Rua Bioscience has launched an advocacy push, calling on New Zealanders to urge the government to decriminalise the personal cultivation and use of cannabis.
The ‘Tell Parliament/Tēnā Paremata: Decriminalise cannabis’ campaign is encouraging supporters to email MPs via pre-written or personalised letters, with Rua also offering to write directly on their behalf.
Rua, one of the few publicly listed cannabis firms in New Zealand, said the move reflects its broader social mission beyond the commercial market.
Chief executive Paul Naske said the campaign was rooted in Rua’s origins in New Zealand’s Ruatorea, where the impact of prohibition had long been felt.
“Rua Bioscience was born out of Ruatorea, a community that has long carried the weight of cannabis criminalisation,” he said.
“We’ve seen the disproportionate harm these laws cause, especially for Māori and rural communities. It’s time to align our laws with reality on the ground.”
Rather than advocating for full legalisation, Rua is promoting what it described as a pragmatic first step: removing criminal penalties for personal use and small-scale cultivation.
The company argued that criminalisation diverts justice system resources from higher priorities and unfairly targets certain groups, while evidence from overseas shows decriminalisation does not increase harm, trafficking or health risks.
The push comes as prosecutions for cannabis offences rise toward pre-2019 levels despite legislative changes that gave police more discretion.
It also coincides with the 50th anniversary of the Misuse of Drugs Act, a milestone Rua said highlighted the need to modernise New Zealand’s outdated approach.
“We are asking for clarity and courage from Parliament,” said Naske. “Let’s stop criminalising people for behaviour that is already widespread and mostly harmless.”
He added: “We’re a commercial medicinal cannabis company, but we’re also from a community where criminalisation of cannabis has caused harm… This campaign is about fairness and justice and doing the right thing.”