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Panyavith Preechabhan

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Towards the end of July 2021, Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health (MOPH) issued a notification under the Food Act regarding food products which contain cannabis or hemp parts as a publication in the country’s Government Gazette. The notification, among other things, sets forth the classification of food products containing cannabis or hemp parts (“Food Products”) and the related requirements with respect to food quality, standards and labeling requirements.The key elements of this notification are as follows: The Food Products shall…

Over the past few months, Thailand and its Ministry of Public Health (MOPH) have taken strides to deregulate certain cannabis and hemp plants. These actions have the potential to change the future of the cannabis and hemp industry in Thailand, in ways that are set out in further detail below. I. Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health Notification Exempts Certain Parts and Extracts of Cannabis and Hemp Plants from Regulated Narcotics On 14 December 2020, the MOPH published a notification regarding…

On October 12, 2020, the Thai Cabinet approved in principle the draft “Kratom Act.” By way of background, kratom is an herbal extract that comes from a tropical tree that has stimulant qualities if used in high doses. It was previously controlled under the Thai Narcotics Act because of its addictive effects. However, following recent developments in the liberalization of cannabis and hemp in Thailand, the Thai government has also been considering liberalization of the rules regarding kratom. On March…

After the previous amendment to the Thai Narcotics Act came into force in February 2019, allowing the use of cannabis for medical purposes, the regulatory authority noted that there was room for improvement regarding the licensing process and the limited access for patients to medical cannabis. In order to facilitate patient access to medical cannabis, the Thai Food and Drug Administration held a public hearing on a draft amendment to the Narcotics Act. The public hearing ended in June 2020.…

By way of background, “hemp,” as regulated under the Narcotics Act, is currently defined as having tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in leaves and flowers not exceeding 1% per dry weight. Certified hemp seeds are seeds of hemp that has THC in leaves and flowers not exceeding 1% per dry weight. On 28 January 2020 the Cabinet approved the principles of the draft Ministerial Regulation re: Licensing and Approval for the Production, Distribution or Possession of Narcotics Category V Hemp (the “Ministerial Regulation”)…

Although it may appear that the progress of cannabis liberalization may not seem to move as fast as most investors expect, from the experience of seeing the changes or drafting of the new laws which give significant impact to the industry or the public, we can say that the progress we have seen so far as from the time when this government came on board on 10 July 2019 has been quite impressive. Cannabis and hemp of certain qualities and…