Research paper
Cannabis cultivation in Spain: A profile of plantations, growers and production systems

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugpo.2016.08.003Get rights and content

Abstract

Background

The European market for cannabis derivatives is being transformed. The cultivation of cannabis within the EU and the shift of demand from hashish to domestic marihuana are key aspects of this transformation. Spain, formerly central to the trade of Moroccan hashish, is becoming a marihuana-producing country. The emergence of “import-substitution” has been researched in other EU countries, but thus far the Spanish case remains undocumented.

Methods

This paper is based on analysis of data of 748 cannabis plantations seized by Spanish police in 2013. The sample comprises reports of seizures identified through a survey of online news and police reports. “Event-analysis” methods were applied to these sources.

Results

The analysis offers a typology of plantations, a profile of participants and the different production systems, and a model of regional distribution. Half of the plantations were small (less than 42 plants) and half contained between 100 and 1000 plants, with an average size of 261 plants. About three-quarters of plants were cultivated indoors using stolen electricity. 86% of all plants seized were from large-scale plantations (more than 220 plants). Most plantations were located along the Mediterranean coast, where population and tourism are concentrated. Over three-quarters of those indicted by police were Spanish (85%). Among the foreign owners of big plantations, Dutch nationals predominated. The number of seized plants by province was directly associated with the number of grow shops (β = 0.962, p < 0.001).

Conclusion

The rise of large-scale cannabis plantations in the Spanish Mediterranean coast is increasingly replacing import of Moroccan hashish. Indoor cultivation supported by grow shops, that provide the technology and know-how, seem to be the dominant form of organization in this emerging industry. Large-scale plantations may have met most of the demand for marihuana in 2013.

Introduction

Cannabis derivatives are the most widely used illicit drugs in the world (Gowing et al., 2015, UNODC, 2015). These drugs used to be produced in developing countries to serve the demand of Western consumers. Today they are also priced crops grown illegally in the rich industrial world. Canada, Mexico and the US are now among the major cannabis producers in America, and Australia and New Zealand are described as close to self-sufficiency (UNODC, 2015). In Europe, countries such as the Netherlands, Belgium, Italy and the United Kingdom – formerly importers of cannabis resin – have developed their own marihuana-producing industries (Decorte, Potter, & Bouchard, 2011; Decorte, 2007, Decorte, 2010, EMCDDA, 2012, Jansen, 2002, Kirby and Peal, 2015, Korf, 2011, Potter, 2008, Potter, 2010, UNODC, 2015, Wouters, 2008).

In Spain, the illegal production of marihuana seems to be increasing rapidly, and this may be connected to a decline in the export of Moroccan hashish. As shown in Fig. 1, between 2008 and 2014 seizures of cannabis resin decreased by 44% from 683 to 380 tons. In the same period, seizures of cannabis herb increased by 300% from 4 to 16 tons (EMCDDA, 2016a, Ministerio del Interior, 2015). Two developments may have contributed to this. Firstly, in 2005 the Moroccan government implemented a crop eradication programme, mainly in the provinces of Taounate and Larache. This resulted in a 46% decrease, compared to 2003, in the area devoted to cannabis cultivation in the Rif (Gamella and Jiménez Rodrigo, 2008, UNODC, 2003, UNODC, 2005a, UNODC, 2005b), with a further 19% decrease between 2005 and 2009 (UNODC, 2010). Other indicators support this decrease, for example between 2008 and 2010, the annual concentration of cannabis pollen grains in the province of Tetouan fell by 44% (Aboulaich et al., 2013).

Secondly, between 2002 and 2010, the Integrated System of External Surveillance was established along the Mediterranean coast of Spain. This air and sea detection and interception system was created to facilitate the surveillance of this border of the European Union. It has become an effective barrier against the smuggling of illegal drugs and the transport of irregular migrants (EMCDDA, 2012, Fernández Jurado and Sabariego Rivero, 2006).

Despite the decline in the area devoted to cannabis cultivation, Chouvy and Afsahi (2014) argued that hashish production may not have decreased as much as thought, as growers were substituting traditional kif cannabis varieties with more productive hybrid ones imported from Europe. In an interview in May 2016, an Andalusian wholesale dealer described to us how he had helped Moroccan growers to improve their plantations, and the help included the sale of thousands of imported seeds. As a result of these changes, the potency of Moroccan hashish may have increased. This is in line with the incremental rise in the level of THC observed in the cannabis resins seized recently in many European countries (Afsahi, 2015, Chouvy and Afsahi, 2014, EMCDDA, 2016b). Both the increase in productivity and in potency may have offset the decline in demand and contributed to price maintenance. Afsahi reported that some Moroccan growers told her they “were unable to sell their 2013 harvest because production exceeded demand, a direct consequence of European competition” (Afsahi, 2015: p. 328). Perhaps the increase in potency may partially explain the drop in the amount of hashish seized by Spanish police in the last decade.

At the same time, the supply of locally grown marihuana in Spain seems to have increased considerably. From 2008 to 2012 the eradication of cannabis plants by police forces increased by 67%, from 24 to 40 tons (EMCDDA, 2016a). The turning point in the emergence of this new industry seems to have occurred in 2013, at the deepest point of the economic crisis. From 2013 to 2014, seizures of cannabis plants increased by 54%, from 176000 to 271000 units (Ministerio del Interior, 2015: p. 408).

Moreover, the internal demand for cannabis remains high, with Spain showing one of the highest rates of cannabis consumption in Europe. A national household survey conducted in 2013 found that 7% of respondents had used cannabis in the past month and 2% used it daily (Fig. 2). Four years earlier, in 2009 these proportions were 8% and 2% respectively.

Based on consumption data, Caulkins and Kilmer (2013) estimated that 394 tons of cannabis were consumed in Spain during 2009. We have repeated these calculations using data from population surveys conducted in 2011 and 2013 (see Table 1). Our results show that in recent years, the number of past month users decreased by 14%, but the total amount of cannabis consumed in the country only decreased by 2%. It seems that the proportion of experimental and occasional users has decreased, while that of regular and intensive users has remained constant or increased slightly. These types of user consume larger amounts of cannabis on average (van Laar, Frijins, Trautmann, & Lombi, 2013; Zeisser et al., 2012).

Additionally, according to data provided by the Spanish Ministry of Interior, retail prices of both cannabis resin and herb increased from 2009 to 2012 and then decreased. Wholesale prices of marihuana fell from 2002 to 2008, increased from 2009 to 2011 and then started to fall again (see Fig. 3). Prices of hashish also fell from 2002 to 2006, but have remained constant since. The price increase of herb from 2008 onwards could be seen as a response to the growth of demand, until local supply also increased to meet the rising demand. There are independent signs for this. For instance, the annual rate of atmospheric pollen of cannabis detected in the province of Malaga tripled in this same period (El País, 17-09-2014). The change of price could also reflect a change in the mode of marihuana production and on the quality/potency of cannabis. Data from our ethnographic fieldwork in Madrid and Andalusia showed that indoor marihuana (sinsemilla) doubled and even tripled the price of outdoor marihuana. Similar price disparity has been found in the U.K. and the Netherlands (Reitox UK focal Point, 2009: p. 161; Trimbos Instituut/WODC, 2015: p. 107).

In sum, there is considerable evidence that cannabis cultivation has grown considerably in Spain over the last five years, although there seems to be little reliable data on this process.

In this paper, we present the results of a “public event analysis” of the cannabis plantations seizures reported by Spanish authorities in 2013. We have analysed the geographical distribution of the seized plantations by size and the systems of cultivation. We have also studied the profile of entrepreneurs and growers. Similar typologies have been established using the grower’s motivations and the size of plantations as the main criteria (Hough et al., 2003, Potter, 2008, Spapens, 2011, Weisheit, 1992, Wiecko and Thompson, 2014). Non-commercial growers exhibit a wider range of motives. Some motives are practical: to save money, to control the quality of the product, to avoid contact with drug dealers, to get therapeutic benefits, etc. Other motives can be categorized as more moral or political, mostly among those who are more politically or ideologically oriented. In contrast, the core motivation of commercial growers is to make a profit. There are different types of commercial growers and they can be grouped according to the size of their plantations and how they organize their business. In Spain most cannabis plants are grown for monetary gain. We have selected some case examples in order to show the differences among this type of grower. Finally, we have explored some of the factors that may have contributed to the growth of this emerging industry.

Section snippets

Methods and data sources

This paper is based on “public event analysis” of all confiscations of cannabis plantations reported online in the press or in police press-reports during 2013. The use of news reports to analyse cases and “events” and the “objective” dimensions of episodes of different types of collective events has been applied by historians to the research of ethnic/racial and labour conflicts (Franzosi, 1987, Franzosi, 1994, Hutter, 2014, Koopmans and Rucht, 2002, Olzak and West, 2007, Olzak, 1989). Our

Number of seized plants

Table 2 shows the analysed sample of 748 plantations classified by quartiles. The mean number of plants per plantation was 261.2 (N = 748; Mean = 261.2; SD = 847.4; Median = 42; Interquartile range = 211). Seizures generally included all plants irrespective of stage of growth. Authorities usually do not distinguish between cannabis plants, cuttings and seedlings. This form of counting plants increases the confiscation figures (EMCDDA, 2012, Spapens, 2011, Wouters, 2008).

A quarter of all seized

Discussion

In the last decade, the market for cannabis in Europe has undergone a major transformation. The most significant change is a kind of ‘import substitution’ by which countries that were key importers of cannabis have developed important marihuana-producing industries (Jansen, 2002, Potter, 2008). These emerging industries are increasingly transnational, and take advantage of the ease of trade and transport within the EU region (EMCDDA, 2016b: p. 66).

Spain has recently been incorporated into this

Acknowledgements

This research was partially supported by the Proyecto de Excelencia P11-SEJ-8286, funded by the Consejería de Economía, Innovación, Ciencia y Empleo, of the Junta de Andalucía. We are grateful to Pekka Hakkarainen and two anonymous reviewers for their comments on a previous version of this paper. All the mistakes it may still contain are the responsibility of the authors.
Conflicts of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest concerning this paper.

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