In 2017 we wrote a blog post called “Do YOU want a license to grow Cannabis?”. That was 2 years ago and we can assure you that, when it comes to the issue of asking the government to give you permission to do what is now your constitutional right, nothing has changed. To date, NO licenses have been issued and this was confirmed today by SAHPRA (South African Health Products Regulatory Authority) with Business Day carrying the story – All Cannabis Medical Products are Illegal, warns Regulator.
The article was substantiated by a ” communication to all stakeholders” by SAHPRA, dated January 2019 and titled: Status of Cannabis-containing products (including oils) and cultivation of Cannabis for medicinal use. Download: 9.122_Status_cannabis_Jan19_v1
If you go all the way back to 2015 when the guidelines for obtaining a research license or those for a patient to obtain special permission to use Cannabis as a medicine, you will realise that nothing much has changed. Sure, there are some licenses in the pipeline but it is a fact that NO official licenses or permits have been officially issued by the South African government.
But. There are licenses floating around out there. How come? We have seen some of these ourselves, right there on the Department of Health letterhead! Smells fishy but we are far too busy to go digging around conspiracies or hearsay. Someone, somewhere is giving people the false impression that they are now among the FIRST to get on the “legal” bandwagon. And that’s what everyone wants to be – the FIRST.
As activists we have no problem with people getting a false sense of security from a piece of paper. We know that, should the police do their jobs properly AND investigate a case properly AND it lands up in court, these pieces of paper are worthless.
Civil disobedience is part of what we do, it is a part of activism worldwide and has been happening, with some success, through the ages. However, with the awarding of these pieces of worthless paper comes a sense of entitlement and presumed expertise. Some have even dug up bits of the law and skewed them to such an extent that they are convinced they know better than even the learned judges of the Constitutional Court. Or so they say on social media!
Civil disobedience then becomes fraud. In an attempt to crowd the starting blocks, franchise opportunities are all over the place. To claim that you are selling a franchise that comes with immunity from the law is fraud. Don’t be sucked in.
There are so many ways to get ahead in the Cannabis business right now in South Africa but citizens are warned to do their homework, lots of it. There has not been enough time for anyone to have done enough homework since the September judgement. Certainly not enough to be brazenly peddling your wares in the name of a company that has your back. Collectives, Co-ops, Private Members Clubs and the various permutations of that model are fully possible. BUT, to quote our esteemed legal team: “You need to survive a forensic audit.” If you are very clever you would be in the Cannabis support business right now, those guys are rocking! If it is the good plant that has you hooked (we always say that the most addictive part of Cannabis is growing it) and you simply can’t wait, then keep it quiet, keep it small and keep it between your family, your friends and your community. You just have to be creative. If you don’t have enough people close to you to be able to be creative in your endeavours then you are going to be compelled to splash yourself all over social media and that is VERY RISKY.
In the 8 years of our campaign we have reiterated that Cannabis enhances creativity. So use the good plant, get creative & stay focused on the facts. Get off of social media and spend your time in the garden and at the drawing board coming up with a plan that does not deceive or rip people off.
If you send us a message asking us about a license, we will simply reply with a link to this blog post.
SOUTH AFRICA NEEDS THOUSANDS OF SMALL GROUPS OF ORGANISED PEOPLE WHO WORK WITH RESPECT & INTEGRITY.
Enough said.
Hi.
I have commented already however if you could add information on starting a private dagga club.
my family has land in the Mpumalanga area and I am planning on starting my farm that side and would like to find ways to start a dagga club?
thank you for your help
Hi Mo,
All the info around Dagga Private Clubs is contained within The Green Network. We are working together on this as it is new territory and everyone is contributing through their own experience. I urge you to sign up to get your project off the ground and benefit from others experience as well as support legalisation and the writing of the DPC model into law. Looking forward to seeing you on the forum! https://www.fieldsofgreenforall.org.za/community/ (It is only R49 per month!)
as well as friends anGood day.
I trust you are well, I see you have stated there is No licensing however I have developed a product that I use for my personal use, I have seen medical benefits in this product however I would like to get a pharmaceutical license and then somehow sell this product commercially.
my email address is moessentials@outlook.com
it would be great if we could speak more of this so I can educate myself more.
thank you
A pharmaceutical license to develop a product takes many years and millions in capital. These are issued through SAHPRA and you can consult their website for more info. It is very frustrating that ordinary citizens cannot access this level of production but there are many ways that you can eventually get your product out to the people. The Dagga private Clubs model is one way. Looking forward to discussing this on The Green Network!
Hi Myrtle,
I should have read all the other posts. I have the answer. Thank you.
Hi Myrtle,
I am a 63- year old widow growing my own cannabus. I don’t smoke it but have been trying to make my own oils. My beloved died of cancer 18 months ago but the use of Cannabus came too late. Getting the oils right is a tricky business. I have 130 plants on my property. Can I get arrested. I don’t sell. It’s for me and my dogs who suffer from skin allergies. I do all my own cloning. The weed bug has me in love with it. I am up at the crack of dawn attending to my many many ladies. Some who turned Hermies but they were destroyed. I was thinking of going to the police to ask them to inspect my property as I don’t wish to break any laws. Going to jail will kill me.
Yes I still need licence
Pls can u explain to me,cannabis club what can we do as smokers, and planters, in the club
I have been looking at getting into medicinal production and visited some websites, but the requirements of the medicines control council are onerous and require huge investment which I don’t have. so the small producer is automatically excluded.i also got in touch with the cannabis compliance bureau and the cost of applying to get a licence is prohibitive and the are no guarantees that one would get a licence. what are my options I’m looking at the business side of production? but the whole process seems designed to cut out the small producers please advise if there are alternative ways of approaching this matter.
Hi Mksizwe,
Why would you want to get into medicinal production? If you do not know anything about it by now you will never catch up and you are right about everything to do with SAHPRA. Just don’t do it. It sounds like you are under the illusion that “medicine” is somehow better? Best you join The Green network to get answers to your questions and get up to speed with the issues.
https://www.fieldsofgreenforall.org.za/support-cannabis-legalisation/
I’m amazed reading all the comments above, some people are still nieve in knowing what to do in growing a cannabis plant. Simple put, grow what you want. You can’t sell it. Grow for your own needs. People think it’s a get rich quick scheme, but it’s not. Because you can’t sell it. It can bring a wealth to South Africa in many areas of business that can be developed here, with all the skill sets the country has. And we don’t need foreign investements.
If you have R1B rand to spare, then go ahead with a big grow operation. But your ROI will be long lived.
So, what do us in South Africans do? It can all be a catch 22 situation and to get the balance right is not a overnight thought………
I could go on, but I’ll take my hat off to both Myrtle and Jules et all for what has happened in South Africa since The Trial of the Plant.
Fwiw: if anyone has got this far….watch “The Trial of The Plant” on https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLqX7RvNbzkMM4InxGMucgFOhYX9zlkaN0
Hi. I am a Medical Doctor and Reiki Practioner, currently working on acquiring 1 – 2 km square piece of land for starting a small Intentional Living community in a very fertile area in central ZA. Can you please help me by directing me to where I can get information about restrictions on how many plants I can grow?
https://www.fieldsofgreenforall.org.za/good-day-how-much-weed-can-i-grow/
Hi Dylan, we wrote about this soon after the judgement in September. How long is a piece of string? What sort of mood / level of intelligence will the police have if they decide to come looking? Sorry we don’t have a better answer but your farm must become a private members club and you must run everything that way as we’re sure you might need this for other activities as well. Start how you intend to go on & get the privacy thing down in writing.
Currently there is no legislation about plant counting or quantity in place. However with no policy or regulation in South Africa it’s a bit of a wild west situation and you will need a good lawyer if the police decide to target you. Cover your back and have a look at our Private Clubs ‘hub’ model https://www.fieldsofgreenforall.org.za/press-release-dagga-private-clubs/
Buying Is illegal that’s pretty clear , so how do I obtain it for personal use without buying it? I’m not a grower. If I acquire some for personal use and get stopped along the way by cops then what? What does the law say about my car does it form part of my private property? Or is it a case of ‘step outside the vehicle sir’
I applied for a cannabis cultivation license but it has been more than a year and no response who can help me, products, cannabis balm, cannabis feco oil, capsules, cannabis balm for dogs, soaps, shampoo, jelly babies, vape juices.
Please contact me oorooi93@gmail.com
Hi Angelique, so sorry that you have to go through this but we have been saying for years that the general public and small traders have got very little hope of ever getting these terrible licenses. There are other ways to develop your business so why are you making SAHPRA your boss? You can have your products tested to ensure safety and quality and you can establish a Dagga Private Club to sell them Once you have a few years experience then maybe the regulators would have caught up. Absolutely no point in hanging around waiting for the oppressors to give you permission. Plus, if your products contain THC or CBD above a miniscule amount, it is illegal to sell them anyway!
Wish I had a better answer for you.
Thank you and blessings, Jules and Myrtyl, for putting up with the “consumers”…I never had the patience.
Remember when freeing the plant was just about freedom, and not capital?
But alas, we fight on.
“Failing that, we will go back to court until we have Fields of Green for ***ALL*** South Africans”
Aluta Continua!
Thanks for your kind words Old Time Fan!! Onward we go…
We need your intervention really seriously.Our Current Metro and Province is very much intrusted in JOINING the Green Network and its strive for legalization and future Market related production projects and for Medical use.
I would like to discuss about the issue of a permit for medical use, could you please send an email to my address Thankyou.
Hi Josh,
You are allowed to possess and use Cannabis in South Africa. We do not have any instructions for a medical production or cultivation license, that is controlled by SAHPRA. the best is to grow your own medicine! Its legal to do that!
How do I start my own Private Dagga Club
Hello Julio
We wrote a blog post about the subject recently:
https://www.fieldsofgreenforall.org.za/press-release-dagga-private-clubs/
Dear Green Network ,We are a Small Medium Micro Organization thats very much intrusted in a Presentation sesion to be held in P.E ,Eastern Cape.The Cannibus Espo’s are held around our Metro and the Province at large.Our organizations name is Eastern Cape Black Chmber,and we would like to assist in legalizing the Cannibus use and production campaign.Please feel free to comunicate to us.
We have sent you an email Dawood. Thank you for mobilising in your community.
I hope we will enter into businesses relationship and become a family. As we are a group of young people in South Africa at Mpumalanga province in Witbank and we want to start project in farming hemp for medical purposes. Can you please assist us with business plan, financial projection, all licenses and standard requirements need by MCC and departments of agriculture to make this project successful.
I hope our request will meet your attention.
Hi Dennis, wow that is a very big request! The best is for your group to join The Green Network and then we can take it from there. You also need to have a careful read of all of our blog posts since the judgement last September so that you KNOW that we are not in favour of ANY licenses, except for a standardised pharmaceutical product. We do not deal with pharma medicine so if you want to go that route please approach SAHPRA directly. We can help you set up a Dagga Private Club but we only offer the service to members of our network. All the best…
need an answer here.
I personally have cancerous growth on my skin, my grandmother has leukemia and in her final days, i have a few friends of different medical ailments that are pretty extreme, from Emphysema, Alzheimer, Ulcers, HIV effects, arthritis, and other stuff i cant pronounce.
I grow a few of my own plants , and myself and my wife make products for these people, we do not sell, the people donate to us in thanx.
I need to know what is my limit on growing plants, i am very limited in what i grow and grow very few plants, but i canot produce enough to help these people, i am up to date to carefull of limits, and now i really must ask.
i cant help 8 people with 5 plants, in no way. and many other people are contacting me, only because i took the time to selct the top 5 strains for this purpouse..
Help?
Hi Bongo420, that is a very good question. There is no limit on the amount of plants you can grow for personal use and the Constitutional Court left it up to the police to decide, which is very, very unfortunate. You are doing amazing work but now the most important thing is to keep this very quiet. DO NOT post anything about what you do on social media and ONLY deal with people you know personally. If you are caught you will have to prove to the court that what you have is for personal use only. It is also a good idea to store your bulk stock off of your property and always be on good terms with your neighbours. Please be very careful….
Hi Bongo420,
Can I please have your contact details (even an email) to discuss what you stated. I have a similar question I wanted to ask you about.
Thanks
info(AT)daggacouple.co.za
Hi , May you please contact me.
I need some information from you concerning the plant please. My number is 0765324288
Thank you for or all you are doing Myrtle. You are a star. Ive always grown, used and helped animals and humans with the oil. I have three criminal records for it . I will never stop!
Not sure if this is off the topic, but how do places like 420monkeys and trichoma operate so lively especially with selling dry herb, I know there’s a handful off people that sell extracts and edibles but these guys sell straight off a website, how is the cops fine with this
Hi Dalwin, We don’t know the answer to that. It seems the police are rather selective of who they go after as the arrests haven’t stopped. we are all for civil disobedience and would never wish that those who are getting away with it are bust BUT if they are bribing law enforcement to turn a blind eye that is another story. We are in a difficult position as we can’t really make a big fuss and then the cops go and raid people saying we snitched.
I’ve read the article and several of the accompanying regulatory docs you guys link to in here.
The complementary health companies and the bodybuilding supplements people selling vitamins and protein shakes etc at every pharmacy in SA get away without regulation and without needing GMP or anything like that simply by calling their products food additives and not medical products (or claiming specific medical benefits by using them), because under SA law nobody is required to prove anything about a food additive. So… any likelihood of CBD/THC products being able to be classified as nutritional supplements which would prevent people from having to jump through hoops to cultivate and bottle? As far as my limited undertstanding of legalese goes, the 2018 ruling doesn’t allow only medicinal use. So there should be no need to be cultivating purely for medicinal purposes.
I see the article 9.122 status cannabis declares the currently available oils and stuff are illegal (section 2, paragraph 2), but it is unclear whether it’s illegal because these are not legally registered as medical products with all the requirements of being registered as such, or illegal because the ruling does not allow for the stuff to be sold but only used for personal private consumption, or both.
Am I barking up the wrong tree entirely or might this argument have legs? Any ideas?
Hi Deet,
The 2018 judgement had nothing to do with medicine, and rightly so. It was all about privacy and the only way to possess, consume or cultivate Cannabis in SA is to do so privately, within private spaces. There are no loopholes. If there were we would have found them by now. There is a chance that CBD will be classified as a food supplement but that hasn’t happened yet.
The only thing to do is to support those who are working so hard to get equitable regulations in the end. Until we have that it is going to be a very confusing world for all of us.
Hi There Myrtle
Would love to pick your brain about the following article please. Please mail me your thoughts and findings.
Here is the link:
https://www.iafrikan.com/2017/07/19/lgc-capital-acquires-60-stake-in-south-africas-house-of-hemp-which-has-a-40-000-sqm-facility-for-cannabis-growing/
In the above article it states that they have greenhouses next to Durban airport???
I also found another article which says that the company Verve Dynamics has a license but I believe that may be for Lesotho, it’s not exactly clear..
Here are the links:
https://mjbizdaily.com/first-africa-exports-medical-marijuana-canada/
http://www.vervedynamics.co.za/
I thank you for your time and would greatly appreciate any feedback.
Cheers for now
Damien
Hi Damien,
It is all smoke and mirrors and a very long story to explain. Everything about export and licenses and who is doing what and where is part of the mess that is created by entitled people claiming to be the gate keepers of an industry that has not been born in law yet. Take everything you read about with a bucket of salt. Look after yourself, your family and your community first. Nobody is in charge and all our efforts need to go into getting the laws we want. Failing that, we will go back to court until we have Fields of Green for ALL South Africans and not just those you wish me to comment on.
Hi Myrtle my name is Mishal and I’ve been reading and following your feedback to some of the above people inquiring about growing.
I’m in a residential area free standing property
Am I allowed to grow cannabis and how many plants am I allowed cause we still reading in the media about cops making bust on people growing and its not for medical purposes yet they are still being arrested .
That being said before I start growing I’d like to know my rights as a personal growth
https://www.fieldsofgreenforall.org.za/faq/
https://www.fieldsofgreenforall.org.za/good-day-how-much-weed-can-i-grow/
https://www.fieldsofgreenforall.org.za/support-cannabis-legalisation/
Hi Myrtle. We want to plant industrial hemp on our farm to produce biofuel and building material. How do we go about it without having the police being a problem.
Regards
Dirk
Hi Dirk,
Start doing your homework NOW. Do not bother yourself with asking anyone’s permission because it will take you a good few years of PRIVATE research to achieve your optimum crop. Industrial hemp requires many levels of input, not least of all sourcing the seed and securing the capital for overheads. You can rest assured that the Dept of Agriculture will be there to give credit to pilot projects when the time comes. We desperately need people to JUST START, especially when it comes to hemp. Don’t waste your time going to meetings about meetings! Starting planning NOW.
I recently had a medical issue & I am still going through it. I am feeling a million times better thanks to my consumption of cannibus oil. Since I started using it, my interest in the plant has grown aswell & I would like to make the oils available to those who need it for a small remuneration in return of course. The only thing is I do not want to get into any trouble, I read the above post stating that there are no licences available to make these oils nevertheless is there anyway for me to make this available to the public without getting into trouble?
Hi Shaheed,
Glad the plant is helping you. Unfortunately there is NO way to sell / distribute Cannabis in South Africa as trade remains completely illegal.
Hi dirk,
where are you looking at growing your hemp?
are you farming already?
would love to hear more about your plans!
cheers
I need the license
https://www.fieldsofgreenforall.org.za/do-you-still-want-a-license-to-grow-cannabis/
Hi there..
I’m thinking of starting a grow opp and would like to know what steps i I need to take and what I should do in order for me to be able to grow cannabis.
I was thinking of growing green house, but I’m in the dark a bit in the legal aspect some feedback would be very appreciated.
Thank you in advance
https://www.fieldsofgreenforall.org.za/blog/
You have a lot of reading to do Francois!
Hi Myrtle
I know exactly who is doing this and look no further than Eastern Cape local government and the CDCSA are leading people on. The proof is available its not hearsay, why are the CDCSA EC running around pretending to hand out licenses for cultivation with SANgomas, what a FARCE….
Please contact me, I believe that we have a lot to discuss surrounding cannabis, from the growing to the health care system.
Thanks very much,
Steve Tonkin
Yes sure Steve, we spend all day every day discussing the subject! I hope your email address provided is correct as you have spelled Cannabis wrong!!
Howzit,
My email address is steve@salescorps.co.za
Our website is specifically spelled with a single n in cannabis because someone else has the correct spelling and I was not able to buy it from them.
I have 480 odd sites dedicated to cannabis.
As you can see, the site is not fully functional as yet.
My telephone number is 0725232206
Thanks,
Steve Tonkin
when will the government start giving cannibas license
Why do you want a license? Do you want to produce pharmaceutical Cannabis? If not, then you shouldn’t need a license. Sounds like you need to do your homework. The government have until September 2020 to change the law.
I am interested in a permit to grow hemp. Where could I apply. It’s for my own use on our farm. Please advise me, thank you so much
Hi Wendy,
There is no reason you can’t just grow it because it is for your own personal / private use. We recommend documenting the process in fine detail, fencing off the area to be cultivated and putting up a sign saying “Private Research Area”. Also have a copy of the Constitutional Court Judgement with all your records and inform your staff of the project and explain the difference between High THC and Hemp Cannabis. then you’re set to go… All you need is the seeds! That’s where your biggest challenge lies. You could contact Hempoint in the Czech Republic, they are friends of ours. https://hempoint.cz/en/ All the best…
Canapax is giving people the idea that they can even open a shop
Yes. This is the subject of much debate and will be discussed on our Hotbox show this Thursday. Please tune in to the show on our DC YouTube channel as we give Cannapax an opportunity to tell everyone how they are above the law.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6lDOBQMX7U&list=PLyEKHM08IxVhVwAuJVjuTLIKttXVvwF-b
How do you optain this license?
We suggest you read the article where we state very clearly that there are NO licenses avaialable for ordinary citizens to trade in Cannabis. If you have been following our campaign you will KNOW that we are totally against licenses for anything other than a pharmaceutical product with a barcode that makes specific medicinal claims.
hi i am interested in getting a growing licence to grow commercially
what procedures do i follow
As I said in the comment above, there are NO commercial licenses available, nor should there be! We advocate for a business license for commercial trade but non of our proposals will come into effect until the government has set up a committee to discuss what the new law will look like. Please pay careful attention to our campaign if you are considering entering the Cannabis industry. You can read our proposals on our website https://www.fieldsofgreenforall.org.za/desired-outcomes/ and as I said in the blog post: Do your homework! I’ll repeat, the only reason people think you have to have a license is because everyone is acting like sheep… Thinking that SA must be like the rest of the world with their license system which will end up just like the tender system – rotten with corruption!
Planting for innovative farm use, relieving stress of animals help maintain feed conversion… planting hemp for cultivating and incorporating it in to feed… will that be possible to do and how can we achieve it
Very good question! It is a little late in the season but we would say start planting ASAP! There is no reason why you can’t use the Constitutional Court judgement in your favour. This would be as long as you are growing the Cannabis for use on your farm with your livestock ONLY and not selling it on for the uses you describe. That is personal use for your personal cows, sheep, goats, chickens, etc
If you are a farmer then please contact us as we are busy writing about the use of Cannabis in land and livestock management and would be interested in your input.
Very Interested to understand more as a Farmer on your research and what are you writing about the use of Cannabis in land and livestock management. We have a commercial farm with a range of live stock Horses. Pigs and cattle) and always need feed in winter. Is it possible to feed the animals cannabis has this been tried? Where can I get seeds to test for my farm please?
Hi Etienne,
Please contact us via our web contact form and I’ll point you in the right direction for seed. Best you start this spring with a private research project on your farm. You don’t need permission for that because it will be for your private use. We’ll chat further via mail.
may I please get your contact details, im also conducting research into cannabis as an alternative for cattle feed as there are some in the pack that have been surviving on it.
Hi Flash,
That is excellent news! You can contact us via our web contact form https://www.fieldsofgreenforall.org.za/contact-us/ or call during office hours 0631740938. Please make sure that you start writing everything down so we can take a look and use your cattle as an example! You musy have very happy cows!