• Morocco’s legal cannabis sector continues to expand five years after legalization, supported by rising private investment.
• Family-owned Cannablanca plans to launch a pharmaceutical cannabis processing unit in 2026 with a $16 million investment.
• Authorities continue to support local value creation through regulatory protection and industrial zoning.

In Morocco, family-owned company Cannablanca, which specializes in legal cannabis cultivation, plans to launch a pharmaceutical unit dedicated to transforming cannabis into medicine in 2026. According to information reported by local daily Médias 24 on Jan. 28, the project has reached nearly 80% completion, and operations should begin progressively, with full ramp-up targeted by the end of the year.

Located on a two-hectare site in Laghdir, in Chefchaouen province, the industrial project has mobilized an investment of 145 million dirhams ($16 million). “The unit will operate two production lines and rely on contracts with agricultural cooperatives […] Overall production capacity will only be determined once operations effectively begin, as it directly depends on volumes supplied by partner cooperatives,” the same source reported.

This new investment will strengthen Morocco’s legal cannabis processing capacity, which remains in a structuring phase, and will confirm the growing involvement of the private sector in the value chain.

The Chefchaouen project fits into a broader acceleration of Morocco’s legal cannabis industry. In December 2024, Moroccan pharmaceutical company Pharma 5 unveiled the country’s first cannabis-based generic drug. The product, branded “Cannabidiol Pharma 5” and presented as a breakthrough treatment for epilepsy, resulted from an investment project totaling 250 million dirhams ($27.08 million).

A year earlier, local company Somacan invested $6.1 million in a pharmaceutical processing unit in Aïn Cheggag and launched, in September 2024, a medical cannabis manufacturing facility in Taounate at a total cost of $2 million.

Meanwhile, Bio Cannat cooperative, which became the first entity to obtain authorization for cannabis processing in 2022, launched a cannabidiol extraction unit in January 2024 in Bab Berred. The facility can produce up to 720,000 bottles of CBD and more than 300,000 units of derivative products.

This industrial scale-up reflects Morocco’s strategy to capture more local value added beyond agricultural production alone.

A favorable environment for industrial emergence

Since cannabis legalization in 2021, the local industry has benefited from a supportive regulatory framework and incentive measures implemented by authorities. In December 2024, the Finance Commission approved the introduction of a maximum import duty of 200% on cannabis-based products. Authorities designed the measure to discourage imports and create favorable conditions for domestic production by eliminating foreign competition in the local market.

Earlier, in January 2024, the Regional Project Execution Agency (AREP) of the Tangier–Tetouan–Al Hoceima region received a mandate to develop an economic zone dedicated to legal cannabis processing activities. The project, which carries a total cost of $4.5 million, will cover 10 hectares in Issaguen, in Al Hoceima province. For this agro-industrial segment, local investors will rely on the strong growth momentum of legal cannabis production observed in recent years.

In parallel, the production segment continues to expand under the supervision of the National Agency for the Regulation of Cannabis-Related Activities (ANRAC). According to the public agency, land dedicated to legal cannabis cultivation reached 4,751 hectares in 2025, more than double the 2,169 hectares recorded in 2024. Authorities officially launched cultivation in 2023 with a modest surface area of 277 hectares.

Against this backdrop, the commissioning of new processing facilities should create additional outlets and support production growth in the coming years.

This article was initially published in French by Stéphanas Assocle

Adapted in English by Ange J.A de BERRY QUENUM