Czech Republic announces new measures to ban CBD and other hemp-derived cannabinoid products from the market. Although the country announced plans last year to legalize recreational cannabis, it is now planning to ban hemp-derived cannabinoid products that do not produce psychoactive effects. The Ministry of Agriculture announced on April 25 its intention to set up new measures to remove products containing CBD and other hemp-derived cannabinoids from the Czech market, claiming that foodstuffs containing CBD cannot be placed on the market in any EU country due to the lack of scientific studies on their effects on human health. Agriculture Minister Zdeněk Nekula said in a press statement that food products containing CBB and other cannabinoids derived from hemp cannot be sold unless they are certified as safe by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), which provides independent scientific advice on food-related risks. He also admitted that the ban will impact some food business operators. The Czech Republic is the only EU country to allow a THC limit of 1% in industrial hemp, whereas other member states have set the limit at 0.2%, although the EU has recently announced that it will increase the THC limit to 0.3%. The Czech Republic’s...
The Czech government on Wednesday approved a defense military treaty with the United States. The Defense Cooperation Agreement sets a legal framework for possible deployment of U.S. troops on Czech territory and their cooperation with the Czech armed forces. It should make any such moves easier at a time of Russian aggression against Ukraine. “It´s undoubtedly a step to boost our country´s security,” Prime Minister Petr Fiala said. A date for signing the deal by the Czech and U.S. defense ministers is yet to be set. It will then need parliamentary and presidential approval. Defense Minister Jana Cernochova called the U.S. “the most important ally in defense. Therefore, to boost trans-Atlantic ties is in the Czech vital interest.” The U.S. has such agreements with 24 other NATO members, including Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Romania and Bulgaria that form the eastern flank of the alliance. Any particular deployment of U.S. forces will still need approval by the Czech government and parliament.
Brno was liberated exactly 75 years ago, on April 26, 1945, by the Red Army led by Marshal Rodion Yakovlevich Malinovsky in the Bratislava-Brno operation.
The recent figures provided by the European Office for Statistics, Eurostat, have revealed that in February of this year, Germany granted a total of 25,125 temporary protection statuses for Ukrainian refugees, thus becoming the country that granted the most temporary protection so far. Such data also show that second place was taken by Poland with 24,905 temporary protection statuses, followed by the Czech Republic with 9,775 and Romania with 7,920. Based on the Eurostat report, compared to January 2023, the number of decisions granting temporary protection to Ukrainians in February fell in 19 of the 26 EU members. The biggest decreases during February were observed in Poland with -3,540 compared to January of this year. Next comes Germany with -3,080, the Czech Republic with -2,630 and Romania with -1,035. On the other hand, the most significant growth was recorded in Ireland and Finland with +540 and +520 respectively. As of February 28, the highest number of Ukrainian beneficiaries of temporary protection was registered in Germany with 1,000,530 and Poland with 989,080. In addition, compared to the population of each EU member state, the highest ratios of Ukrainian citizens granted temporary protection per thousand people during February were recorded in Cyprus...
Czech gastro is experiencing big change. According to Dotykačka statistics, whereas cafés and bistros have witnessed a considerable increase in sales, the typical Czech pub is shrinking. In four years, the catering industry’s overall sales increased by 32%. “This corresponds exactly to the rate of price increase, so the current situation appears to be not much different from before the pandemic,” says Petr Menclík, the head of Dotykačka. However, only at restaurants does the 32% rise in sales match the total average. Cafés and bistros are booming, with sales increasing from 115 to 127 percent. Traditional pubs are the laggards, with a 30% lower turnover than before the epidemic. People’s perceptions about the ultimate bill figure also have an influence. “Normally, you pay 150 or 200 crowns for a coffee with a cake or croissant in a café, but with beer, the customer looks at every crown,” added Menclík. Menclík feels that if the Finance Ministry’s plan to impose VAT on draught beer becomes law, it will strike another blow to traditional Czech hospoda. “Increasing the price of beer would have a significant impact on demand.” Restaurant revenues increased by 16% in the first two months of the year, 3% more...
After a steady increase in unemployment since June 2022, the job market in the Czech Republic has finally fallen. Unemployment rate in the Czech republic has increased every month since June 2022, but the end of winter marks a shift in these trends. Projections for the unemployment rate in the Czech republic exceeded expectations this spring. Hovering at 3.9 percent during February, the unemployment rate fell to 3.7 percent by March – exceeding predictions that it would only decline to 3.8 percent. Experts attribute the rapid decline of unemployment to favourable weather conditions, which allowed for the resumption of work in the industrial sectors, such as agriculture, construction, forestry, and mining. Regardless, the unemployment rate in March 2023 was 0.3 percent higher than last March, although it remains the lowest among EU member nations. January 2023 marked the first month in a 5 year period where there were fewer job vacancies than reported job applicants. By February, the pressure of the job market eased, although the number of job vacancies exceeded the number of applicants by less than 600. This trend continued to accelerate in March, with the surplus of job vacancies reaching 10,000. Despite unemployment continuing to fall and the job market stabilising itself, the surplus of job vacancies remains substantially...
Drum and bass, jazz, techno, indie, pop, and more – music festivals in Prague and the Czech Republic have it all. Check out the very best the country has to offer here. Prague Rocks Prague Rocks vol. 1 on June 2nd will feature headliners Motley Crüe & Def Leppard, supported by the biggest Czech rock band Kabát. Prague Rocks vol. 2 starts on June 21st with headliners Gwen Stefani & Maroon 5. The Prague Rocks Festival continues on June 21st with more well-known artists from music mainstream. Gwen Stefani and Maroon 5 will be joined by Rag’n’Bone Man, who unfortunately canceled his appearance in Prague last year due to the ongoing COVID epidemic. Let It Roll 2023 When: Thursday 3rd – Saturday 5th August 2023 Where: Airfield Milovice in Milovice 2023 lineup: Chase & Status, Andy C, Camo & Krooked B2B Mefjus, Sub Focus, Wilkinson, Bru-C, Dimension, Shy FX, and many more Big, booming drum and bass festival Let It Roll is the biggest DnB fest in the world and it shows with a belting lineup packed to the brim with the best artists on the scene. Known of course for its sublime lineups, out-of-this-world, elaborate stage design, clear sound, and attracting...
Hot on the heels of Germany, politicians in the Czech Republic have released plans for legalising cannabis for recreational use in a regulated market that would allow individuals to buy up to 5 grams per day. The Czech Republic has put forward a draft bill for a regulated cannabis market that would allow individuals to buy up to 5 grams of cannabis per day for recreational purposes. Under the plans, people who wish to use cannabis recreationally would need to register in a database, while growers and sellers would have to pay annual fees. The proposed legal cannabis market could bring in around CZK 2 billion per year, according to anti-drug policy coordinator Jindřich Vobořil. The proposal is still in its draft form, but it is set to be debated in parliament this month, with implementation potentially starting next year. The possession of small amounts of cannabis has been decriminalised in Czechia since 1 January 2010, but smoking it for recreational purposes remains technically illegal. However, cannabis has been legal and regulated for medicinal use in the country since 2013. Vobořil argues that the main aim of the new regulation is to increase consumer protection and ensure that the cannabis...
Coca-Cola introduced to the Czech Market packaging that keeps plastic lids tethered to bottles when opened to make it easier for consumers to recycle drinks packaging in its entirety. Plastic bottle caps can be recycled but are often lost, discarded or end up as litter, Coca-Cola said in a statement. The new design aims to reduce that, the company said. The design is part of Coca-Cola’s strategy to help create a “circular economy” for its plastic products amid regulation and calls to reduce the amount of its plastic packaging that ends up in landfills and elsewhere. By introducing the new obligation, the European Union promises that non-removable caps on bottles will keep all parts of beverage packaging together after consumption. This will make their collection and subsequent recycling much easier. “After arriving at the recycling centre, the bottles and their caps go into a shredder, which is a set of knives that shreds them into flakes of about 10 millimetres under a stream of water. The whole mass is then washed in hot water with detergents to get rid of impurities, then it goes into a cold wash where the PET flakes from the bottles are separated from the flakes from...
The IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship will return to the Czech Republic after nine years. The 2024 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship will be held in Prague and Ostrava from 10-26 May 2024. This will be the eleventh time that the Czech Republic has hosted the world’s premier ice hockey event. The Czechs will take over from Finland and Latvia, and the world’s best ice hockey players will once again compete for world medals in Prague and Ostrava in 2024. “Although there is still more than a year to go until the start of the competitions, the Organising Committee is already working hard on the preparations. Our goal is to come as close as possible to the very successful 2015 IIHF WM and to offer spectators an intense sporting experience,” said Alois Hadamczik, president of the Czech Ice Hockey Association. After nine years, Prague and Ostrava again The world’s best ice hockey players will compete in Prague Arena with a capacity of almost 17,500 spectators and in Ostrava Arena with 8,800 seats. Both arenas hosted the 2015 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship. “We have two ice hockey arenas that meet the requirements of the IIHF. So the choice was clear. At the...
The family of a Czech billionaire Petr Kellner who died in a heli-skiing crash in Alaska in 2021 says in a lawsuit that he survived the accident but succumbed to his injuries in the hours between the crash and when a rescue was launched. The lawsuit alleges negligence and seeks punitive and other damages. Kellner, at the time of his death, was the richest man in the Czech Republic. The lawsuit names as defendants Soloy Helicopters; Triumvirate LLC, which owns and operates Tordrillo Mountain Lodge; and Third Edge Alaska LLC, which was doing business as a heli-ski guide service but administratively dissolved last year. Five people died in the crash in the Chugach Mountains 34 kilometers southeast of Palmer in one of the deadliest heli-skiing aviation accidents in North America. The sole survivor, Czech snowboarder David Horvath, is separately suing the lodge over injuries he suffered. Palmer is about 72 kilometers north of Anchorage. Horvath’s attorney, Tracey Knutson, said Kellner and a guide lived through the impact but died before rescuers arrived. A final crash report from the National Transportation Safety Board is expected later this year, the agency’s Alaska chief said. “Triumvirate LLC and its employees again express condolences to the families...
According to Olga Richterová (Pirates), deputy head of the Chamber of Deputies, Czech Easter traditions generate issues for both men and women. Easter Monday in Czechia include caroling and the controversial tradition of boys “whipping” girls with willow whips in return for a painted egg. Richterová told Nova TV the “whipping” should be conditioned by consent on the part of the women, because not all of them feel comfortable with it. “Traditions are a beautiful thing and belong to our culture. But it is important that their celebration is voluntary and does not cause anyone distress. Unfortunately, it often happens that women are beaten against their will with the pomlazka. Or they are whipped so roughly that they are left with painful bruises. Sometimes carolers also behave inappropriately because they are fortified by alcohol and do not know the measure,” Richterová said. Easter can also cause problems for men, she believes. “A lot of them don’t like trick-or-treating because it makes them feel uncomfortable. They just do it because of the social pressure,” she continued. NE znamená NE i při pomlázce! 🙏 Tradice jsou krásná věc a k naší kultuře patří. Je ale důležité, aby jejich oslava byla dobrovolná...
Don’t have an account? Register
[swpm_registration_form level=”6″]
Already have an account? Log In
How Would You Like to Promote Your Business? PR ArticleDisplay bannersVideo productionNewsletter adsJob ListingsInfluencer Marketing
Your Email
We will come back to you within 24 hours with our proporsal
