Curaleaf
, one of the largest cannabis companies in the world, plans to start selling marijuana for recreational purposes by the end of 2024 in Germany, where the recreational cannabis market is expected to grow significantly, especially after last week’sGerman cabinet approval of a legalization bill.
Germany is expected to be among the world's largest recreational cannabis markets due to its population of nearly 84 million people, the most populated country in the European Union.
“Many people will be coming into cannabis for the first time and trying it out,” said Miles Worne, president of Curaleaf International, a London-based subsidiary of the New York-headquartered company.
“We will do everything we can to build up the business,” said Worne, per the Financial Times.
Boris Jordan, executive chairman of the board for Curaleaf by the way is a keynote speaker at the upcoming Benzinga Cannabis Capital Conference on September 27-28 in Chicago where he'll likely touch on this important subject.
Challenges But Lots Of Potential Consumers
The legalization of recreational cannabis in Germany is a major opportunity for Curaleaf, which is well-positioned to capitalize on this opportunity and generate significant revenue in the years to come.
The company is aware of the challenges it could face in Germany, noted FT, including the need to compete with the black market, an issue facing almost every U.S. state that has legalized marijuana over these past several years. That said, legalization could have a significant impact on Germany’s economy. It is estimated that the market could be worth billions of euros per year. According to a government survey, 4.5 million Germans claimed to have smoked weed at least once last year.
But, Curaleaf is not the only company with an eye on the German market. Some, not all, of the most notable multistate operators, include Tilray, Inc.
; Aurora Cannabis (NASDAQ: ACB); Canopy Growth
the largest in the world by market capitalization; Cronos Group
