Fear of the law for those seeking the medicinal value of cannabis is perhaps no greater than in Kentucky, despite 90% of state’s residents supporting legalization.

One of 13 states remaining to legalize the plant for medical purposes, Kentucky lawmakers offered hope to reform on March 10, when the House Judiciary Committee voted, 15-1, in a near unanimous decision to advance House Bill 136.

The legislation would allow doctors to prescribe medical cannabis for four qualifying conditions: multiple sclerosis, chronic pain, epilepsy and nausea, the latter with a focus on providing access for cancer patients. It would prohibit smoking as a form of use.

Democratic Rep. Rachel Roberts proposed an amendment for the House floor to consider that would add post-traumatic stress disorder to that list.

Roberts was one of three Kentucky lawmakers who introduced an adult-use cannabis proposal last month.

RELATED: Kentucky Lawmakers Introduce Adult-Use Bill: LETT’s Grow

For Casey O’Neill, owner and operator of HappyDay Farms, a ban on direct-to-consumer sales under California’s adult-use cannabis regulations was the first of many blows to small farmers operating in the state’s regulated marketplace—and the blows just kept coming.

That’s why O’Neill, along with 19 other Mendocino County-based cannabis growers, have come together to launch MendocinoCannabis.Shop, an online sales and delivery platform that allows the farmers to sell their small-batch, craft cannabis products directly to Sacramento and Butte County residents.

RELATED: Cannabis with a Conscience: New Delivery Service Connects Sacramento & Butte County Consumers to Sustainable Mendocino Farmers

Products purchased on the platform, which launched March 7, provide 90% return of the retail price back to the farmer, after applicable taxes are paid.

The farms participating in the MendocinoCannabis.Shop platform are members of the Mendocino Cannabis Alliance (MCA), a cannabis trade association that provides guidance to small, legacy cannabis operators whom O’Neill says are struggling to stay afloat in the wholesale marketplace.

Some Connecticut vendors are being a little too ambitious with their cannabis handouts, or at least that’s the position of a proposed bill taking aim at those putting a bow on the product.

Connecticut lawmakers passed adult-use legalization during a special session in June 2021 via Senate Bill 1201, which, in addition to allowing adults 21 and older to possess up to 1.5 ounces of cannabis flower or an equivalent amount of concentrate in public, allows adults to “gift” cannabis to each other, according to advocacy group Marijuana Policy Project.

But as the state’s forthcoming retail market gets its ducks in a row ahead of a commercial sales launch (perhaps as soon as this spring), gifting cannabis in one Connecticut town has drawn the attention of state lawmakers.

Earlier this year, shoppers in Hamden were enticed by novelty art and clothing vendors who were also handing out cannabis at the High Bazaar festival, The Connecticut Mirror reported.

“We appreciate that gifting will go on between people in the privacy of their homes,” Rep. Mike D’Agostino, a Democrat who represents Hamden, told the newspaper. “An event that’s organized, that rents space and is really a market just violates the entire intent of the statute that we put in place last year.”

Now Connecticut lawmakers are considering legislation, House Bill 5329, an act concerning cannabis transfers, advertisements and recommendations by the state’s social equity council. Specifically, H.B. 5329 would impose up to a $10,000 fine and one year of incarceration against those who violate cannabis gifting provisions, the Mirror reported.

Indoor cannabis cultivation consumes a lot of energy, to put it mildly. This basic fact means that sustainable business practices and mindful energy conservation go a long way to limiting a company’s carbon footprint. Increasingly, companies are prioritizing that work by building out specific roles or even departments to manage goals and oversee implementation of new strategies.

Elizabeth “Libby” Lee is the environmental health and safety manager at Veritas Fine Cannabis in Colorado. She has brought to the company a strong passion for drawing down wasteful habits and single-use products. And she’s done this through goal-setting and clear communication—within Veritas, but also with the broader industry at large. 

Here, Lee shares her perspective on sustainable business practices in the cannabis space—and how we all might set goals to improve our environmental standing.

Eric Sandy: How did you get into the cannabis industry?

Elizabeth Lee: I graduated in 2017 from American University in Washington, D.C., and I had actually never visited Colorado, so I decided to venture out and come move here. I had an environmental studies degree, so I felt that I could find a job within that realm. I decided to attend a cannabis sustainability happy hour, and I met a few people who worked in the industry. From there, I started working in a dispensary, and I moved up from there—they were a grow, as well. So, I got to experience a smaller aspect of the cannabis industry. From there, I decided that I wanted to see the back of house a little bit more. I ventured out and became interested in Veritas, and put in an application. I started at Veritas in March 2020 as a packager and began to show what my skills were—but also my passion and my interest in incorporating environmental health and safety sustainability into the cannabis industry.

ES: Could you define that term, “sustainability,” just in terms of what it means to you or what it means to the company?

New York officials offered more details on their plans to address social equity in the state’s forthcoming adult-use cannabis market March 9, when they announced that the state will issue its first adult-use dispensary licenses to applicants with cannabis-related convictions.

Those affected by the war on drugs will get access to the first 100 to 200 cannabis retail licenses in the state, according to the Associated Press.

Some of these initial licenses will be awarded to nonprofits or businesses led by someone with a prior cannabis-related conviction, the news outlet reported, while others will go to applicants with a parent, legal guardian, child or spouse who has been convicted of a cannabis-related offense.

Convictions must have taken place before March 31, 2021, when former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed the state’s adult-use cannabis legalization bill into law, AP reported.

RELATED: How to Win a Cannabis License in New York: 4 Tips for Success

South Dakota lawmakers, who have been divided on allowing home cultivation in the state’s medical cannabis program, have reached a compromise that is now headed to Gov. Kristi Noem’s desk, according to a Mitchell Republic report.

The state’s current medical cannabis law, which voters approved in the November 2020 election, allows patients to grow three or more plants at home, but the new deal reached by legislators would limit patients to four plants, two of which can be mature, Mitchell Republic reported.

The four-plant limit comes from recommendations from a legislative conference committee of three lawmakers from the House and three from the Senate who voted 4-2 on March 9 to approve the new cap, according to the news outlet.

“It's a compromise, if you will,” said Rep. Fred Deutsch (R-Florence), prior to the vote.

A study committee spent last summer reviewing the medical cannabis law approved by voters and ultimately recommended that the Legislature altogether ban patients from growing cannabis at home.

Washington, D.C., residents will have to ride on without access to commercial cannabis sales for at least another year.

Despite the district’s voters approving adult-use cannabis via Initiative 71 in the November 2014 election, a rider was introduced by Maryland U.S. Rep. Andy Harris the following year, which stripped the district’s power to regulate a retail industry within its roughly 68-square-mile borders. Commonly referred to as the Harris rider, the provision that blocks the district from taxing and regulating cannabis sales has been in place ever since.

While there were hopes among district officials and industry advocates that a Democratic-controlled U.S. Congress would strip that provision this year, that wasn’t the case. Congress retained the rider in the $1.5 trillion omnibus spending package, House Resolution 2741, which it unveiled March 9.

Since the District of Columbia is not a state, Congress retains oversight on the city’s laws and can restrict how its officials use local funds.

But certain elected officials in the district were not so thrilled about the rider retention, The Washington Post reported.

D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson, a Democrat who has introduced legislation to legalize cannabis sales in the district, told the news outlet that Congress “has set up for the district, with this rider, a public safety problem. I can’t be strong enough about this.”

PRESS RELEASE - Following years of successfully reselling Kwazar Sprayers, Advancing Alternatives is assuming the role of Kwazar’s U.S Distributor for its Garden Sprayer Line. A smooth transition is promised from all parties.

Kwazar Corporation is one of the leading plastics processors and manufacturer of sprayers in Poland. Its line of high-quality Garden Sprayers exceed the expectations of gardening professionals and enthusiasts for work in the garden, greenhouse, flowerbeds and household. The garden sprayers have capacities from 0.5l to 15l, are designed for protective and care works, and are designed in accordance with these four principles: Durability, Safety, Comfort, and Innovation.

For over 20 years, Advancing Alternatives has been serving the North American commercial greenhouse and horticulture industries. Its specialties include Touchscreen Environmental Controls, Rack & Pinion Motors, Curtain Motors, Natural Ventilation, and Heating. The company's innovative rolling, thermally sealed, natural ventilation curtain systems and associated products complement any horticultural/agricultural structure. As the needs of growers and farmers have grown and changed, so has Advancing Alternatives. Today, as always, the company's offerings are being developed, expanded, and advanced to new applications so it can be exceedingly responsive to its valued customers.

WAKEFIELD, Mass., March 10, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- PRESS RELEASE -- Curaleaf Holdings, Inc., an international provider of consumer products in cannabis, today launched Select Live Rosin, the company's first line of solventless extracts, to patients across Florida. The products will initially launch at 12 Curaleaf locations and will continue to expand statewide by April 7.

Select Live Rosin builds upon the brand's existing collection of premium oil products, including Elite, Elite Live and Essentials, and is formulated for experienced cannabis consumers looking for more flavorful, true-to-flower experiences. The products feature an aromatic, pure cannabis flavor created through the company's live harvesting, flash-freezing and gentle solventless extraction processes that preserve the natural integrity of each strain's terpenes and cannabinoids. Curaleaf's proprietary water-based extraction process eliminates the waste and inefficiencies associated with live rosin manufacturing. This scalable technology allows Curaleaf to offer Select Live Rosin vapes and concentrates at a more accessible price point for patients seeking premium, true-to-flower experiences.

"We are proud to expand our product offerings in Florida to serve our patients' increasingly sophisticated preferences," said Matt Darin, president of Curaleaf US. "Curaleaf's R&D strategy is rooted in delivering novel and exceptional customer experiences, and introducing affordably priced live rosin products along with high-quality vape hardware not only reimagines what is possible for the Company, but for the industry at large."

Select Live Rosin vapes and concentrates will be available in Florida this month and will be followed by Select X Bites in the coming weeks. For more information on product availability, please visit https://selectcannabis.com/find-us.

JACKSON,Miss., March 10, 2022 – PRESS RELEASE – Kelly G. Williams, an attorney,entrepreneur and mother, has launched Kelly's Green, a medical cannabis companydedicated to providing expertly cultivated medicinal products andpatient-centered service to the people of Mississippi.

Withthe recent passage of the Mississippi Medical Cannabis Act, Williams and theKelly's Green team are ready to work with providers, caregivers anddispensaries to give pain relief options to patients across the Magnolia state.

"I'mexcited today to introduce you to Kelly's Green. We are a patient-centeredservice medical marijuana company," Williams said. "We're the onlycompany that's been fiercely fighting for Mississippi patients from the verybeginning. I made the first financial contribution to Initiative 65, my familyand I gathered signatures for a year, and I attended campaign meetings.

“Asthe only company who's been fighting with Mississippians from the verybeginning, Kelly's Green is driven by the same heart and soul, kindness andcompassion, humanity and commitment to Mississippians that drove Initiative 65.That service to Mississippians continues with Kelly's Green."

Asa woman with business and legal experience, Williams has strong personal tiesto both the state of Mississippi and the patients and caregivers who willbenefit from medicinal cannabis.

"I'vedone legal work with thousands of families and children all over the state, andthis work has taught me that every human being has inherent worth. Every humanbeing deserves to pursue relief from pain. When my father died from Alzheimer'sdisease in 2018, I found myself wishing he had more options for treatment andpain relief," Williams said. "Also, when my own niece was diagnosedwith Ewing's sarcoma, my eyes were opened to the intensity and senselessness ofher pain and suffering. I knew I had to do something to help my niece and otherpatients like her obtain the pain relief they deserve."

TORONTO, March 9, 2022 – PRESS RELEASE – TerrAscend Corp., a North American cannabis operator, and Gage Growth Corp., a cannabis brand and operator in Michigan, announced they intend to close the previously announced acquisition of Gage by TerrAscend by way of a court-approved plan of arrangement under the Canada Business Corporations Act (the "transaction") on March 10, 2022, subject to satisfaction or waiver of all remaining closing conditions.

Upon completion of the transaction, TerrAscend will have an expanded footprint with owned and managed operations in California, Michigan, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Canada, including seven cultivation and processing facilities and 25 operating dispensaries serving medical and adult-use cannabis markets in the U.S. and Canada.

"This is a defining moment for TerrAscend as we combine two leading vertically integrated operators with proven cultivation and manufacturing expertise, deep portfolios of proprietary flower strains, and top-selling brands across our core markets," said Jason Wild, executive chairman of TerrAscend. "I look forward to working with the talented Gage team as we integrate and align our cultivation, retail, and operational practices to continue providing our patients and customers with best-in-class product offerings and retail experiences."

"We are thrilled to join forces with TerrAscend to create one of North America's most prominent cannabis companies," Gage CEO Fabian Monaco said. "With our shared core philosophies and complementary areas of expertise, we can't wait to execute on our collective vision."

Key Transaction Highlights and Benefits

The transaction is anticipated to result in the following benefits:

Federally legal cannabis is on the U.S. market for scientific research.

As one of a handful of companies to receive approval via memorandums of agreement (MOA) from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) last year, Pennsylvania-based Groff North America began selling its legal cannabis last month for medical and scientific purposes.

New Mexico-based Bright Green Corp., Arizona-based Scottsdale Research Institute and California-based Biopharmaceutical Research Co. also were recipients of an MOA from the DEA.

Through DEA approval, Groff NA has acquired Schedule I registrations that allow the company to cultivate, extract and process federally legal cannabis in bulk manufacturing; produce precise dosed forms for clinical trials in FDA-approved drugs; import cannabis flower, genetics and extracts from anywhere in the world; and export cannabis flower and cannabis preparations to any of 150-plus signatory counties in the U.N.’s Single Convention on Narcotics.

In addition, the company can conduct its own research and analytical lab testing.

Dr. Steve Groff, the company’s founder and chairman, recently told Pittsburgh NPR that the DEA’s approval will unleash the American scientific community for cannabis research and development. 

Good Day Farm, a vertically integrated operator in Missouri and Arkansas, is now offering two new lines of cannabis-infused gummies for patients. 

One of those gummies, however, is not like the rest.

“To commemorate the moment, we created a supersized THC gummy in the spirit of the Show Me State, which will remain on permanent display in our Columbia cultivation facility as a reminder to our employees to always strive for innovation daily,” Chief Marketing Officer Laurie Gregory said. “At Good Day Farm, we believe in good people, good cannabis and good days. This gummy brings to life our mission to exponentially improve our patients’ lives by combining both the art and science in all of our products.”

The supersized gummy was certainly a fine illustration of that art and science. Weighing in at 135 pounds and no fewer than 116,000 milligrams of THC, the sour apple gummy is a larger-than-life demonstration of the rising supply and demand in the U.S. edibles market. 

Needless to say, this was no small task.

Michiganders voted to legalized adult-use cannabis in the November 2018 election, but the plant remains scheduled alongside controlled substances like LSD, ecstasy and heroin under state law.

Aiming to address repercussions associated with that designation, House Bill 5877 would remove cannabis from the state’s list of Schedule I drugs. Substances on that list have a high potential for abuse and have no currently accepted medical use in treatment, as defined by Michigan law.

While many state residents who purchase and use medical or adult-use cannabis under Michigan’s state-legal program are not impacted by the designation, House Democratic Floor Leader Yousef Rabhi, who sponsors H.B. 5877, said continuing to classify cannabis as a Schedule I drug does have broad implications, MLive.com reported.

Those who use or possess Schedule I drugs could face consequences related to employment, guardianship, criminal punishment and housing, such job or tenant applications that include policies that prohibit substances on the list, Rabhi told the news outlet.

“And then there are things like Child Protective Services,” Rabhi said. “People who have been legal cannabis users, even medical users, it has been used in our CPS laws, because [they] reference our schedule of substances.”

Rabhi currently has eight Democratic colleagues signed on for sponsorship. He’s hoping to gain support from across the aisle, he told MLive.

Missouri state lawmakers must act now on adult-use cannabis legalization or risk having their hands tied should an initiative petition change the state Constitution.

That was the bottom line from Rep. Ron Hicks, a St. Charles County Republican, when he presented his legislation during a hearing before House Public Safety Committee members on March 8. Several Missourians testified to voice their support of the bill, which Hicks filed last month.

Titled the Cannabis Freedom Act, House Bill 2704 aims to legalize the possession and personal use of cannabis for those 21 and older, allow for home cultivation of up 12 mature plants, and tax cannabis sales at a rate not to exceed 12%, among other provisions, according to a summary of the 74-page legislation.

In addition, cannabis cultivators, manufacturers, processors and distributors would not be subject to special zoning requirements or licensing fees under the legislation.

The main reason Hicks said Missouri state lawmakers need to act now is so they can control any forthcoming legalization parameters.

“I don’t want to take anything away from the initiative petition process, but we have a medical marijuana industry in our state right now due to the initiative petition process,” he said during the hearing. “I’m sure every single one of you sitting here has received some type of an email or has heard from somebody in this state about the rollout of that program, whether it was dishonest or not fair to someone or it was rolled out wrong, or whatever the issue.

Names: Irene Villanueva and Aaron Nino

A handful of Alberta cannabis retailers launched online cannabis sales and delivery services March 8, when the province shut down its government-run operation and handed over those responsibilities to private-sector licensees.

Previously, the province’s only legal, non-medical online cannabis sales were available through a website run by government regulator Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis (AGLC). But AGLC exited the online cannabis game on Tuesday, following amendments made to the Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis Act.

RELATED: Alberta Cannabis Retailers Hustle to Prepare For Online Sales Launch

The changes were passed by the Legislative Assembly of Alberta last year and will help strengthen the legal cannabis market and diversify Alberta’s cannabis industry, according to an AGLC news release.

“Updating Alberta’s approach to online legal cannabis sales gives Albertans more choices, provides retailers new revenue opportunities and encourages industry innovation and diversification,” AGLC CEO Kandice Machado said in the release. “AGLC will continue to prioritize health and safety for Albertans and ensure all online cannabis retailers meet federal and provincial cannabis legislated requirements and regulations.”

AGLC generated roughly CA$200,000 per year in government revenue through the website’s cannabis sales (now inactive).

Michigan retailers sold more than $1.3 billion of adult-use cannabis in 2021, and that was of no thanks to the state’s largest city.

But that could change soon.

Detroit moved one step closer to allowing adult-use dispensaries and other cannabis businesses to operate in its jurisdiction after the city council’s Public Health and Safety Committee members voted, 2-1, March 7 to advance a proposed ordinance, Detroit Metro Times reported.

In addition to licensing as many as 76 adult-use dispensaries, the proposal would pave the way to 30 licenses for consumption lounges and micro-businesses, and an unlimited number of cultivators, processors and secured transporters, the news outlet reported.

“It’s a very delicate issue,” Councilwoman Mary Waters said during a public hearing Monday, before casting the lone dissenting vote in committee, suggesting another hearing was needed. “It’s a very emotional issue for a lot of Detroiters. I want to do this on behalf of the people.”

Despite Waters’ reservation, the proposed ordinance now advances for consideration by the full nine-member city council.

Tightened restrictions on where South Dakota’s registered patients can use medical cannabis were defeated March 7 when the state Senate rejected House Bill 1134, which was aimed at protecting children, according to a KELO report.

Sen. Jim Stalzer, a Republican from Sioux Falls, spoke in support of the legislation on Monday, the news outlet reported. Stalzer said the bill would amend IM 26, South Dakota’s voter-approved medical cannabis legalization measure, to restrict the use of cannabis in preschools, on public and non-public school property, and in any outdoor recreational areas.

Opponents of the legislation said the added restrictions are unnecessary, and some expressed concerns that the bill would take authority away from the Department of Education to put rules in place on the use of medical cannabis in schools, KELO reported. Others worried that the legislation would allow individual schools to ban the use of medical cannabis entirely.

H.B. 1134 failed with 12 voting to pass the bill and 20 voting in opposition, KELO reported.

South Dakota voters approved medical cannabis legalization in the November 2020 election, and after spending several months drafting rules to govern the program, the state began accepting applications for medical cannabis cards in November 2021.

An adult-use cannabis dispensary in Massachusetts is moving away from all-cash operations.

Dreamer Cannabis in Southampton, a town of about 6,000 on the north side of Springfield, began using a third-party platform that allows customers to buy state-legal cannabis products via credit cards, NBC-affiliate WWLP News reported.

The payment channel is a workaround of policies in place by most banks and major credit card agencies that ban transactions on cannabis, which remains federally illegal. Most state-legal cannabis dispensaries only accept cash or debit, the latter involving a point-of-sale (POS) transaction dubbed as a “cashless ATM.”

Cannabis retail operators are largely limited in payment options due to the lack of safe harbor for financial institutions servicing the industry.

RELATED: UPDATE: Rep. Perlmutter Makes Final Push on SAFE Banking

But the owners of Dreamer Cannabis are now catering to customers wanting to use credit cards.