By Chris King • Published: 14 Apr 2022 • 21:13
Europe's biggest-ever cannabis farm worth over €100m discovered in Spain. image: guardia civil
In a statement issued by the force on, Wednesday, April 13, Spain’s Guardia Civil has smashed a massive drugs operation in the rural northern region of Navarre.
Officers discovered what is believed to be the biggest-ever cannabis farm in Europe, destroying a plantation containing 415,000 hemp plants, worth up to €100m (more than £83m).
According to the police, this massive plantation covered 67 hectares (166 acres), and spread across 11 fields. A warehouse was seized that contained around 50 tonnes of cannabis which was being hung to dry.
It was believed that the product was being prepared ready for export in large quantities to Italy and Switzerland, where it would subsequently be processed into cannabidiol (CBD).
In the police statement, the police revealed that the owner of the farm claimed his operation was legal, but after an investigation that was launched last year, three people have been arrested.
As with many European countries, the sale and use of CBD are not illegal in Spain, but in order to cultivate hemp with a view to producing CBD, the farmer must have the relevant authorisation from the Ministry of Agriculture. Any attempt to farm the crop without this permission is deemed a criminal offence.
Many farms cultivate hemp legally in Spain, where it is farmed for medical purposes. Cannabis hemp is processed into a non-psychoactive compound increasingly that is used to treat health conditions including anxiety and insomnia, as reported by news.sky.com.
Su precio en el mercado podría haber alcanzado los 100 millones de euros. Desmantelado el mayor cultivo de marihuana de Europa tras una operación conjunta con @policiaforal_na que se ha saldado con 3 personas detenidas y 2 investigadas. https://t.co/SWr0fzteta pic.twitter.com/8p5EkuDNBY — Guardia Civil (@guardiacivil) April 13, 2022
Su precio en el mercado podría haber alcanzado los 100 millones de euros.
Desmantelado el mayor cultivo de marihuana de Europa tras una operación conjunta con @policiaforal_na que se ha saldado con 3 personas detenidas y 2 investigadas. https://t.co/SWr0fzteta pic.twitter.com/8p5EkuDNBY
— Guardia Civil (@guardiacivil) April 13, 2022
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Originally from Wales, Chris spent years on the Costa del Sol before moving to the Algarve where he is a web reporter for The Euro Weekly News covering international and Spanish national news. Got a news story you want to share? Then get in touch at editorial@euroweeklynews.com
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