All around the globe, people are falling in love with marijuana! In Japan, cannabis is only in the past few years become more broadly embraced. If you are on a visit to Japan and want to buy cannabis seeds in Japan, read this article to know the law!
In Japan, the culture features hard work, commitment, knowledge, and being part of a more significant societal mechanism that operates like a well-oiled device.
Though there is a flourishing, beautiful culture of art, entertainment, and margins in larger cities, the overall civilization is still one that highlights success. Not surprisingly, marijuana use has taken a backseat to tobacco, caffeine, alcohol, and amphetamines.
Unlike many other nations that adopted cannabis mostly for recreational goals and fiber, Japan interpreted it as a sacred plant. Marijuana had a significant role in Japanese symbolism, culture, spirituality, and medicine.
Let’s have a look at the history related to it!
Marijuana In The Japanese History
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Marijuana has been prevalent in Japan for ages. According to Takayasu, the guardian of the Hemp Museum, the earliest indication of weed in the nation dates back to the Jomon Period, somewhere between 10,000 BCE to 300 BCE.
People have found evidence of marijuana fibers and seeds in western Japan, and archaeologists think that the people back then used the plants or making costumes, bowstrings, and fishing lines.
The archeologists have also discovered ancient cave paintings, starring pictures that look very alike to cannabis plants with the similarly shaped leaves and spindly stems.
The cannabis plant remained to be essential to the Japanese people for numerous hundred years. Manyoshu, a book of poetry dating back to the 8th century, has a reference to cannabis.
Ninjas utilized the cannabis plants in their practice by jumping over them each day as some marijuana strains grow faster. There are also woodblock prints recording from the 1600s, revealing women spinning cannabis fibers and growers harvesting cannabis flowers.
Cannabis also has an essential role in Shintoism, Japan’s indigenous religion. Shinto priests thought that marijuana purified the air; they would swing bunches of leaves around them to eliminate negative energies.
In fact, people referred to cannabis as a symbol of continence, which is why brides often used veils made from cannabis when they got married.
The Impact of World War II
The Second World War transformed the role of cannabis in Japanese culture significantly. The law outlawed its usage respectively. People started looking at cannabis differently. The people who considered it a sacred plant started neglecting the plant and consider it a critical substance.
Thanks to the Emperor obtaining hemp licenses for growers, the hemp industry was spared from extinction. People still grow it in Japan to this day.
Is Marijuana Legal In Japan?
Japan is so stern on cannabis that when Canada legalized it in 2018, the Japanese administration informed its residents abroad not to participate. They could still face the results upon their return back homeward.
Now, hemp and CBD are allowed under strict laws, but Japanese residents find it easier to get CBD supplements every year.
What Are The Rules For Medical Marijuana In Japan?
Before the Second World War, marijuana played a vital role in traditional Japanese medicine. People used cannabis to treat ailments such as insomnia and to offer pain relief. It all changed after the government introduced the hemp law in 1948.
Japan doesn’t currently have a medical marijuana program. In 2007, Otsuka Pharmaceuticals (a Japanese company) declared that it had a license for Sativex from GW Pharmaceuticals to conduct the examination, carried out in the US.
However, this did not lead to the legalization of cannabis for medicinal objectives in Japan. Indeed, in 2015, Otsuka Pharmaceuticals said that its latest tests about marijuana treatment for patients with advanced cancer had been unresolved.
Some people have spoken out in support of including a medical marijuana program in Japan. A notable instance is Masamitsu Yamamoto. The police caught him in possession of weed in 2015.
He alleged that he was utilizing it as a last option to ease the pain produced by his advanced liver cancer. He requested the administration to legalize marijuana for medicinal objectives, but passed away during the trial, in 2016.
Hideo Nagayoshi, a spokesperson of the Japan Medical Marijuana Association, supported Yamamoto through the trial. He stated that no other cannabis trials in Japan’s history had dug this deep into the efficiency of cannabis as a cancer medication.
Although Japanese authorities adopt a hard line for marijuana, the law does allow the usage and sale of CBD.
The government legalized it in 2016, and some organizations are now can offer CBD products. However, it was only in 2018 that the authorities have allowed the companies to promote their products.
What Are The Rules For Possession And Consumption of Cannabis In Japan?
You cannot use or possess marijuana in Japan. The Japanese government introduced The Cannabis Control Act in 1948 when the USA had control over the nation after the Second World War. General MacArthur was in charge of it. The authorities have not modified the law since then.
The law mainly refers to both possession and use and declares that if the police catch anyone with cannabis for private use, they may get a prison order of up to five years.
Even though people consider hemp as a beneficial plant, the officials take a less receptive view of marijuana. It is not new for people if the police take someone into custody even if they found him or her having only one joint.
Some Instances to Remember!
There is also a chance of a communicative sentence that could take the form, such as losing one’s job or being suspended from school. It works as an excellent restraint for the people of Japan. The famous heroine Saya Takagi offers an illustration of this in action.
After the police caught her for possessing cannabis, the authorities ordered to remove all her programs from TV schedules. They have also discarded a theme song which she has written for a TV show.
Similarly, a rugby player for the national team of Japan got a lifetime ban from the game as the police catch him with weed. Toshiba cut all the sponsorship contracts with his regional team.
If the police find any immigrants using or possessing weed, they might get deported and banned from re-entering the nation again.
The famous musician of the country, Paul McCartney, is the most wicked case of this. After the policemen caught him with cannabis, the government didn’t allow him to come back into Japan until eleven years after the incident.
Can You Grow Cannabis In Japan?
It is illegal to cultivate cannabis in Japan. If the authorities find you growing any quantity, the offender may get a jail sentence of up to seven years. The offender might also get a fine of a 3,000,000 yen.
This indeed wasn’t the problem in the past. Junichi Takayasu, the curator of Taima Hakubutsukan, told The Japan Times how widespread cannabis farming used to be in the nation. Here is what he said:
After the government passed the Cannabis Control Law, Japanese producers were in a state of panic. Emperor Hirohito convinced them that they would be able to cultivate the plant, which they did, despite introducing the new rule.
In 1950, there were around 25,000 marijuana farms in service across the nation.
This figure dropped in the years that followed, but it wasn’t the act that caused the drop. In fact, it was the increasing fame of artificial materials that created it, and the high costs of the breeding license.
What About Selling Weed Seeds?
If the police grab you with an amount of weed that could be “used for the purpose of gain” (i.e., traded), then the Cannabis Control Law says that the jail sentence increases up to seven years.
The offender may have to pay a fine of 2,000,000 yen, based on the particular factors involved.
For importing or exporting marijuana, the prison order remains the same, but the penalty would be up to 3,000,000 yen. If the authorities find someone to have ‘mediated’ the transfer, sale, or supply of marijuana, the judge may assign him a two-year prison sentence.
Industrial Hemp in Japan
The US executives initially wanted to ban both hemp and cannabis when they were drafting the Cannabis Control Act. The Japanese officials succeeded in convincing the US to assign licenses for hemp production instead.
It was a dangerous game, given that Japan was a significant US base for services in Asia and that the US was battling a war with Vietnam.
These days, hemp farming is legal, but only with an approved license. There are two kinds of permits, and the most obvious to get is the one for cultivating low-THC hemp. ‘Tochigishiro’ is the most commonly produced cannabis strain, as its THC levels are very low.
Producers in Japan are eagerly waiting for the government to change the law. As a result, hemp production would become a more comfortable process.
Some people have advised that the Kyoto Protocol supports their opinions. This report forms part of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. Hemp cultivators have identified that hemp is a sustainable product and could be helpful for the environment.
Akie Abe is the wife of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. She is a big supporter of hemp, and in a conversation with a Japanese magazine, reportedly said that hemp is a plant in which all parts can be used effectively. (…) While it is not yet allowed in Japan, I think it can be put into great practical use for medical purposes as well.
How To Buy The Best Marijuana Seeds In Japan?
Marijuana is getting its way in Japan, particularly in recent years. Smugglers bring it from Canada, Thailand, the Philippines, New Zealand, and many other countries.
With such a compact population, locally produced cannabis is difficult to come by and even more challenging to get away with.
For people who smoke maryjane, getting a reliable source is necessary for having a good time, especially when you have come for your vacation. No one desires to be stuck, desperately searching the beach for a dealer. It’s a job that’s becoming somewhat easier with nations around the world loosening their marijuana laws.
Don’t purchase anything in the street!
There are many other ways of finding weed. One of them is by knowing people. If you are in Tokyo, it’s all about connections and engaging people, even if it doesn’t seem so.
THC is illegal in Japan, so you can only think of buying CBD isolate products or broad-spectrum CBD. You can shop for CBD in local shops or order online if you reside in Japan.
If you want to purchase from international brands that don’t export to Japan, you can also order mail forwarding service.
It appears that both online and local shops have got their consumers. The Japanese people like to shop for CBD online, and they also enjoy spending time at neighborhood cafes, appreciating various CBD-infused beverages and sweets.
The ultimate solution towards getting high-quality marijuana seeds in Japan is to order online with seed banks. Many popular seed banks offer worldwide shipping options. You can get your seeds at your doorsteps without going out of the house.
Acceptance Of Cannabis In Japan
Japanese management is significantly pessimistic about cannabis usage. It is so much the fact that they even demanded that Japanese citizens should consider Japanese law and stay away from cannabis when touring other nations where the government allows cannabis, like Canada.
Many Japanese residents reflect this attitude, who think that marijuana is a deadly drug. They also regard cannabis as socially unacceptable, something that’s displayed in the public shaming when the police caught some high-profile personalities using it.
However, there’s a growing campaign confronting these opinions. For instance, Saya Tagaki, the actor caught for weed possession, became a nominee for the Japanese Resistance Party and talked about the therapeutic benefits of the plant.
Takayasu arranges annual tours to the legal fields near his museum to explain to visitants how space-intensive cannabis growing is and how it needs few — if any — agricultural chemicals.
Moreover, Takayasu also drives monthly workshops to educate people about spinning cannabis fibers. On exhibit in the museum are various garments made from marijuana. The soft cream-colored substance is warm in winter and cools in summer — ideally suited to the Japanese weather.
Did You Know?
- Some scholars consider that prejudice towards weed is what drives many people in Japan to use more potent drugs, such as amphetamines. Drugs like these are one of the severe problems in the nation.
- Marijuana use is comparatively uncommon in Japan. Just 1.2% of the population has tried it in the past. To give some estimates, in the US, 41.9% of people have attempted it.
- Although not many people use marijuana in Japan, figures are on the rise. For instance, in 2017, the police arrested 3,008 people on cannabis-related charges, 472 more than the prior years, and the highest number ever reported in the country.
Final Words
At present, as Takayasu said, there are less than 60 cannabis farms in Japan. All of them need to grow cannabis strains containing minimum levels of THC.
With the number of producers so low, Takayasu indicates his concerns for the future of cannabis in Japan.
It’s highly doubtful that Japan will legalize cannabis anytime soon, either for medicinal or recreational objectives. Although the government has permitted some organizations to analyze the health benefits of marijuana, none of these investigations have led to anything further.
It’s essential to note that the Japanese government legalized CBD in 2016, which indicates a slight shift in public opinion. Whether these beliefs change further in the future remains a mystery.
It seems that you’re good to go!
We hope you would find this article helpful when you think of purchasing cannabis in Japan.
Watch this video on Should Japan follow Canada and legalize recreational marijuana? by The Japan Times.
