Lat-Am Hemp Companies Oppose Hemp Seizure, Say Protocol Delay Hurts Entrepreneurs

The Latin American Industrial Hemp Association (LAIHA), Costa Rica’s Drug Control Police, is speaking up after a shipment of hemp products from Paraguay to Costa Rica was seized by regulators, even though no laws were violated.

The receiving company was subsequently placed under suspicion of drug trafficking.

Now, the LAIHA is calling on "the government institutions involved to try not to delay the commercial processes and common filing in all market activity.”

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Costa Rica has not updated its law enforcement protocols to align with the country’s new cannabis commercialization law and regulations, LAIHA president Lorenzo Rolim da Silva explained in a letter addressed to Francisco Ernesto Gamboa Soto, Costa Rica’s Minister of the Economy, according to Hemp Today.

“This harms not only those currently involved but also potential entrepreneurs,” he added.

The products seized were “100% compliant with Paraguayan and the new Costa Rican laws,” according to Da Silva. Also, they are registered in Paraguay for human and animal use with all the necessary approvals by the country's health regulatory authority (DINAVISA).

“This is a huge setback in the country’s economy, affecting the development of peasant family farming, foreign investment, and more,” said Allan Durán, CEO at Costa Rica Hemp. “Seizing hemp and CBD products under an international drug trafficking protocol gives a negative message to the developers of the crop, basically saying that Costa Rica is not prepared to start in this market for reasons of interpretation despite the fact that there is already a law that supports it.”

Under Costa Rican rules, approved in September, importing and exporting health products, food, and industrial products are legal. Individuals and legal entities are authorized to grow and process hemp, and guide post-harvest operations, storage, transport, product manufacturing, and marketing of health, food, and industrial products.

Last month, the first authorization to grow and process hemp in the country was granted. The government plans to make licenses inexpensive and widely available, per Hemp Today.

In Paraguay, hemp has been legal since 2019. Local companies have made rapid progress in manufacturing and exporting raw materials and finished products.

Colombia Cannabis Legalization Update

Colombia’s Chamber of Representatives and Senate recently voted to reconcile their respective versions of cannabis legalization bills advancing in the country “with both bodies accepting minor changes to create a unified final product that’s now set to advance to key votes in the new year," reported Marijuana Moment.

As Infobae reported, the reconciliation passed the Chamber in a 103-39 vote.

“For the first time in history, Colombia is advancing at such a level in this discussion,” Sen. María José Pizarro Rodríguez, sponsor of the Senate legalization bill, said, adding that supporters “hope that regularization will be a reality in June.”