On April 1, Germany joined a handful of countries worldwide where smoking weed in public is legal.
But it wouldn't be Germany, if the new rules governing consumption, purchase and cultivation didn't come with a whole lotta red tape attached.
Under the country's new cannabis law, introduced after decades of public debate and lengthy deliberations in parliament, adults are now able to legally smoke weed on the street.
The landmark legislation allows for adult possession of up to 25 grams of cannabis for personal use in public. Three live cannabis plants will be legal in one's own home and up to 50 grams of cannabis for personal use there.
Smoking weed in public spaces is allowed, except near schools and sports facilities. The new law makes Germany the third European Union country to legalize cannabis for personal use, alongside Malta and Luxembourg.
So far, so good. But unlike in the neighbouring Netherlands or Canada, for example, the new law does not foresee weed to be legally sold at commercial cannabis shops - instead, people can join so-called non-profit cannabis social clubs where plants are grown collectively.
From July 1, these clubs are allowed to apply for a licence to grow weed, three months after the legislation came into force.
In a way, this approach to legalize weed is wonderfully German, as clubs - Vereine - have long played a big part in structuring leisure time in the country, with everything from sports to dachshund owners to charities and environmental advocacy groups organized in this non-profit, self-governing, communal way where members are often required to help out and pitch in when there's need.
However, critics of the new rules argue that joining a Verein might already be too big a hurdle for most smokers who are likely to just continue to buy from their local dealer. It's also still unclear to many people how exactly those clubs will operate.
Greenhouse to house some 1,000 plants
In the eastern outskirts of Berlin (where else), preparations for one of these new Cannabis Social Clubs are already in full swing.
Outside an inconspicuous white building near a fast food restaurant, we meet Torsten Dietrich, president of the Cannabis Social Club Berlin.
The three-storey building and the surrounding property are fenced in; cars are parked next to the entrance.
Dietrich points towards a stretch of lawn, currently covered by wooden pallets, cars and construction containers: "This is were we will now see whether all of our plans over the last few months and years really work and whether we can really distribute legal, proper cannabis to our members," he says.
The club will build its first greenhouse, measuring 330 square metres, on the grass verge in the coming months, a six-metre-high enclosed hall that will not let in any natural light, Dietrich explains.
Instead, the facility will be equipped with high-tech solutions to supply the plants with everything they need, including an automatic LED light system, irrigation technology and a modern ventilation system.
The club is planning to grow around 250 plants in each of the building's four plots, Dietrich says, meaning a total of approximately 1,000 cannabis plants.
Initially, the club is looking to grow four varieties, but later plans to upgrade to at least 12. Dietrich himself has been prescribed medicinal cannabis for his migraines for many years.
Cannabis Social Clubs budding nationwide
The Cannabis Social Club Berlin is just one of many associations nationwide with an expressed interest in legally entering the weed market.
According to the Cannabis Cultivation Clubs Germany (CAD) association, there are currently more than 100 associations in the country dedicated to the recreational use of cannabis.
In addition, at least 200 other associations are currently in the process of being founded, says CAD board member Jana Halbreiter.
These clubs, which have started putting up advertisements looking for members, are primarily political interest groups, she says. However, communal cultivation from July 1 must be organized by so-called cultivation associations, where membership is limited to 500 each.
The Cannabis Social Club Berlin would like to establish 12 cultivation associations by the end of the year in order to be able to accommodate and supply all its members with weed, says Dietrich.
According to the chairman, the Berlin club already has 4,800 members and more than 1,000 people are on the waiting list.
There is also enormous interest in the weed associations elsewhere in Germany: "From Lübeck to Duisburg to Munich, the clubs are currently being overrun," says Halbreiter from CAD. The "flood of members" can hardly be managed on a voluntary basis, she adds.
Quality-tested
The cannabis clubs promise weed at more affordable prices than on the black market and, most importantly, cleaner cannabis - without added extenders and harmful substances. "We see it as our responsibility to our members to offer high-quality cannabis," says Dietrich.
It is no coincidence that the Berlin club chose the narrow patch of lawn in the district of Marzahn for cultivation, he explains.
The site is home to the laboratories of the Analytical Centre (AZ) Biopharm, a company that specializes in the quality control of drugs that fall under the Narcotics Act. This also includes the analysis of so-called medicinal cannabis, which doctors in Germany can prescribe in individual cases as a therapeutic drug for certain illnesses.
The plants grown by the Cannabis Social Club Berlin are also to be tested at the lab, with contracts currently being worked out, says AZ Biopharm managing director Constantin Welz while showing us around the facility.
In the laboratory, the trained pharmacist opens a silver bag filled with cannabis flowers. The room quickly begins to smell like a Berlin park on a warm summer day. "We analyze the content and purity and check that the cannabis is of the desired quality," explains Welz. The THC content, CBD content and traces of possible harmful substances, such as mercury, can also be analyzed by the lab.
First harvest expected in 2024
The Cannabis Social Club has also acquired well-secured rooms for drying and storage in the building. If everything goes according to plan, the club could bring in the first harvest by the end of the year, Dietrich says. "But we think it will probably take until spring next year."
There is still a lot to do before then. According to CAD, the bureaucratic hurdles for the clubs are high. The high initial investment is a challenge for many, says Halbreiter. In addition, training for prevention officers would have to be financed and licence fees paid.
"The transformation into a growers' association requires a high degree of idealism and commitment."
The amount of red tape and the high financial burden have led to some clubs deciding that it's not worth it to apply for a cultivation licence, she says.
