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Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
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Netherlands: Positive Early Results for Dutch Cannabis Supply Chain Pilot David Brown Stratcann Saturday 12 Sep 2026 The Dutch Government launched its Controlled Cannabis Supply Chain Experiment in April 2025, as part of a plan for a “closed cannabis chain” for dozens of cannabis coffeeshops in ten cities across the country. The experiment is planned to continue through the end of 2029, with the goal of better understanding how to fully regulate cannabis sold in the Netherlands. The first review looked at the period from April 7, 2025, to the first quarter of 2026. The study compares the ten municipalities where coffeeshops sell cannabis exclusively from regulated growers with ten comparison municipalities that follow the country’s long-standing toleration policy. That policy has tolerated coffeeshops selling cannabis without regulating their supply. The first follow-up report found that the introduction of the closed supply chain is generally viewed positively, improving cooperation and transparency among municipalities, growers, and coffeeshops. Initial challenges, such as limited product variety, regulatory ambiguity, and technical issues with the track-and-trace system, have largely been addressed over time. The introduction of legally sourced hashish beginning in September 2025 was part of that process. Researchers found no evidence of increased problematic cannabis use or changes in health assessments among coffeeshop visitors. The review also notes ongoing challenges with the program, while highlighting that it’s still too early to draw specific conclusions. For example, for aspects such as visiting behaviour, usage, health, livability, and safety, no clear differences were observed compared with municipalities that did not participate in the experiment. In the ten participating regulated municipalities, product variety increased more than in the comparison areas. Prices in intervention municipalities decreased more sharply than in comparison areas. In intervention municipalities, 55% of coffeeshops listed THC percentages on their menus. The average THC percentage was 37.2%, with a median of 33.2%. In comparison municipalities, only 10% of coffee shops listed THC percentages. The average price per gram of hash in intervention municipalities increased significantly, rising from an average of €11.68 at T0 to €21.12 at T1. In contrast, pricing in the comparison municipalities did not differ significantly. Joints with tobacco are sold in nearly all coffeeshops in both intervention (99%) and comparison (94%) municipalities. There was a significant increase in the number of unique joint-with-tobacco product names in intervention municipalities, with the average jumping from 7 to 20.3. Comparison municipalities saw only a marginal increase, from 5.6 to 6.8. In the first follow-up measurement (T1), joints without tobacco were sold in 79% of intervention shops and 54% of comparison shops. While intervention municipalities saw an increase in the number of unique product names (rising from 1.7 to 3.1), comparison areas remained stable. Although average costs rose in both groups, a difference-in-differences analysis confirmed that these changes were not statistically significant, meaning price trends did not differ significantly between the groups. In intervention municipalities, availability of edibles rose significantly to 94% (up from 34% at the beginning of the experiment, T0), and the variety of unique products increased. In comparison municipalities, availability also grew to 61%, though variety remained stable. Availability of concentrates also increased significantly in intervention municipalities to 70% (up from 17%), with prices averaging €51.42. In comparison municipalities, availability was lower at 27% (up from 23%), with an average price of €61.66. Vapes appeared in 67% of intervention coffeeshops at T1, up from 0% at T0, with an average price of €46.31. Usage in comparison municipalities was much lower, at 10%, with an average price of €54.22. Some consumers also said they continued to use the illicit market mainly because of lower prices, better value, and the ability to buy larger quantities. Data collection took place in 2025 and included 85 interviews with involved parties, such as municipalities, coffeeshop owners, growers, and supervisors. Researchers also administered surveys to 865 coffeeshop visitors and 441 local residents and workers in the area. To evaluate product offerings and pricing, researchers analyzed menus across 134 venues alongside attendance counts at 143 locations. The assessment also incorporated law enforcement records tracking drug incidents, as well as continuous web survey data on illicit purchases. The ten participating municipalities are Almere, Arnhem, Breda, Groningen, Heerlen, Hellevoetsluis, Maastricht, Nijmegen, Tilburg, and Zaanstad. All coffeeshops in these cities must participate in the supply chain pilot project. There are 10 regulated cultivators that are legally permitted and licensed to produce and supply quality-controlled cannabis within the closed chain. The Dutch Minister of Justice and the Minister of Public Health submitted the official document to the lower house of the Dutch Parliament on September 9, 2026. https://stratcann.com/news/positive-early-results-for-dutch-cannabis-supply-chain-pilot/
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