By Brazil Passes One Million Medical Cannabis Patients
Brazil has surpassed one million medical cannabis patients, according to market research firm Kaya Mind. The firm counted 1,012,887 recurring patients as of June 2026. Those patients are spread across roughly 90% of the country’s municipalities.
The milestone comes as Brazil still has no adult-use cannabis market. The country also lacks a full domestic cultivation market. Patient access currently depends on imported products regulated by health regulator Anvisa.
The event runs Friday, November 20 through Sunday, November 22 at the São Paulo Expo.
Organizers expect close to 50,000 visitors and 344 exhibitor booths at this year’s fair. The booth count is up 38% from last year, when 45,000 people attended over three days.
The fair’s 2026 theme is “Para Além da Planta,” or beyond the plant. The theme reflects a shift in the industry’s conversation from medicine alone toward hemp, agriculture and industry.
Regulatory Shift Drives the Conversation
Brazil’s Superior Court of Justice ordered the federal government and Anvisa to regulate hemp cultivation for medical and industrial use. In response, Anvisa set rules for controlled cultivation of plants with up to 0.3% THC for the pharmaceutical supply chain.
The regulator also expanded research permissions and opened an experimental framework for patient associations. Those changes have pushed the industry to look beyond the flower.
“What will be done with the stalk? With the fiber? With the seeds?
That’s exactly where an enormous opportunity for industry begins,” Kaya Mind CEO Thiago Cardoso said at the fair’s launch.
Kaya Mind estimates the market could reach R$51 billion a year under broader regulation. The firm presented that figure as the potential size of a fully regulated Brazilian cannabis market.
The fair was launched at the Uruguayan Consulate in São Paulo. Uruguay, the first country to legalize cannabis nationwide, gets its own spot in the fair’s regulatory discussions.
Program Expands Beyond Medicine
This year’s fair widens its scope to agribusiness, hemp construction materials, biotech, veterinary medicine, cosmetics and food. Institutional participation includes Embrapa, Brazil’s public agricultural research agency.
The program features an International Forum, the Dr. Elisaldo Carlini Scientific Congress, workshops, a Knowledge Arena and a literary lounge. A dedicated pharma area lets labs and importers, which face strict limits on consumer advertising, meet health professionals directly.
The Cannabis Business Hub, aimed at investors and executives, takes place two days before the fair on November 18. High Times is a media partner of ExpoCannabis Brasil 2026.
