the drug’s legalization.
Feature image via Pexels
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