A new report by Intraval, a research bureau, counts 805 licensed coffee shops in Holland in 2001. This is a reduction of 1% from 813 in 2000. At least one hundred coffeeshops were closed in the past few years as the government sought to reduce the number, and remove the criminal elements from the business.

The new government while not keen on the coffeeshop business isn’t about to close down the remaining very profitable businesses that employ thousands and generate a lot of tax revenue. In addition, cannabis tourism generates a steady income stream for all the other Horeca businesses like hotels and restaurants.

Few if any new coffeeshop licenses are being granted anymore. When tenants leave, existing licenses stay with the building, making it likely they will continue in business as a coffeeshop, unless the government finds a good reason to revoke the license.

No figure was given for unlicensed coffeeshops, of which there are many. Unlicensed coffeeshops are usually in squats or private homes. These are at constant risk of closure should they be discovered.

So enjoy the freedom to skin-up/light-up in public coffeeshops while you still can.

Meanwhile the Dutch really need to address the issue of the backdoor supply of cannabis, because too many growers are still being busted for providing this most important product to the Horeca trade. This is a completely unfair system and leads to corruption of public officials, some of whom can easily profit from a bust.

I believe the best system is to let people grow their own (as many plants as they like!). A plant is not a crime!

Before the Dutch started their own homegrown cannabis industry, most marijuana and hashish was imported from various third-world sources. Many growers in these very poor countries can’t even afford fertilizer, and unless they have some livestock around to generate some, the cannabis is grown without any enhancements. Therefore, in the early days of coffeeshops, most of the marijuana was grown organically without chemicals.

With the advent of Dutch marijuana horticulture, the game changed. Now it was possible to control not just the genetics of cannabis, but the way it is grown to maximize such important things as yield, pest-resistance, and potency. Unfortunately the short growing season, lack of direct sunshine, cool temperatures and mold convinced the Dutch it would be smarter to grow indoors or in huge greenhouses.

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It seems making a huge markup on marijuana isn’t enough for the poor coffeeshop owners. Go ahead and ask to see a few varieties next time you’re in a coffeeshop. Look for those big buds dripping with white resin. Did you find them? If not, you’re the next victim in the big Coffeeshop rip-off – Shake & Sell!

Most growers and coffeeshop personnel nowadays have discovered the wonders of pollinator and isolator hash, which is the concentrated resin from the cannabis flower. It’s extremely pure and potent, and goes for a very high price, usually double or triple the price of imported hashish. The demand for this has grown as the Dutch preference for these forms of cannabis becomes more widespread.

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Once upon a time, when you purchased cannabis from a coffeeshop, you could be reasonable sure you were getting what you paid for. Whether the pot came from Columbia, Thailand or Africa it was labeled as such and priced according to its cost to the Coffeeshop.

Then the Dutch got into growing their own, and the selection increased dramatically with new varieties like Neville’s Haze, Skunk, Jack Herrer, White Widow, all appearing on the scene. This stuff was fresh and very potent. Each bud was thickly covered in sticky red hairs and/or white tricome crystals, and there was enough difference between the types that they were easily identifiable to regular consumers.

A glance at the typical Coffeeshop menu today reveals an outstanding variety of cannabis products from around the world! Hashish from Morocco, India, Nepal, Afghanistan, Lebanon. Marijuana from Columbia, Thailand, Swaziland in addition to at least half a dozen Dutch varieties.

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