Netherlands Overview
The legal adult-use experiment in the Netherlands – the ‘Weed Experiment (Wietexperiment) – is a multi-year trial which involves creating legal, domestic supply chains for adult-use cannabis in the Netherlands.
The experiment involves supplying coffeeshops with legal, Dutch-produced cannabis, instead of the cannabis which they currently receive , which comes from the black market.
Test phases of the experiment have been taking place since December 2023, and the main experiment is now online, as of 7 April 2025.
The current government, which came into office in 2024, is not as supportive of the experiment as the previous one. Stakeholders are concerned that if there are significant issues as the programme gets fully underway, some factions of government might start calling for early termination of the programme, in spite of legal barriers preventing this.
Medical Cananbis Legalisation Map
No Market
Restricted Market
Small/Slow Market
Free Market
Market in Transition
Pilot Programme
Small/Growing Market
Tightly Controlled Market
Regulations
There are ten participating municipalities. These will be the only municipalities involved in the experiment.
There are ten suppliers. These will be the only suppliers involved in the experiment, except in the case that a supplier drops out, whereupon another supplier may be brought in from a list of eligible candidates.
All coffeeshops in each municipality will participate in the experiment, sourcing from the ten selected suppliers, not the black market.
Each supplier can supply coffeeshops in all participating municipalities.
Experiment Timeline
Startup Phase: 15 December 2023 – 17 June 2024
The startup phase was the initial test phase for the experiment, in order to test the processes and resolve any issues. It only involved Breda and Tilburg. Coffeeshops in these municipalities were supplied by participating suppliers (as well as their existing black market suppliers). Though all ten suppliers were permitted to supply Breda and Tilburg during this phase, only some were fully operational at the time.
Transitional Phase: 17 June 2024 – 7 April 2025
The transitional phase opened the experiment to all ten participating municipalities, and allowed time for coffeeshops to change their supply source to the selected suppliers. During this time, they could source from the selected suppliers in the experiment, as well as through existing black market suppliers.
Experimental Phase: 7 April 2025 – April 2029 (Current Phase)
The experimental phase is the main phase of the controlled cannabis supply chain experiment. All coffeeshops in all ten municipalities source exclusively from the ten selected suppliers. This phase is intended to last for at least four years, with the possibility for it to be extended.
Completion Phase: April 2029 (Expected)
The completion phase starts after the experimental phase ends. At the end of the completion phase, the situation will return to what it was before the experiment began, unless the government decides otherwise. There is no set time period for how long this phase will last.
Netherlands Adult-Use Experiment - Participating Municipalities
- Tilburg (11 coffeeshops)
- Breda (8 coffeeshops)
- Almere (2 coffeeshops)
- Arnhem (12 coffeeshops)
- Groningen (12 coffeeshops)
- Heerlen (1 coffeeshop)
- Maastricht (16 coffeeshops)
- Nijmegen (12 coffeeshops)
- Zaanstad (2 coffeeshops)
- Voorne aan Zee (2 coffeeshops)
Netherlands Adult-Use Experiment - Participating Cultivators
Products & Prices
The tables display the prices of a selection of products in the legal experiment, taken from the menus of a number of coffeeshops in participating municipalities in March 2025. It is not an exhaustive list of all products available in the legal experiment.