The Cannabis Bill – What you need to know
Interview discussion with Garth Kallis of Fairbridges, Wertheim and Beckham on the Cannabis bill which is still out for review.
Currently a private individual cannot sell or make a profit and can only be used for personal use. However, products made with cannabis, such as cannabis teas, herbs and CBD oils can be sold and bought, under certain laws and conditions.
Quantities of 600gms, if living alone, allowed for private use, not public or not for sale, otherwise not more than 1.2kgs for a couple. It is not allowed to be smoked near children or non-consenting adults. A person is allowed to carry 100grms on their person, but it must be concealed. It can be given as a gift but not for commercial benefit. If you are in out in public with 1kg or more, it will be presumed that you intend to sell it.
The bill differentiates between use for recreational purposes and that used for medicinal. Medicinal use is regulated by the Medicine Act. When the Bill becomes an act you will need a license to grow and, or to sell it.
There are now many stores selling CBD products. This is a very costly process so anyone intending to open a store needs to do their homework because it can be very costly. You will need a license and permission from the Medical Control board. It’s a complicated and costly process. Certain measures need to be put in place and it must meet the standards of the Medical Council. It’s imperative that you obtain proper legal advice before going down this route. Meeting the health standards can cost millions plus the fees and renewal of the license are things to take into consideration.
People are not sure whether they are allowed to grow it in their gardens. My advice is not to grow it until the Act is passed because at present there are no proper guidelines as to how much you can grow. The penalties for breaking the rules are very steep. For example, 15 years jail time for dealing. 4 years for smoking around children and 2 years for smoking around non-consenting adults.
At the moment the Bill is still in draft stage and only becomes law once it is passed and becomes an Act of law. Knowledge is power so it’s important to know the law because ignorance of the law is no ‘get out of jail free’ card. So until the Act is passed let us wait and see. We will revisit this at that time.
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