Copenhagen, Denmark, Could Legalize Weed as a 5-Year Experiment
The officials of the capital of Denmark want to run a 5-year pilot program to see whether a regulated cannabis market would be more effective than the war on drugs in curbing the use of the substance and fighting crime. They propose to set up a chain of state-run weed stores where adults can legally purchase high-quality marijuana. The revenue will go to fund drug use prevention and treatment programs.
The previous zero-tolerance policy has failed to put a dent in a billion-dollar illegal industry controlled by criminal gangs. According to the National Board of Health, the number of monthly users has doubled since 1994. About 41 percent of respondents 40 years or younger say they have used cannabis at least once in their lifetime.
Low Prices to Compete With the Black Market
Under the proposal, the authorities will open several weed stores in municipalities across Copenhagen. The idea is that any adult marijuana consumer will be able to purchase the drug and pay a competitive price. It is important that legal cannabis costs the same as you pay a street dealer because the main goal of the pilot scheme is to take money and power away from criminals.
With the same objective in mind, the officials want to make sure that customers get exhaustive and reliable information about the product they purchase. Needless to say, the quality must be as good as on the black market in terms of potency and variety.
The authors of the project stress that having a legal supply chain is a must. They cite the failure of the Netherlands to legalize wholesale operations for their legal system of coffee shops as a loophole for criminals to make money.
Building on the Success of a Similar Pilot Scheme
It’s not the first time that sweeping cannabis reform was proposed in Denmark. The country adopted a 4-year pilot scheme for medical marijuana in 2018. In December 2021, Parliament voted to extend the program indefinitely. The vote allowed the country's cannabis-growing facilities to continue their operations. With 200,000 square meters of cultivation floor space, Denmark is one of the largest marijuana producers in the world.
