An Israeli government committee has moved forward plans to allow the exportation of medical cannabis from the country, but it could take months to move through the nation’s parliament, according to a report from Reuters.
The plan was announced in December by an inter-ministerial committee of director generals, comprised of the Ministries of Justice, Finance, Public Security and Health. Israel has positioned itself as a leader in the medical cannabis sector, recently approving 13 medical cannabis studies for federal funding, and a plan to decriminalize the drug nationally found support at a legislative hearing last month. Currently, there are about 23,000 patients registered under the nation’s medical cannabis program, with nine licensed suppliers. According to the Reuters report, the nation’s market is worth $15 to $20 million “at most.”
Saul Kaye, CEO of iCan, a private cannabis research firm in Israel, estimated that there was about $100 million in international investments made in the nation’s cannabis sector in 2016, with about 50 medical cannabis companies active in the industry, ranging from agriculture to delivery devices.
According to a December report from Yediot Ahronot, the exportation of medical cannabis would create thousands of agricultural jobs and be worth $1 billion Israeli New Sheqel (more than $2.6 billion).