Other countries are passing laws to permit the production, import and export of medical marijuana but Colombia has a leg up because it did so three years ago.

Hemp cultivation in Europe is well established with a tradition dating back hundreds of years.

Thailand has removed cannabis and hemp extracts from its narcotics list, officials said on Monday, the latest effort to promote the development of marijuana products for medical purposes.

Cannabis cafes in the Netherlands are to be supplied legally with drugs from regulated producers as part of a trial aimed at tackling the black market.

Niall Phelan, who co-founded craft brewer Rye River, has been appointed as chief operating officer of a Canadian brewer of cannabis beers that plans to begin selling its products in the Irish market early next year.

Used in Europe for more than 3,200 years, hemp today represents an annual market opportunity of $1 bn (~€692m) for the continent, and over $3.7 bn globally in 2018.

Luxembourg has called on its EU neighbours to relax their drug laws as its health minister confirmed plans to become the first European country to legalise cannabis production and consumption.

The government of Thailand is set to distribute 10,000 bottles of medical cannabis oil next week, according to health officials from the Southeast Asian country.

A UK hemp farming operation has destroyed its 2019 crop after failing to receive a growing license amid continuing regulatory confusion.