Cannabis considered an “essential good” during confinement

The more than 70 cannabis stores that have already opened to the public in Portugal will remain open during the confinement that came into force today, as they are part of the list of 52 exceptions that provide essential services or others considered essential.

Several cannabis stores today assured Cannareporter that their economic activity codes are covered by Annex II of Decree Law 3A-2021, but none wanted to specify which category of the 52 authorized they fall into.  

The cannabis paradox remains, therefore, very much alive, also in Portugal, going from “drugs” to “primary necessities” at the expense of the Coronavirus. countries like The Netherlands, Canada, Uruguay and various US states (United States of America) were forced to keep cannabis stores open and to consider cannabis derivatives as an essential asset in times of a pandemic.

Around here, several cannabis stores released their opening hours on social media today during the new confinement, making it clear that they remain open, despite the restrictions imposed by the Government to limit the spread of the pandemic and protect public health. As of today, only supply chains for essential goods and services can operate, but cannabis stores are included, as their economic activities can be considered in several of the exceptions of the Annex II of Decree Law 3A-2021 (see list below).

Cannareporter contacted some managers of these stores in the Lisbon region, who confirmed that they keep the stores open to the public, even if some have opted for the take-away service (keeping people only at the door) or home deliveries. “But we are definitely open, because Decree Law 3A-2021 allows us to do so”, says an employee who works with us from the Cannabis Store Amsterdam, a franchise which already has around 40 stores in Portugal alone.

A business in full bloom

Cannabis is possibly the most consumed and most controversial “drug” in history, generating heated debates around the world and provoking legislative processes with little consensus. However, the pandemic led to historic increases in cannabis sales around the world, mainly in the USA and Holland, where gigantic lines outside the coffee shops before the first confinement. The Dutch government then opted to keep cannabis shops open, to prevent trafficking from taking over the streets and making the situation worse. The pandemic has also made the Cannabis price on the illegal market skyrockets in France and medical cannabis dispensaries were considered essential business in the United States, while stay-at-home orders were in effect.

João (not his real name), 35 years old, is the manager of four of these Cannabis stores that remain open to the public and responsible for paying the salaries of six employees in the Lisbon district. He prefers not to identify himself to “avoid problems”, as he is aware that in Portugal there are still doubts about the legality of this type of business, despite ensuring that the only thing that motivates him is to “help people”, in a “perfectly legitimate business” and capable of generating “a lot of taxes for the state coffers”. “If each of these stores makes 40 thousand euros a year, which is the minimum to be able to keep them open, millions of euros are moving in the country, which in VAT alone is an immense gain for the State. It is not understood, knowing in advance the benefits and therapeutic properties of this plant, why this is still seen as something illegal, when trafficking is just around the corner, accessible to anyone”, he says.

“An opportunity to give a positive perspective on cannabis”

The perception of cannabis changed rapidly for the young entrepreneur from the moment he walked behind the store counter. “Sometimes people would come into the store, who I thought they were going to start scolding or insulting me, and they would end up talking about their experiences and how cannabis helped them fight pain, anxiety or insomnia”, he says. he. João also points out that whenever he realizes that someone does not have enough resources to pay for the products, he sells them “at cost” or even offers them, in more complicated cases. “These are expensive products, not everyone can have access to them”, he laments.

One of the 30 cannabis stores open to the public in the Lisbon region, Canna Cali, is located in Baixa. Photo: Laura Ramos

Recognizing that he is not a doctor and fully aware that he cannot give medicinal indications about his products, João says that several people return to the store and tell about the improvements they have had. “The father of a child came here who took a lot of Ritalin, didn't talk, didn't eat, didn't sleep and had brutal peaks of anger and anxiety, the father was exhausted, he couldn't take it anymore. After introducing CBD as a supplement in his diet, the child has improved a lot, sleeps better, is calmer, and the father is still in disbelief.”

João sees this moment as an opportunity to show a positive perspective on the cannabis market in Portugal. “Cannabis was considered a basic necessity by the Portuguese government, even if indirectly, and I think that should be celebrated”.

“We don’t sell either medical or recreational cannabis here”

In João's store, there are hemp seed oils, rich in nutrients such as essential fatty acids, omegas 3 and 6 and GLA (gamma-linolenic acid), as well as flowers, creams, chocolates, lollipops and hemp gums that contain CBD. and less than 0,2% THC, the limit set at European level for industrial cannabis strains known as hemp. CBD (cannabidiol), is a cannabinoid that is not psychotropic, unlike THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), which is responsible for the effect better known as “high”. In these stores you won't find anything that is psychotropic, says João, and at the same time nothing that is “medicinal”.

“We don't sell either medical or recreational cannabis here. What we sell are wellness products, which may have dietary benefits or function as dietary supplements. None of this makes you “high”!”, guarantees João.

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See here the list of exceptions to the closure decreed by the Government in the state of emergency and where cannabis stores can be included:

ANNEX II of Decree No. 3-A/2021

(referred to in paragraph 1 of article 15)

1 – Grocery stores, mini-markets, supermarkets and hypermarkets.

2 – Fruit shops, butchers, fishmongers and bakeries.

3 – Fairs and markets, under the terms of article 17.

4 – Agri-food production and distribution.

5 – Lots.

6 – Restaurants and drinks for the purpose of home delivery, directly or through an intermediary, as well as for the provision of meals or packaged products at the door of the establishment or at the wicket (take-away).

7 – Electronic commerce activities, as well as service provision activities that are provided at a distance, without contact with the public, or that carry out their activity through an electronic platform.

8 – Medical services or other health and social support services.

9 – Pharmacies and places of sale of medicines not subject to medical prescription.

10 – Establishments of medical and orthopedic products.

11 – Opticians.

12 – Cosmetic and hygiene product establishments.

13 – Establishments of natural and dietary products.

14 – Essential public services and their repair and maintenance (water, electricity, natural gas and piped liquefied petroleum gases, electronic communications, postal services, waste water collection and treatment services, effluent collection and treatment services, urban solid waste management and urban hygiene and passenger transport service).

15 – Services enabled for the supply of water, the collection and treatment of waste water and/or waste generated within the scope of the activities or establishments referred to in this annex and in the authorized activities.

16 – Stationery and tobacconists (newspapers, tobacco).

17 – Social games.

18 – Veterinary medical care centers.

19 – Establishments for the sale of pets and food and feed.

20 – Establishments for the sale of flowers, plants, seeds and fertilizers and chemical and biological phytosanitary products.

21 – Textile and fur washing and dry cleaning establishments.

22 – Drugstores.

23 – Hardware stores and establishments selling DIY material.

24 – Fuel stations and charging stations for electric vehicles.

25 – Establishments selling fuel for domestic use.

26 – Trading, maintenance and repair establishments for bicycles, motor vehicles and motorcycles, tractors and agricultural and industrial machinery, ships and boats, as well as the sale of parts and accessories and towing services.

27 – Establishments for the sale and repair of household appliances, computer and communications equipment.

28 – Banking, financial and insurance services.

29 – Funeral and related activities.

30 – Home maintenance and repair services.

31 – Home security or surveillance services.

32 – Cleaning, disinfection, deratization and similar activities.

33 – Home delivery services.

34 – Vending machines.

35 – Activity by itinerant sellers, for the provision of essential goods or other goods considered essential in the present situation, in the localities where this activity, in accordance with the decision of the municipality taken under paragraph 2 of article 16, necessary to guarantee access to essential goods by the population.

36 – Car rental activity without a driver (rent-a-cargo).

37 – Activity of renting passenger vehicles without a driver (rent-a-car).

38 – Provision of services for the execution or improvement of the Fuel Management Lane Networks.

39 – Establishments selling irrigation material and equipment, as well as products related to winemaking, as well as fruit and vegetable accommodation material.

40 – Establishments for the sale of plant protection products and biocides.

41 – Establishments for the sale of veterinary medicines.

42 – Establishments where medical services or other health and social support services are provided, namely hospitals, offices and clinics, dental clinics and urgent medical-veterinary care centres, as well as the support services integrated in these places.

43 – Educational, teaching and professional training establishments, day care centers, occupational activity centers and spaces where responses are provided within the scope of the full-time school, which include animation and family support activities, the family support component and of curricular enrichment.

44 – Vehicle technical inspection centers and examination centers.

45 – Hotels, tourist establishments and local accommodation establishments, as well as establishments that guarantee student accommodation.

46 – Service provision activities that integrate motorways, namely service areas and petrol stations.

47 – Fuel filling stations not covered by the previous number and charging stations for electric vehicles.

48 – Establishments located inside airports located in mainland territory, after passenger security control.

49 – Canteens or cafeterias that are in regular operation.

50 – Other collective catering units whose catering services are performed under a continuous execution contract.

51 – Notaries.

52 – Activities and establishments listed in the previous numbers, even if integrated in shopping centers.