Current laws which turn a blind eye to private individuals growing up to five marijuana plants should be overturned, according to police drugs experts. They say small-scale growers can earn up to €3,000 a year from their home production.

Although growing marijuana plants is technically illegal, in practise the public prosecution department takes no action against people who grow up to five plants. Possession of up to five grammes of cannabis is similarly ignored.
Police drugs experts also want tougher sentencing for professional plantations. ‘At the moment they get community service of 60 to 80 hours. There should be a clear signal that (marijuana production) is unacceptable,’ detective Ben Janssen told the Volkskrant.
‘Grow shops’ which sell seeds, lamps and fertilisers should also be tackled, Janssen says. ‘They are the way in for organised marijuana growing,’ he said. Some 8,000 professional plantations are found in private homes, in commercial properties and in farm sheds every year, according to figures in the Telegraaf.
While some parts of the country already have a system of licences for ‘grow shops’, many places, including Amsterdam, do not, acording to the crime prevention centre CCV.
A licencing system allows the local authority to set a maximum number of shops and investigate the owners for potential criminal connections.