CLA issues 160 cannabis licences

The number of licences issued by Jamaica’s Cannabis Licensing Authority, CLA, has grown to 160 as at September, industry minister Senator Aubyn Hill has said.

Speaking at the three-day CanEx Jamaica Business Conference on the weekend, Hill said the number of permits signifies continued expansion and development of Jamaica’s cannabis industry.

In a breakdown of the licensing categories, the Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce said 35 permits have been issued for tier-1 cultivators, 23 for tier-2 cultivators, 12 for tier-3 cultivators; 12 for tier-1 processing, two for tier-2 processing; and 63 retail and herb house licences.

Additionally, the CLA has granted five research and development experimental licences and eight transport licences, enabling the movement of cannabis products across the country.

Hill also said the sector is primed for further exploration by cannabis enthusiasts and entrepreneurs through legislative changes.

“The laws and policies that prescribe the CLA’s work are consistently under review, such as the amendments to the interim regulations that will make provisions for, among other things, the delivery of medicinal cannabis licences to carry out all normal business activities during an extension period and more,” the minister said at the conference held in Montego Bay.

Additionally, he said that the pending promulgation of the Dangerous Drugs Cannabis Noncommercial Authorisation Regulations, once enacted, will empower the CLA to issue permits for the display of cannabis at exhibitions.

Each year CanEx brings together global industry players in the cannabis and psychedelics industries for discussions on policy, research and business. This year’s confab had representatives from the Caribbean, United States, Canada, Africa, South America, Central America, Europe and Australia.

CMC