Indoor cannabis farm. Image by trailblazin from Pixabay.

Thailand has built the biggest industrial-scale medical marijuana facility in Southeast Asia. The medical marijuana facility in Chiang Mai has 12,000 plants under agriculture.

Differences over the judgment of cannabis appear to be gaining momentum. On September 2, government officials visited a ceremony at Northern Thailand’s Maejo University in Chiang Mai where researchers planted 12,000 new marijuana plants. Seeds for the 12,000 plants were presented by the government’s Department of Medical Service.

Maejo University has produced its own type of cannabis plants of medical research and health. The university has reportedly developed a marijuana strain it calls “Issara” (independence) which offers equal percentages of CBD and THC.

Additionally, Thailand also announced that it will soon allow all Thais to grow up to six cannabis plants at home to sell to the government for medical use.

Thailand’s Government Pharmaceutical Organization (GPO) wishes to use the plants to make one million bottles of CBD cannabis oil. Each containing five milliliters of the CBD cannabis oil, by February 2020.

“These are historic first steps on the path to allowing people to grow cannabis in their homes,” said newly appointed Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul.

“In the near future, families will be able to plant it in their back gardens like any other herb.“ The university will be a center where ordinary people can learn how to plant and grow good quality cannabis. Cannabis is not an issue of politics, it is a product that can benefit people’s health,” he said.

However, recreational marijuana use remains illegal in Thailand with punishments including imprisonment. Cannabis supporters hope the medical marijuana boom will eventually result in freer laws on recreational use.