RIO DE JANEIRO — Brazilian pharmaceutical regulator Anvisa on Tuesday approved regulations for the roll-out of medicinal cannabis-based products but in a separate vote blocked a proposal to allow domestic medical marijuana plantations. Anvisa's approval of rules to regulate the nascent medical marijuana market represents a major shift in a country that has suffered years of deadly drug violence. Nonetheless, the decision to prohibit domestic plantations shows that Brazil, led by far-right President Jair Bolsonaro, is not yet willing to join peers Colombia and Uruguay and develop its own vertically integrated medical marijuana sector. A spokesman for Anvisa said that Brazilian firms interested in manufacturing cannabis-based products would need to import inputs from aboard.

Source: New York Times December 03, 2019 19:27 UTC