Solidarity Growers: How Grow-for-a-Patient Works Under Argentina's REPROCANN

A solidarity grower (“cultivador solidario”) is a person authorized under REPROCANN, Argentina's medical cannabis registry, to grow cannabis for a patient who can't grow their own. Think of it as a caregiver grow: no profit, just one grower helping a patient who lacks the space, know-how or resources. And honestly, cannabis people are like that by nature: we share what we've learned, help other growers when they're stuck, lend each other soil and containers, and hand out clones whenever we can. Growing for personal use goes hand in hand with a love for the plant, health and well-being.

In Argentina, the way to do this as legally and safely as possible is through REPROCANN. The program aims to improve access to cannabis for people with a medical indication based on the available scientific evidence, whether that's a pharmaceutical product, a compounded formula, or cannabis from a controlled grow carried out by patients for themselves, by third parties, or by a network of patients supported by authorized NGOs.

So Argentina's new regulations legalize personal home growing AND solidarity growing. But what does that actually mean?

If someone needs the benefits of cannabis, an authorized solidarity grower with a permit can grow on their behalf when, for whatever reason, that person can't grow at home. It might be a lack of space, know-how or resources.

How do you become a solidarity grower in Argentina?

Before registering with the program and starting to plant, the prescribing health professional must hold a current medical license. And the NGO, for its part, must be listed in Argentina's NATIONAL REGISTRY OF HEALTH-RELATED CIVIL SOCIETY ORGANIZATIONS run by the Ministry of Health's National Office of Institutional Relations.

How do you add a solidarity grower to your REPROCANN registration?

When you start filling out the REPROCANN form, indicate that the growing will be done by “someone else” (“otro”), then link up with a solidarity grower, who has to register in that role.

Who are solidarity growers?

Becoming a solidarity grower isn't hard. You just have to live up to the name. There are already plenty of growers who give away oil or help others grow with zero financial interest. The law recognizes these growers and regulates their grows.

Solidarity growers can also be co-ops that supply medical cannabis products to people who can't get them any other way.

It's important to stress that solidarity growers can only supply and help authorized patients who, for some reason, can't grow for themselves. They're only authorized for therapeutic and medical purposes, since Argentina's rules don't yet cover growing or using cannabis for recreational purposes.