Position paper on the law on cannabis products

Shortly

The regulation of cannabis in Switzerland represents a major opportunity for health protection, education, and economic sustainability. However, it will only succeed if it is implemented consistently, realistically, and locally. The Swiss Cannabis Association considers the following points to be crucial for the success of such regulation:

Youth protection and consumer safety through regulated distribution instead of black market
Promoting a local, sustainable cannabis economy instead of dependence on imports
Licensing model for private specialist shops instead of state sales monopolies
Exclusion of synthetic and semi-synthetic cannabinoids
Realistic THC limits that combine safety and market logic

The National Council's Social Security and Health Committee (SGK-N) has announced that adults in Switzerland will be granted strictly regulated access to cannabis in the future. The consultation on the law on cannabis products will open in August 2025. The Swiss Hemp Association welcomes the federal government's intention to create a clear legal basis for the use of cannabis products.

Since the 1990s, Switzerland has pursued an internationally recognized approach to drug policy with its four-pillar policy (prevention, treatment, harm reduction, and repression). This strategy focuses on health protection, social integration, and differentiated measures rather than exclusive repression. Modern cannabis regulation represents a consistent continuation of this proven policy.

The reality of the cannabis black market is undermining key objectives of the four-pillar policy: Today, youth protection cannot be enforced, product quality and product information (e.g., regarding the strain's THC content) are not guaranteed, consumers are exposed to unnecessary health risks, and police and judicial resources are inefficiently tied up.

Appropriate regulation offers the opportunity to effectively curb the black market, improve youth protection, and build a local, quality-oriented industry. However, for this regulation to be credible, effective, and economically viable, key principles must be observed: protecting local businesses, distribution through regulated specialty stores, the exclusion of synthetic cannabinoids, and realistic, differentiated THC limits that take consumer behavior and the black market into account.

1. For a local, sustainable cannabis economy

The IG Hanf (Swiss Hemp Association) demands that only cannabis produced and processed in Switzerland be permitted on the legal market. The import of cannabis undermines the development of a local, diversified, and ecologically responsible industry. Imports, where permitted under international law, should only be used for specific, temporary needs that cannot be met by Swiss production. By clearly limiting imports, national regulation should specifically promote domestic agriculture, small and medium-sized enterprises, and innovation.

Why local businesses need to be protected:

Imports from low-wage countries could cause price dumping and displace local companies.
To build a functioning domestic market, it is essential that Swiss producers develop the necessary know-how for various applications and forms of consumption and can manufacture safe products in Switzerland.
Short transport routes reduce emissions and enable stricter quality and environmental standards than for imported goods.

🔗 Link to the position: Position on the import of cannabis and cannabis products – IG Hanf Schweiz

2. Specialist shops: Regulated, private and responsible

The IG Hanf advocates a market-oriented approach that allows specialized stores to operate economically viably, subject to clear government regulations. Only such a structure can ensure black market suppression, product safety, advice, and youth protection.

The IG Hanf strongly opposes state sales monopolies or oligopolies at the federal or cantonal level. Such models are expensive, inefficient, lead to limited product selection, and promote the illegal market.

The IG Hanf advocates for a regulatory model that provides all producers and retailers access to a license for controlled cultivation, trade, and distribution that meets legal requirements. This means:

promoting fair competition among market participants
No Monopolies
Transparent and efficient award procedures for licenses and permits
Preventing overproduction through a regulated market

The currently proposed model of highly centralized cannabis regulation, particularly the federal government's monopoly on online retail, is caught between the tension between health protection and liberal personal responsibility. While health-policy-motivated regulation is fundamentally sensible, it must not result in excessive paternalism that is inconsistent with other areas of consumer behavior. Effective regulation must strengthen health protection, but also respect personal responsibility and acknowledge social realities.

🔗 Link to the position: Position on sales outlets and their organizational form – IG Hanf Schweiz

3. No synthetic or semi-synthetic cannabinoids in the legal market

The IG Hanf explicitly demands that the regulated cannabis market include only natural cannabis products. Synthetic and semi-synthetic cannabinoids are not acceptable in a legal market from a health, regulatory, and scientific perspective. Their approval would undermine the credibility and level of protection of the legal market. Restricting them to natural cannabis not only serves to protect public health but also enables easier control and traceability along the entire production chain.

Synthetic cannabinoids are already listed in the Narcotics List Ordinance (BetmVV-EDI).[1] In the BetmVV-EDI, cannabinoid mimetics (such as Spice, etc.) are also mistakenly referred to as "synthetic cannabinoids." This error in the legal system demonstrates the complexity of the issue and must be remedied.

Only natural cannabis should be regulated for the following reasons:

The definition of synthetic cannabinoids is controversial and meaningful regulation of these groups of substances is hardly possible.
Synthetic cannabinoids (as defined by the BetmVV-EDI) have been little researched: their pharmacological effects, interactions and risks are not sufficiently scientifically documented.
Synthetic cannabinoids (as defined by the German Narcotics Ordinance on the Use of Cannabis (BetmVV-EDI)) sometimes exhibit extremely high potency, which can lead to unpredictable effects such as seizures, psychosis, or circulatory collapse. Additional health risks arise from the synthesis of these substances.
The chemical structure can be easily modified, resulting in the constant creation of new variants that are new and difficult to identify even in laboratories.

🔗 Link to the position: Position on synthetic cannabinoids – IG Hanf Schweiz

4. THC limits: realistic and differentiated instead of ideological

The IG Hanf rejects blanket THC limits such as the 20% limit used in the pilot trials as impractical. They argue that these limits would not reduce risk but would merely strengthen the illegal market.

Essential requirements for practical regulation:

For flowers: a realistic upper limit of at least 25 – 30% THC, with a 25% tolerance margin
For concentrates / extracts: no upper limit
For edibles: a maximum of 10 mg THC per serving, for safe consumption control

🔗 Link to the position: Position on the THC content of cannabis products – IG Hanf Schweiz

Continued position papers of IG Hanf Schweiz on the regulation of cannabis:

[1] SR 812.121.11 – Ordinance of the Federal Department of Home Affairs of 30 May 2 | Fedlex (positions 265 and 303).

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