Spannabis Recap: Top Takeaways from Spannabis 2023

The scene outside of Spannabis, a massive European cannabis fair that has been lighting up Barcelona since 2002, initially looked like your average weed fest.

Smoke hung heavy in the spring air. Cacophonous waves of reggae smashed from every direction. Closed-circuit ciphers from backpack trappers, stoners and cannabiz brothers from around the world compared indoor flowers made from Mylar bags around tiny circular tables.

As a veteran reporter in the cannabis events circuit, I felt strangely at home in the endless sea of ​​white dreadlocks and inflatable RAW joints that regularly flew overhead.

Even the ubiquitous Weed Fest characters turned out to be international. There was the guy with a leaf blower rigged as a weed smoke fire hose, the girls wearing electric g-strings made out of glowing weed leaves, and even a megaphone guy who stood in a chair and threw vape batteries into the crowd.

However, once inside the pyramid-shaped glass building labeled SPANNABIS, the sheer density and scope of the event swept me into chilling realization.

The term grassworld no longer just refers to California and a sparse constellation of trendsetting locations. Well, the weed world is the whole world.

What is Spannabis?

Spannabis takes place in Barcelona and is the largest cannabis conference in Europe. Established in 2002, the conference is now in its 19th year, its second year since the Great Pandemic pause.

While I heard last year was a bit slow, this year was extremely well attended to the point that it was difficult to mentally move through the event.

A total of 280 international exhibitors, 500 companies, 5,000 industry professionals and over 25,000 people from 50 countries were present.

While Spannabis is the main attraction, it dictates a litany of other parties, panels, trophies, competitions and seshes. All in all, the week of the event(s) raised around $8 million for Spain’s local economy and (to be honest) probably a lot more for the black market.

With the sale of weed still technically illegal in Barcelona, ​​the festival depends on it being next to hemp, with exhibitors using their creativity to sidestep obvious associations with THC plants and products.

How legal is illegal?

Cannabis laws in Spain are like cannabis laws everywhere – unnecessary and nonsensical – so let’s break it down real quick.

In Spain it is legal to grow and smoke weed for personal use, as well as to consume it in private places, be it at home or in a business.

It is illegal to sell or consume THC products in any form in public places.

As such, there are hundreds of cannabis clubs in Barcelona, ​​similar to consumption lounges in LA or cafes in Amsterdam, where you can become a member, pay for a “membership” to receive product from them, and legally consume in their private space.

Top Takeaways by Spannabis

This year will be a big one for the plant in Spain, as lawmakers recently announced plans to quadruple production of medicinal cannabis. Proponents hope that medicinal cannabis will be fully regulated before the end of this year, which would make next year’s 20th anniversary of Spannabis even more monumental.

This year was epic in itself, and served as a stunning reminder of weed’s growing acceptance and accessibility on the international stage.

Here are my top four takeaways from Spannabis 2023.

The European market is booming

While Spannabis initially seemed comparable to his US counterparts like MJ Bizcon, the overall vibe was vastly different, as was the conceptual weight of the event even existing.

The fact that Spannabis had 25,000 attendees and was almost as crowded as MJ Bizcon (the world’s largest B2B cannabis conference, held in Las Vegas each fall) which attracted 35,000 people last year is pretty crazy considering the maturity of the United States considers market in this relatively new landscape.

Since the near collapse of the US market (caused by impossible regulation, insane taxation and uncontrolled corporate consolidation), the wiser American players see Europe as one of the most promising frontiers.

It was amazing to be at an event that is hopeful about the future of the industry, rather than events in Cali where much of the energy is spent lamenting the past and pessimistic about the future.

The European market is insatiable, excited and coming here hot.

B2B = Business to Black Market

The (dark) gray legal zone where cannabis exists in Europe was reflected in the range of brands and products displayed on the floor.

A network of claustrophobic conference halls unfolded with booths housing every conceivable canna side business.

Tons of brands we know and love like Pax, Puffco and Storz and Bickel were in attendance, plus countless others from around the world ranging from the sketchy as hell to the super legit, all products designed to either help you grow weed or to sell or to help you get high.

While it didn’t have the industrial pre-roll and packaging machines found at America’s B2B cannabis conferences, there were tons of low-tech, small-scale production tools that would be perfect for an underground operation, with a particular focus on seeds , Nutrients, Gap Fillers, Vac Gaskets and, unfortunately, unsafe, hemp-derived, semi-synthetic cannabinoid consumables.

Misinformation is widespread

The most disturbing trend I’ve seen at Spannabis, as well as the legal cannabis market in “hemp” shops in Barcelona, ​​has been the proliferation of semi-synthetic cannabinoids such as THC-O, HHC, D-8, etc.

There is a litany of complex issues that make these products unsafe for consumers. For those of you who may not be aware of this issue, the problem with D-8 and other semi-synthetics (natural cannabinoids that have been chemically modified) is the lack of residual testing in the unregulated market.

D8 can be safely manufactured, but unless you buy D8 products from a licensed pharmacy, there is no way of knowing what type of chemical intervention was used to make them – and if there are residues of those chemicals in the product you’re vaping, smoking or eat. Even D8 products that claim to be lab tested but are sold in the unregulated market are unsafe because there’s no way to prove whether the “labs” they claim to test with are legitimate — or if they are the products have actually been tested at all.

Similar to the US, there is no regulation for these semi-synthetic cannabinoids in the European market. They are marketed and sold like CBD, without any consumer warning whatsoever.

It was disappointing to see so many stalls in Spannabis – as well as stores across Barcelona – swarming around this shit and calling it weed.

Cannabis culture exists in the clubs

Spannabis gave a great insight into the business side of the European market, but the culture and the REAL weed exist in the cannabis clubs.

There are almost 500 clubs in Barcelona, ​​which is a lot more than I expected. I was struck by the personality of each club ranging from high class bar atmosphere to cafes, hangouts and so on.

Some favorites we visited were GWA Social Club, Choko Barcelona, ​​Terps Army and High-Class Social Club.

While the cannabis scene in Barcelona has much to learn from us in terms of cultivation and education, we need to capture some of its vibes in the consumption lounge arena. The effortless coldness of the people of Barcelona translated perfectly into their fantastic consumer scene, something the US just couldn’t nail.

Watching cannabis culture swirl around the world is delightful and surreal. When I left Spannabis, I knew one thing for sure: it’s an exciting time to be stoned.