When people zol — SA celebrates 420 day

On Tuesday, weed smokers around the world celebrated the annual 420 day in support of dagga use.

April 20 marks the day when many dagga smokers gather to celebrate and consume cannabis products at 4.20pm. 

According to the Urban Dictionary, 420 started in 1971 when a group of friends in Northern California, US, calling themselves the Waldos, would congregate around San Rafael High School’s statue of Louis Pasteur at 4.20pm every day to smoke weed.

They called themselves the Waldos because “their chosen hangout spot was a wall outside the school”. 

The Waldos referred to their meeting time as “4.20 Louis”. The group eventually shortened their phrase to “4.20", which evolved into a code word users used to mean consuming cannabis.

In SA, smoking weed for personal use was made fully legal in 2018. According to the Cannabis for Private Purposes Bill, an adult person may, for personal use, possess 100g of dry dagga or one flowering plant in a public space. A public place, as defined by the bill, means any place to which the public has access.

However, smoking dagga in public, too close to a window, or in the immediate presence of any non-consenting adult person could lead to a jail sentence of up to two years. Anyone smoking around children can get up to four years in jail.

On social media, many shared how the day looked for them.

First in Africa

BusinessLIVE reported Lesotho-based cultivator and manufacturer of medicinal cannabis flower, extracts and oils, MG Health, is the first manufacturer in Africa to export the medicinal cannabis flower as an active pharmaceutical ingredient to the EU.  

MG Health received official confirmation that its manufacturing processes were aligned with the EU’s good manufacturing practice standards.

Fewer than 20 companies worldwide have achieved this certification of trust. 

The confirmation of EU good manufacturing practice compliance for MG Health was granted by the government of the Upper Bavaria district in Germany after an import request was made by Drapalin Pharmaceuticals, a licensed importer and distributor based in Munich and the strategic partner of MG Health in Germany.

“What it means is that we have authorisation to export our products as an active pharmaceutical ingredient into Germany and the wider European market,” said MG Health CEO Andre Bothma.