Uruguay is the first legal marijuana market

New law and regulations make Uruguay, starting from Tuesday, the first country in the world that has a legal marijuana market.

A system regulating legal production, sale and drug consumption will open the door to a whole new range of businesses. A cautionary note to interested entrepreneurs, though, as the government will control every aspect of this new market, from beginning to end, including price limits.

The starting price proposed is set at 20 Uruguayan pesos or 87 US cents.

People are allowed to grow as many as six plants at home and produce maximum 480 grams of marijuana per year.

However, the policy for non-Uruguayans is clear on the fact that foreigners will not be allowed to smoke or buy the cannabis products even if they are government licensed.

Now, governments and drug policies experts will turn their eyes from the Netherlands, where recreational drugs, although illegal, are tolerated, to the South American country that is now at the vanguard of liberal drug policies.