Jamaica faces ‘worst ever’ marijuana shortage as farmers struggle with drought

Jamaica, which foreigners have long associated with pot, reggae and Rastafarians, authorised a regulated medical marijuana industry and decriminalised small amounts of weed in 2015. File Picture: AP Photo/David McFadden, File

Jamaica is running low on ganja.

Heavy rains followed by an extended drought, an increase in local consumption and a drop in the number of marijuana farmers have caused a shortage in the island’s famed but largely illegal market that experts say is the worst they have seen.