Several disgruntled Thai cannabis enthusiasts will soon be staging a protest over their country’s plans to eliminate the adult use market that opened in 2022 through decriminalization measures.
On Jul. 7, they will be picketing outside of the Ministry of Health’s headquarters in the Nonthaburi province. A US$1-billion-dollar industry and countless shops are being threatened by Thailand’s plan to return to strictly permitting medical marijuana.
The health ministry issued an order Tuesday outlining the new measures. It will come into force once published in the country’s Royal Gazette, which is expected to occur in the coming days without opposition.
“Cannabis will be classified as a narcotic in the future,” said Somsak Thepsuthin, Thailand’s Minister of Public Health.
Since 2022 a highly lucrative but largely unregulated industry has emerged in the country. Tourists from throughout Asia have been coming to Thailand to indulge in legal bud and many locals invested heavily in dispensaries to capitalize on the travellers.
Despite the grey market’s substantial economic stimulation, government officials have become increasingly concerned about unprecedented usage among children and youth that has resulted.
“It’s a festering problem and we have received so many complaints,” Thepsuthin stated.
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Days of Thailand’s ‘Weed Wild West’ are numbered
Other nations have also been putting pressure on the country to shutter its adult-use sector due to large quantities of Thai pot being consistently smuggled into their countries. This trend has been prevalent in Britain particularly, Europe and abroad.
“It’s massively increased over the last couple of years,” said Beki Wright in a statement provided to the BBC. She is a spokesperson from the National Crime Agency in London. Between 2023 and 2024 the number of people caught smuggling Thai weed into the United Kingdom rose from 142 per annum to 800, Wright highlighted.
India, Sri Lanka, Georgia, Hong Kong and Pakistan have also been intercepting an elevated number for illegal Thai weed packages since 2022.
Asia will soon return to having zero countries where recreational cannabis is a legal facet of the economy.
It’s a death sentence for thousands of Thai weed shops. Recreational cannabis is officially illegal again in #Thailand
The health minister just signed off: buyers now need a doctor’s prescription and proof of a medical condition. Green dreams revoked. 💨🚭 pic.twitter.com/Byvc3iccE6— Georg Matthes (@GeorgMatthes) June 25, 2025
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