New licenses drive growth of Costa Rican hemp sector

The Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG) has issued 57 licenses for the cultivation and production of hemp derivatives. 

The first license was granted on November 8, 2022, and the last one on September 3, 2024. These licenses are valid for six years. According to MAG data, most licenses have been issued in San José and Guanacaste.

After the law permitting the cultivation of hemp came into effect in early 2022, the company Ingenio Taboga obtained the first permit. Two public universities, the Universidad Nacional (UNA) and the Tecnológico de Costa Rica (TEC), also applied for licenses to conduct research.

UNA was the first educational institution to obtain such a license in August 2023. From that point on, MAG informed that the university would focus on research, aiming to study the development and properties of hemp components. Among other goals, the research sought to validate techniques to modulate physiological processes in hemp cultivation, based on two varieties from Canada.

"Right now, we are just starting. What is clear is that as state, business, and academic actors collaborate more effectively, we will be able to catalyze the process and move much faster," said Jorge Herrera, Vice Rector of Research at UNA.