© dpa
In recent weeks, the Berlin State Office for Health and Social Affairs has held around 100 counselling sessions on the requirements for community cannabis cultivation.
However, the authorities have not yet issued a cultivation licence, as a spokesperson announced in mid-December in response to an enquiry. So far, 17 applications have been submitted (as of 19 December).
The Green Leaf Society received the first and so far only cultivation licence in the capital in August. At that time, the districts were still responsible. "It was no surprise to me that we had to be patient," Steffen Geyer, chairman of the umbrella organisation Cannabis Social Clubs Germany and director of the Berlin Hemp Museum, told the German Press Agency. However, a lot has already happened since legalisation on 1 April. "When I walked through Berlin or drove through Germany in the summer, I saw hemp plants growing everywhere that were being cultivated."
Since 1 April 2024, weed and private weed cultivation have been permitted in Germany under certain conditions. Since 1 July, non-commercial cultivation associations with up to 500 members have been able to get started as the second stage of cannabis legalisation. Based on the number of inhabitants, there should theoretically be around 640 associations in Berlin - one for every 6,000 inhabitants. Health Senator Ina Czyborra (SPD) told the Deutsche Presse-Agentur: "I don't expect to see a huge number of cultivation associations, simply because there is a lack of space in Berlin."