🇩🇰 Denmark Overview
Denmark’s medical cannabis pilot programme was launched in 2018, allowing doctors to prescribe unauthorised medical cannabis products to Danish patients. The pilot programme examined the use of medical cannabis as a treatment and created a framework in which medical cannabis can be cultivated, manufactured, imported and exported, opening a commercial market in the country. The pilot programme was initially meant to end in December 2021, however, this was extended for another four years and is now scheduled to end in December 2025.
In November 2024, the Danish Government agreed to make the medical cannabis pilot programme permanent, allowing patients to receive medical cannabis as a treatment after the pilot project. Additionally, it allows for a more robust structure for Denmark’s commercial medical cannabis market, implementing a permanent framework for cultivation, manufacturing and export opportunities.
Following the launch of the pilot project, Denmark has become a considerable producer of medical cannabis for the European and Australian medical cannabis markets. In 2024, the country exported over seven tonnes of medical cannabis into Germany, establishing itself as a serious player after Canada and Portugal.
🇩🇰 Regulations
Denmark’s medicinal cannabis pilot programme was established to introduce a safe medical cannabis framework into the healthcare system, creating a legal and safe alternative for patients who were previously acquiring medication using illicit routes. Additionally, it introduced a scheme allowing companies with authorisations to produce, import and export medical cannabis.
The Danish Medicines Agency is in charge of assessing and permitting authorisations for companies that manufacture and handle medical cannabis under the scheme. Depending on business activity, companies in the supply chain need to hold an authorisation for the production of cannabis bulk and primary products, and/or an authorisation to manufacture cannabis intermediate products.
A permit for the manufacture of cannabis bulk and primary products allows companies to grow and produce cannabis in bulk which is intended for further processing (flower, extract etc) and produce primary products which are packaged but not labelled as a Danish consumer ready product. This permit also allows for the export of cannabis bulk and derived products. An authorisation for intermediate products allows companies to manufacture primary/bulk products either from imported or Danish produced materials. A cannabis intermediate product is processed, packaged and labelled as consumer ready for the Danish market.
Cannabis manufacturers in Denmark are bound to continuous inspections by the Danish Medicine Agency, which issues certifications to manufacturers for satisfactory inspections and assessments determining that the authorised company and products are in compliance with EU-GMP guidelines.
🇩🇰 Patient Access
Who Can Prescribe?
Under the medical cannabis pilot scheme in Denmark, all doctors can prescribe medical cannabis.
Patients are able to receive their medical cannabis medications through pharmacies or hospitals.
What are the treatable pathologies?
In Denmark, medical cannabis should only be considered when other authorised medicines have provided insufficient and ineffective results for patients.
Doctors are permitted to prescribe medical cannabis at their discretion, as long as their decision is based on scientific evidence for the treatment of a patient’s condition, and their experience with that patient. However, the Danish Medicines Agency has also provided a list of indications where medical cannabis can be considered, which are:
- Painful spasms caused by multiple sclerosis
- Painful spasms caused by spinal cord damage
- Nausea after chemotherapy
- Neuropathic pain i.e. pain due to neurological disorders
Reimbursement
Under the pilot scheme medical cannabis is fully reimbursed for terminally ill patients, whereas non-terminally ill patients have a reimbursement rate of 50% up to a limit of annual expenditure of Danish Krone (DKK) 20,000 (approximately €2,700). If a patient does exceed the DKK 20,000 limit, they have to pay the full price for their medicine after reaching the threshold.
🇩🇰 Products & Prices
Currently, there are seven medical flowers available on the Danish market, through the pilot programme. All products are cultivated by Bedrocan in the Netherlands. Products in the pilot programme need to be standardised, and Bedrocan offers the most uniform portfolio of flower products available on the European market. The price of medical flower in Denmark ranges from €8.09 – €22.1 per gram, with CannGros selling products at a higher price than Scanleaf.
Under the Danish pilot programme, there are six medical cannabis extracts available to patients. The majority of extracts are supplied by Stenocare, with the other two products supplied by Scanleaf and Balancial. There are two high cannabidiol (CBD) extracts, two high THC extracts and one balanced extract product available. The prices for the extracts range from €80 – €270 per unit, and all have a package size of 30 millilitres.
🇩🇰 Imports & Exports
In the pilot scheme, all five flower products are imported from the Netherlands, while out of the six extracts available; four originate from Canada, one is imported from New Zealand and one is domestically produced.
The main markets to which Denmark exports medical cannabis products are Germany, Australia and the UK. The majority of Danish medical cannabis exports are shipped to Germany, with the largest amount occurring in 2024 with over seven tonnes being shipped to the country. Australia has recently become a significant export location for Danish exports, in 2023 alone over 1.7 tonnes were shipped, with the number estimated to be higher for 2024. Compared to the other countries, the UK has seen less Danish products, however volumes have been increasing – from 2023 to 2024, Danish exports to the UK increased from 85 kilograms to 243 kilograms.
🇩🇰 Domestic Production
As of March 2025, eight companies hold a licence to produce bulk and primary medical cannabis products. These companies can cultivate, manufacture and package medical cannabis products for the Danish and international export market.
In terms of intermediate product producers, companies that produce and package medical cannabis for the Danish market, there are nine authorised companies.