By Dalton Rosario
Mexico has been leading the world stage in terms of embracing cannabis reformation fine-tuned to the insights established from the trial-and-error legislations that have been sanctioned in progressive states throughout the U.S., and from the examples set forth by global cannabis market leaders like Canada and Germany. Mexico’s Senate released a formal report establishing processes and provisions for ending cannabis prohibition, thereby developing the legal commodity as a viable commercial product with sound market infrastructure. Global cannabis platforms welcomed news of this momentum following the Mexican Supreme Court determining the unconstitutional nature of criminalizing adult cannabis consumption just months prior. The Mexican Senate has expressed clear consideration for wanting to avoid common pitfalls surrounding legalization which consists of countries, provinces or states rushing into policy reformations that favor consumerism and financial incentives which prioritize tax surplus revenues injected into local economies over well-thought out public health and safety regulations which benefit the people and their respective communities.
This is reflected in the Senate necessitating market structures that undercut any incentives for the continuance of a black market post-legalization due to inconsistencies with product quality standards, pricing and availability. Doing so first requires agreeable sales tax proposals for licensed cultivators and distributors, as well as consistency in regulated retail pricing, determined by dispensaries and their access to growers so they can successfully meet market demands. Once established, there will need to be transparency between licensed cultivators and quality assurance testing centers that have standardized reliable and accountable THC and CBD consistencies per strain, and potency levels of extracts and concentrates to be sold on the market or recommended by doctors and physicians for medical prescription use.
The Mexican Senate is reverse engineering cannabis reformation with a keen understanding for the meticulous implementation of practical policies that parallel a 2018 report by the Global Drug Policy Commission - which found that the best way to combat the mishaps of cannabis prohibition and its residual effects of violent crimes, racially motivated arrests rates, and continued marginalization of poverty stricken communities - is to authorize a highly regulated market infrastructure that prioritizes public health over commercial proceeds allowing for a robust industry of commerce.
