Bedrocan first to enter Germany, available for almost 20 years

Bedrocan was the first to enter the German market, meaning that Bedrocan cannabis products have been available in Germany for almost 20 years. Exports from the Netherlands began in 2008, and since then, Bedrocan has supplied over 15,000 kilos of medicinal cannabis to German patients. These numbers may be dwarfed by the size of the German market, which analysts predict will account for approximately 1,005 tons* of cannabis flos alone by 2026. Nevertheless, our products remain a favorite among prescribers and patients due to their high quality and efficacy. Curious about how exports to Germany first took off? Bedrocan founder Tjalling Erkelens knows all about it.

When it all started

In 2008, medicinal cannabis flos became available to patients in Germany for the very first time. Erkelens: “In those years, there were two other legal sources worldwide: In the United States, the University of Mississippi was authorized to cultivate cannabis for research, and in Canada, Prairie Plant Systems, produced for the Canadian government. Bedrocan was the third largest supplier in the world, and we produced on behalf of the Dutch government. We sourced the cannabis for the German market through the Office of Medicinal Cannabis (OMC).”

Groundbreaking ruling

The available products were Bedrocan®, Bedrobinol®, and Bediol®. “Those were the only three medicinal cannabis products available at the time that we were authorized to cultivate on behalf of the OMC,” Erkelens continues. Exports didn’t take off entirely spontaneously.

The impetus was a ruling by a German court declaring that there was a medical necessity for making cannabis available. Erkelens: “It was a fairly groundbreaking ruling by the German Federal Administrative Court on May 19, 2005. An MS patient, who was also a lawyer, filed a lawsuit against BfArM, the drug regulatory agency responsible for drug approval in Germany. The claimant was severely disabled, had tried all conventional medications and demanded access to cannabis as it was the only way to relieve his symptoms.”

Medical emergency

BfArM consistently denied access, citing the German Opium Act (BtMG). However, the court ruled that BfArM could not simply reject applications if there was a medical emergency without alternatives. The court stated that the fundamental right to bodily integrity outweighed the strict prohibition of drugs,” Erkelens recalls.

“The drug regulatory agency was forced to invoke a clause allowing exceptions in the public interest. According to the court, the medical care of an individual in need fell under these exceptions.” Although the ruling was made in 2005, the legal and bureaucratic process took years. Around 2007 or 2008, the first official exemptions were actually issued to individual patients in Germany.

Erkelens: “These patients were then legally allowed to obtain cannabis from German pharmacies. And our products were the only ones available at the time. This exemption system remained in place until the 2017 law change.”

Bedrocan, the first to enter Germany

Does this mean Bedrocan’s products were the first medicinal cannabis products to enter Germany? Erkelens: “As far as cannabis flos is concerned, the answer is an absolute ‘yes.’ However, dronabinol, pure THC, had already been available by prescription since 1998. But that’s a completely different story, in which Bedrocan wasn’t involved.”

*) Source: Cannamonitor