Costa Rica has officially concluded the licensing process for businesses in the hemp industry, finalizing 57 licenses for hemp cultivation and production.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG) recently awarded the licenses, marking the culmination of a process that began two years prior.
The licenses, each valid for six years, primarily cover operations in the capital, San Jose, and the Guanacaste province. These locations include a range of entities, such as the National University of Costa Rica, which received a research license in August 2023. The country’s first business license for hemp products was granted in November 2022 to Ingenio Taboga.
The law making this possible passed the Costa Rica Congress in February, 2022, and it was signed into law by then-president Carlos Alvarado the following month. The law legalized both medical marijuana and hemp, with the first hemp licenses issued in November, 2022.
In September 2022, President Rodrigo Chaves signed the regulation necessary to allow authorities to grant licenses for the production and industrialization of marijuana for medical or therapeutic use. Further medical marijuana licenses are expected to be issued in the coming days and weeks.
In May 2023, Costa Rica also granted its inaugural medical marijuana license to Azul Wellness S.A., a company operating a greenhouse in Filadelfia, Guanacaste. This license came over a year after the law enabling medical marijuana and hemp production passed through Congress in early 2022 and was signed by former President Carlos Alvarado.
Costa Rica is a Central American country with coastlines on the Caribbean and Pacific. It has a population of roughly 5.1 million people.
