THAIS may soon be able to grow cannabis in their homes as the government plans to totally delist cannabis from the banned narcotics list.
The Public Health Ministry will propose the plant's removal from the list as the country moves forward in taking another crucial step in decriminalising the plant.
Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said a sub-committee on narcotic substances had already revised the narcotics list on which cannabis no longer appears as a Category 5 narcotic substance.
According to a Bangkok Post report, the draft list will now be reviewed by the ministry's narcotic drugs control committee before being forwarded to the Narcotics Control Board for further approval.
The revised narcotic list will take effect after the board endorses it.
Anutin said the ministry was trying to streamline and facilitate the process for growers who will be required to notify authorities rather than seeking approval for every cannabis plant they plan to grow for household use.
However, he said growers were still required to seek permission if they make cannabis products or make cannabis extracts which must have less than 0.2 per cent of Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) by weight.
The cannabis must also be locally grown.
"What we're doing is to allow people to make the most use of cannabis especially patients who rely on cannabis-based treatment," he said.
Legalising cannabis to allow households to grow up to six plants was a key campaign pledge of the Bhumjaithai Party during the 2019 general election. The party has been criticised for failing to live up to its promise despite overseeing the Public Health Ministry for three years.
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) deputy secretary-general Dr Withit Saritdeechaikul said they have agreed to remove all components of the cannabis plant from the Category 5 narcotics list and keep only cannabis extracts on the list.
He said they decided that only cannabis and hemp extracts would be classified as Category 5 narcotic substances with two exceptions.
Dr Withit said the exceptions apply to extracts from all components of cannabis and hemp grown in local licensed farms which comprise less than 0.2 per cent of THC by weight and extracts from locally produced cannabis and hemp seeds.
He said the exceptions were to prevent an influx of imported cannabis and hemp extracts, and protect domestic producers who are granted licences to grow the plant.
Cannabis extracts with less than 0.2 per cent THC by weight are not narcotics, but the plants must be grown on local farms that are granted licences, he stressed.
