Colombia Approves Sale of Medical Cannabis Flower: Small Growers Get First Dibs

Colombia just took another bold step in its public-health playbook by approving Decree 1138 of 2025, which authorizes the commercialization of cannabis flower for medical use by prescription in pharmacies, drugstores, and veterinary establishments, according to Swiss Info.

Said decree was signed by the Ministries of Justice, Agriculture, and Health, modifying Decree 780 of 2016. Until now, regulations only allowed the export of dried flowers or the domestic sale of derivatives such as oils, extracts, or capsules. From now on, the flower itself is also considered a “finished product” and can be dispensed with proper medical and sanitary authorization.

A historic shift (but only for medical use)

For context: since 2021, Colombia has been exporting medical cannabis flower, but selling it within the country’s borders was still off-limits. Representative Juan Carlos Losada (Liberal Party) told EFE that this step “corrects a mistake made by Iván Duque’s government (2018–2022), which allowed the export of cannabis flower abroad but not its sale within the country. What changes now is that in Colombia [the flower] can finally be considered a finished product and, therefore, sold to those with a medical prescription.”

The Ministry of Health emphasized that the measure seeks to “facilitate better quality control and guarantee patients access to safe and reliable treatments.”

The decree is also linked to Colombia’s new National Drug Policy 2023–2033 (“Sowing Life, Uprooting Drug Trafficking”), which aims to create regulatory frameworks that are “comprehensive, fair, and based on scientific evidence.”

Additionally, it includes veterinary applications, allowing the production and dispensing of cannabis-based preparations for animals.

Who’s overseeing what

The new regulation establishes a clear division of responsibilities:

• The National Narcotics Fund (FNE) will handle manufacturing licenses and monitor cannabis, its derivatives, and finished products subject to control.
• The Ministry of Justice will supervise licenses related to seeds, grain, and cultivation of both psychoactive and non-psychoactive plants.

Both entities will coordinate with INVIMA (health oversight) and ICA (agricultural oversight) to ensure traceability and prevent deviation into the illicit market.

Small growers get first dibs

One of the most talked-about moves gives priority to micro, small, and medium-sized cultivators: for the next two years, they alone will be allowed to supply the domestic market.

The Ministry of Justice also has five months to design a simplified licensing system that eases their integration into the legal market.

According to the government, “the transitional measure is reasonable and proportionate, as it strengthens the national pharmaceutical and agro-industrial sectors while guaranteeing supply and fair participation of local producers.”

However, sociologist and activist Estefanía Ciro Rodríguez, director of the group A la Orilla del Río, warned: “I think they should be stricter and clearer in their positive discrimination toward those who have been victims of illegal markets.”

More research and quality control

The decree extends non-commercial research licenses to 24 months, giving universities and laboratories more time to study the plant’s therapeutic uses.

Besides, it also sets a new category for low-THC products, taking them off the controlled-substance list and paving the way for more science-backed, non-psychoactive formulas.

Finally, the decree lays out rules for magistral preparations (for both human and veterinary use), that must be made in licensed facilities by qualified pharmacists using Colombian-grown ingredients only (no imports allowed).

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