MjLink Cannabis Business News and Press

ORANGE COUNTY, CA | June 2, 2022 – PRESS RELEASE – Tyson 2.0, legendary boxer, entrepreneur and cannabis advocate Mike Tyson’s cannabis brand, today announced in collaboration with its exclusive partner, Mammoth Labs that Tyson 2.0’s premium suite of cannabis products are now available at 16 dispensaries across the state of Washington.

“Tyson 2.0 x Mammoth Labs products will pack twice the punch for Washington cannabis consumers with our high THC strains and superior terpene profiles,'' said Mike Tyson, chief brand officer and co-founder of Tyson 2.0. “Cannabis of this craft can truly elevate the mind and spirit. I look forward to sharing my cannabis healing journey with fans across Washington.”

Tyson 2.0 will debut in Washington across sixteen dispensaries including Cannabis & Glass, Herbery, Zips, The FireHouse and The Station locations starting today. Through its production partnership with Washington-based Mammoth Labs, Tyson 2.0 premium products offered will include eighths (3.5g) jars of flower in Desert Toad, Southern Toad, Tiger Mintz and Dynamite Cookie; and exclusive concentrates: diamonds and sauce in Viper Cookies, Orange Punch, Cake Crasher; and badder in Southern Toad.

"Thrilled to partner with the legend, Mike Tyson and the Tyson 2.0 team to bring long-awaited Tyson 2.0 products into the Washington market,” said Connor Jackson, director of operations for Mammoth Labs. “We look forward to further strengthening our relationship with the Tyson 2.0 team as we roll-out products across sixteen dispensaries across Washington and anticipate exciting things to come.”

“We are proud to partner with Mammoth Labs and their team of extraction experts, a company that shares our commitment in delivering high-quality, premium cannabis products known for their efficacy and wellness benefits,” said Adam Wilks, CEO of Tyson 2.0. “Washington is a key market for Tyson 2.0 and we look forward to meeting consumer demand in the state as we continue to ramp up our nationwide expansion plans and launch exciting new products."

LITTLETON, Colo., June 2, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- PRESS RELEASE -- Florida has fully adopted CanPay, the largest legitimate payment network for cannabis merchants and consumers. The platform is now accepted at 95% of the state's medical marijuana treatment centers (MMTCs). Nearly 100% of Florida's medical cannabis patients can use CanPay to pay for their cannabis purchases.

CanPay provides an easy-to-use app that allows consumers to pay for purchases at cannabis retailers with a simple debit from their checking account using the Automated Clearing House (ACH) network. Merchants with a compliant bank account at a CanPay-approved financial institution may join the CanPay network quickly and easily.

"We're thrilled to be able to offer all of Florida's cannabis consumers fast, free and safer-than-cash transactions with CanPay," said Dustin Eide, CEO of CanPay. "As one of the largest cannabis markets in the country, it's always been a priority for us to offer our service to its more than 700,000 qualified patients."

DENVER, June 2, 2022 /CNW/ - PRESS RELEASE - Schwazze, a vertically integrated, multi-state operating cannabis company with assets in Colorado and New Mexico, announces the grand opening of its adult-use cannaboutique, Emerald Fields, formally known as Urban Health & Wellness Inc. (Urban Wellness) located in the Highlands neighborhood of Denver, Colo. Emerald Fields provides a boutique cannabis shopping experience, with additional locations in Manitou Springs and Cherry Creek.

Schwazze kicks off the grand opening celebration on Saturday, June 4, 2022 at 10 a.m., with additional events occurring at various Schwazze-owned retailers throughout the month of June. The celebration will feature swag bags for the first 50 shoppers, donuts & coffee, games, a lunchtime taco food truck, social media scavenger hunt, and representatives from various prominent cannabis brands such as: O.Pen, Wyld, Ripple, Stratos and Green Dot. In addition, Emerald Fields Highlands will offer all-weekend, in-store discounts including 25% off all new products and $10.99 eighths of flower. Shoppers also receive a house pre-roll for $1 with a minimum, pre-tax purchase of $60.

"Our team is delighted to open the Emerald Fields Highlands cannaboutique, and to introduce customers to a distinctly different, enjoyable way of shopping," said Collin Lodge, Vice President - Retail for Schwazze. "Our Emerald Fields Cannaboutiques offer an incredible selection of products, great service, and an educated and engaged staff that make it easy for shoppers to find what they're looking for. We're thrilled to become a part of The Highlands community and look forward to introducing everyone to the Emerald Fields boutique cannabis shopping experience."

The dispensary, located at 2675 W. 38th Ave. Denver, CO, plans to undergo remodeling this summer following the acquisition of Urban Health & Wellness Inc., by Schwazze in May 2022. The acquisition and rebrand under the Emerald Fields name are part of an aggressive expansion in Colorado by Schwazze, which has grown the total number of Colorado dispensaries to 23 along with four cultivation facilities.

Mississippi launched the application process for patients seeking to enroll in the state’s medical cannabis program June 1, according to an ABC24 report.

Patients with physician approval, as well as cultivators, processors and testing facilities, can apply with the Mississippi Department of Health starting Wednesday, the news outlet reported. Applications also open June 1 for medical practitioners and cannabis transportation and waste disposal services.

Pre-application requirements include reading the Mississippi Medical Cannabis Act and reviewing the program’s regulations, as well as a background check and fingerprinting, ABC24 reported. More information about the application process can be found here.

Dispensaries will be licensed through the Mississippi Department of Revenue, ABC24 reported, and that application process will open in July.

The state has a 30-day turnaround for approving business license applications and a five-day timeline for approving patients, according to the news outlet.

A medical cannabis legalization bill in North Carolina that stalled in last year’s legislative session will go before the Senate Committee June 1.

Senate Bill 711, called the Compassionate Care Act—sponsored by State Sen. Paul Lowe (D) and backed by Sens. Bill Rabon (R) and Michael Lee (R)—would establish a “regulatory framework to allow doctors to recommend medical cannabis to patients with conditions including cancer, HIV/AIDS, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), epilepsy, Crohn’s disease and sickle cell anemia,” Cannabis Business Times previously reported.

The measure would also allow patients in hospice care to have access to medical cannabis, CBT reported.

S.B. 711 was initially introduced in April 2021 and passed the Senate Judiciary Committee in July 2021 and again in August. It also cleared the Senate Finance Committee and Senate Health Care Committee last summer before lawmakers decided in September 2021 topostpone the full Senate vote until this year, CBT reported.

If the measure passes the committee vote Wednesday, it could get a floor vote this week.

A California federal appeals court ruled last month that delta-8 THC is legal under the 2018 Farm Bill.

Is this much-needed clarity to help the industry make sense of federal policy governing the compound, which many have argued is legal since it is derived from federally legal hemp?

Shawn Hauser, partner at Vicente Sederberg and co-chair of the firm’s Hemp and Cannabinoids Department, and Jason Evans, co-founder and co-owner of Tweedle Farms, a cannabinoid hemp farm in Jewell, Ore., said it will likely be business as usual after the ruling.

The opinion from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals stems from a trademark dispute brought by AK Futures, which manufactures vaping and e-cigarette products, according to a Forbes report.

In its lawsuit, the company alleged that Los Angeles-based Boyd Street Distro sold counterfeit versions of AK’s delta-8 THC products, the news outlet reported. In its defense, Boyd Street claimed that AK’s trademark infringement allegations were invalid because delta-8 remains illegal under federal law.

Between benchmarks that encompass cultivation and personnel management, Southern Oregon hemp and cannabis grower and breeder East Fork Cultivars prioritizes environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG), says co-owner and CEO Mason Walker.

“We’re a very human-centric organization—pretty small—25 employees, independently owned,” Walker says of the governance piece, or “G,” in the common ESG acronym. “We've long really valued having what we think is a fairly empowering governance structure—high starting wage, living wage, health benefits, fairly autonomous positions where people can really structure their day and be empowered, and a lot of community engagements, as well ….”

When it comes to sustainable growing and environmental preservation at East Fork, Walker shares that it extends from outdoors on the 33-acre farm, where hemp and cannabis plants grow to maturity, to the business’ indoor nursery and drying, curing and storage spaces, and its tent breeding area.

Walker says of the drying, curing and storage space: “We’ve invested pretty heavily in spray-foam insulation in these large metal barns that we have, and we have highly efficient, mini-split heating and cooling elements in those climate-controlled spaces. One nice thing is that in addition to reducing our energy use, it also makes a tighter control in climate, so it improves quality of our flower, as well. So, it's both a boost in quality at the same time as the lowered energy use.”

Below, read some of the ways East Fork team sources and amends its soil, saves on power, avoids nutrient runoff that could harm nearby salmon and more.

Editor’s note: Mason Walker will speak at Cannabis Conference at the Paris Las Vegas Hotel & Casino from 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. PT on Tuesday, Aug. 23 on the panel, “Innovative And Regenerative Growing Techniques,” alongside Aster Farms CEO Julia Jacobson. In the session, growers will discuss alternative cultivation methods that they employ to differentiate their operations competitively and help preserve the planet. Visit www.CannabisConference.com for more information and to register.

While there’s no sign that fewer Californians are using cannabis, taxable sales hit a seven-quarter low during the first three months of 2022.

California still remains the largest legal cannabis market in the world, but its footprint shrunk to roughly $1.17 billion in adult-use taxable sales in the first quarter of 2022, according to data released last week from the state’s Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA).

That $1.17-billion figure represents a 9.9% decrease from the previous quarter and an 18.4% decrease from the second quarter of 2021, when adult-use taxable sales peaked at $1.43 billion.

In California, taxable sales include cannabis products (such as a grinder) and other retail sales of tangible personal property (such as a T-shirt) on top of the actual cannabis sold by adult-use retailers.

The recent sales dip comes as those participating in the legal market continue to have one hand tied behind their backs by a bevy of issues that have kept the industry from performing at its full potential.

RELATED: California Growers Remain Optimistic Amid Encroaching Market Obstacles

A recent poll has revealed that more than half of Missouri voters support adult-use cannabis legalization as activists work to place an adult-use measure on the state’s 2022 ballot.

The poll, conducted by SurveyUSA, surveyed 1,782 registered voters between May 11 and May 15, according to a Riverfront Times report, and asked: “Should the use of marijuana for recreational use remain against the law in Missouri? Or be legalized?”

Sixty-two percent of respondents said adult-use cannabis should be legalized, the news outlet reported; 71% of those in favor are ages 18 to 49, while 59% are ages 50 to 64.

Only 46% of respondents over the age of 65 said they support legalization, according to the Riverfront Times, but only 35% of that demographic said that adult-use cannabis should remain illegal; 18% answered that they were undecided.

Forty-nine percent of those in favor of legalization were Republicans, while 79% were Democrats and 66% were Independents, the Riverfront Times reported.

Partnership represents Verano’s largest national fundraising campaign to date supporting cannabis criminal justice reformIn addition to its initial $50,000 contribution to Mission Green, beginning June 3, 2022, Verano will match up to $13,000 in customer and patient-generated donations on the first Friday of each month Fundraising campaign spans company’s nearly 100 dispensaries across 13 states in honor of the 13 years that Weldon Angelos, founder of The Weldon Project and Mission Green, served in prison for cannabis-related charges

CHICAGO, June 1, 2022 – PRESS RELEASE – Verano Holdings Corp., a leading multistate cannabis company, announced the launch of an exclusive partnership in support of The Weldon Project’s Mission Green, the nonprofit organization’s initiative that promotes clemency for cannabis-related offenses. Through this partnership, Verano will initiate a nationwide fundraising campaign on June 3 that will remain active throughout 2022, available exclusively at the company’s retail locations.

Founded by cannabis advocate Weldon Angelos, who served 13 years of a 55-year prison sentence for selling less than $1,000 worth of cannabis before being granted clemency in 2016, Mission Green creates pathways for expungement and pardons for individuals convicted of cannabis-related offenses at the state, local and federal levels. Mission Green also provides legal assistance, re-entry programs and additional support services for formerly incarcerated individuals without access to legal counsel.

As one of the nation’s largest multistate cannabis companies, Verano has supported cannabis expungement and advocacy programs since its foundation in 2014. The company’s exclusive partnership with Mission Green will mobilize employees, patients, adult-use customers and cannabis reform advocates to support the organization’s ongoing cannabis social justice initiatives.

In addition to its initial $50,000 donation to Mission Green, Verano will also leverage its extensive retail operations across nearly 100 dispensaries in 13 states to engage and educate dispensary visitors on Mission Green and provide guests with donation and petition information. On the first Friday of each month, Verano will match up to $13,000 in customer donations that will be facilitated exclusively at the company’s flagship Zen Leaf and MÜV dispensaries, and additional retail locations it operates across its national footprint.

“As one of the largest multistate cannabis operators in the U.S., we’re proud to partner with Weldon Angelos and the Mission Green team and use our scale to amplify our support for cannabis clemency and continue the fight to repeal the harmful, outdated cannabis laws that have negatively impacted countless communities and individuals for generations,” Verano founder and CEO George Archos said. “The important work the Mission Green team facilitates in support of cannabis clemency initiatives and advocacy across the political spectrum is essential as we seek to right historical wrongs and create positive, meaningful changes in our society, with the ultimate goal of ending cannabis prohibition.”

CALGARY, Alberta, June 1, 2022, - PRESS RELEASE - High Tide Inc., a retail-focused cannabis company with bricks-and-mortar as well as global e-commerce assets, is pleased to announce that further to its press release dated March 30, 2022, the company has completed its acquisition of 100% of the equity interest of Livonit Foods Inc. operating as Bud Heaven, which operates two retail cannabis stores in Ontario for CAD$2.8 Million.

The stores are located at 77 Manitoba Street and 125 Muskoka Road Highway 118 West in Bracebridge. The Manitoba Street store is located in the heart of downtown Bracebridge, offering a wide variety of shops and restaurants and serving as a hub for tourist traffic. The Muskoka Road Highway 118 West store is in a retail plaza anchored by a national discount grocery and located adjacent to a provincial liquor store. The stores are the only retail cannabis stores currently operational in Bracebridge. 

Despite commodity prices and demand growth that are the envy of every other industry, cannabis companies still go out of business sometimes. Why? That’s another story. But despite a spate of high-profile failures, there is still no well-paved path to liquidating a corporation that sells cannabis.

This puts potential lenders at risk, which in turn tends to increase the interest rates the remaining funders can charge.

As previously reported in Cannabis Business Times, debt raised through private placement is surging as industry firms seek capital. Still, just because investors might have a document entitling them to be paid back from an asset sale upon default, that doesn’t mean they’ll be able to collect.

“There is no guarantee,” according to court-appointed receiver Ted Lanes, whose California-based company works to assist creditors and defaulting companies find solutions. “Licenses typically cannot be used as collateral, and inventory has its own issues. Lenders may be able to secure loans with direct ownership of the stock or partnership interests, but those values obviously decrease in a distressed situation. If there is value in the brand, or any [intellectual property], that may mitigate the risk.”

When Bankruptcy Is Not an Option

There are two kinds of investors: equity holders and debt holders.

MARSHALL, Mich. – PRESS RELEASE – Common Citizen today announced it is seeking candidates for its community reinvestment program providing microgrants for arts and culture, early stage business and community impact projects in communities disproportionately impacted by outdated cannabis laws.

Common Citizen, which produces cannabis products for patients and adult-use customers, recently launched the community reinvestment program with all net profits from sales of Principle cannabis—sold in single, 1-gram pre-rolls in a decorative tin—funding the microgrants.

“I am thrilled to put our Principle microgrant program into action, and I am eager to receive applications from those who provide sustainable solutions addressing immediate needs in their communities,” said Jessica Jackson, Common Citizen’s Director of External Affairs and Social Equity. “We are particularly interested in projects that enhance homeownership access, workforce development and entrepreneurship, and address key issues such as expungement for those still paying the price for violating outdated cannabis laws that are no longer on the books.”

Principle microgrant applications are open through July 1, and the application can be found here. Organizations and initiatives led by and targeting communities impacted by redlining and disproportionate criminalization are highly encouraged to apply.

The For the Culture microgrant supports community well-being by providing supplemental funding for arts initiatives that are often cut first in the budgeting process. Potential projects include concerts, film screenings, gallery exhibits and fashion shows.

PRESS RELEASE -- TSRgrow has announced that is has expanded its GROWHub™ Software to include crop steering with TSRgrow Advanced LED Lighting. The latest TSRgrow lighting control software is designed to give cultivators the ability to create unlimited lighting zones within their facility and use lighting to crop steer and drive plant growth through integration with GROWHub environmental monitoring sensors, such as temperature, humidity, CO2, and VPD.  

Zone Mapping

TSRgrow Advanced LED Lighting Systems have been engineered to deliver high quality spectrum and efficacy for Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) with fully integrated monitoring and control of power and the environment. “Cannabis growers have always wanted to be able to let inputs from the growing environment drive their lighting output for ultimate crop steering," said Mikhail Sagal, President of TSRgrow. "Now they can - to increase yields and minimize operating costs.”

A lack of integrated technology has historically kept cultivators from practicing true precision zone control in Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA). Starting at the lighting level, photoperiods, spectrums, and intensities must all adapt to the micro-climates in the grow facility.  

TSRgrow’s LED lighting platform features remote power servers to supply the LED fixtures at 95% efficiency while giving the ability to dim from 0-100% of the fixture output. Centralizing all fixture power outside the grow room reduces heat, installation and maintenance time and cost. GROWHub advanced LED lighting controls for unlimited zones and scheduling is built-in to the digital platform, allowing integrated flexibility accessible locally and globally through phone, tablet or computer.

Further integration of GROWHub wireless environment sensors for monitoring temperature, humidity, CO2, VPD and media EC and moisture, allows sensors to be strategically placed in the grow facility as part of TSRgrow’s TOTALgrow Solution. Other microenvironmental conditions are monitored zone by zone throughout the facility.

"Having the ability to dial in the right mixture of lighting during every grow cycle has changed the way we grow. We now have the option of fine-tuning our light recipe for each cultivar which helps us grow consistent, high-quality crops every harvest. 

The opportunity to join a nascent cannabis industry in 2019 was a big enough draw for Esther Song to switch her career path after spending nearly two decades in the fashion industry, including nine years at Tory Burch. 

She found new footing as the senior vice president of marketing and communications at MedMen, where she spent a year and a half, before taking on chief marketing officer (CMO) roles at Canndescent and Pure Beauty.

In March, Song became the CMO at San Jose, Calif.-based The Parent Company (TPCO), further diversifying the company’s executive management team, which includes CEO Troy Datcher, Chief Social Equity Officer Desiree Perez and Chief Transformation Officer Tanisha Robinson, among others.

While Song spent her earliest years in Long Beach, Calif., she moved with her family to Korea, where she spent most of her childhood, before she moved to Cypress, Calif., as a teenager.

“Ultimately, I love working for really fair and intelligent and ambitious CEOs,” Song said. “And Troy is an incredible CEO. Even in my [short time] here, I have learned so much from him, and I really was inspired to join his team as he navigates The Parent Company to our next chapter.”

Founded in January 2021, TPCO is vertically integrated with three manufacturing facilities, a wholesale distribution network of more than 450 California dispensaries, and a direct-to-consumer omnichannel platform that includes six delivery hubs and 11 retail locations in the state.

Cannabis Business Times and Cannabis Dispensary have launched the Best Cannabis Companies To Work For—2023. The awards program will identify and recognize the best employers in cannabis cultivation and dispensary markets, continuing the recognition the media brand debuted three years ago.

Registration and recognition is free. Visit bestcompaniescannabis.com to apply. The registration deadline is Sept. 2.

Rankings are determined primarily from the results of an employee questionnaire, where employees rate statements such as, “I feel I am valued in this organization,” and "I have confidence in the leadership of this organization" from “strongly agree” to “strongly disagree.” Companies have the option to purchase these insights (which are confidential and reported only in aggregate), which provides a glimpse at the overall morale of their teams and company cultures. 

A ranking of the “Best Cannabis Companies To Work For – 2023” in cultivation and retail will be revealed in Cannabis Business Times and Cannabis Dispensary in early 2023.

The survey is organized and managed by the Best Companies Group (BCG), an independent research firm specializing in identifying and recognizing great places to work.

“We are thrilled to continue this project for the fourth year and to not only recognize great cannabis companies, but also learn more about what makes certain cannabis companies so successful in creating positive work environments,” Editorial Director Noelle Skodzinski said. “Competition for talented employees is now even more intense, due in part to the economic pressures of the past year, and this program also can help ranking companies attract great talent.”  

A recent study shows that California dispensaries are working to prevent selling cannabis to underage customers.

The study, titled "What is the likelihood that underage youth can obtain marijuana from licensed recreational marijuana outlets in California, a state where recreational marijuana is legal?," was published in the Journal of Safety Research May 18.

The objective of the study was to assess how easy it was for underage individuals to purchase cannabis at licensed retail outlets in California, "where the penalty for furnishing marijuana to someone under age 21 is up to 6 months in jail and up to a $500 fine for a first offense," according to the study.

To meet this objective, undercover underage individuals were sent to 50 randomly selected licensed adult-use cannabis dispensaries in California before the COVID-19 pandemic to see if they could enter the facility without showing a valid ID.

The study found that 100% of the cannabis outlets studied have an adequate screening process and require individuals to show a valid ID to enter the facility. 

"It appears that licensed recreational marijuana outlets in California are checking young patrons for identification of their age. Therefore, it is unlikely that youth are purchasing marijuana directly from these outlets. It is more likely they are using other sources, such as asking an adult to purchase it for them, obtaining it from older friends or siblings, and using it at parties where the marijuana use might be shared," the study states.

North Carolina lawmakers are again considering adult-use cannabis legalization this year after Sen. Toby Fitch, a Democrat from Wilson and Edgecombe counties, put forth Senate Bill 765.

The 69-page bill, introduced May 30, aims to legalize and regulate the use, possession and sale of cannabis for adults 21 and older, according to a Port City Daily report.

RELATED: Majority of North Carolina Voters Support Medical and Adult-Use Cannabis Legalization, Poll Shows

S.B. 765 would allow adults 21 and older to possess up to 2 ounces of cannabis and grow up to two mature and two immature plants at home for personal use, the news outlet reported.

The bill would levy a civil penalty of $25 for those possessing more than 2 ounces, according to the Port City Daily, although those who possess more than a pound would still face felony charges.

A judge ended a court order May 27 that allows Illinois to issue 185 new adult-use cannabis dispensary licenses after a nearly 10-month delay, according to the Chicago Tribune.

Cook County Circuit Judge Michael Mullen lifted the stay that was issued last year to bar the state from awarding the licenses until ongoing litigation was settled, the news outlet reported.

The ruling allows businesses that have been waiting in limbo to begin taking steps toward opening their doors, such as finalizing zoning approval, securing real estate and hiring staff, according to the Chicago Tribune.

The lawsuits that sparked the stay on licensing were brought by companies that argued they were unfairly excluded from last year's lotteries to award the 185 new retail licenses.

RELATED: Illinois Cannabis Retail Licenses Still in Limbo After Third and Final Licensing Lottery

Legislative leaders in Virginia unveiled a new cannabis misdemeanor proposal in the state’s budget plan May 29.

The proposal would create a new criminal misdemeanor for the possession of more than 4 ounces of cannabis in public, according to the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

The measure marks the third time this year that Virginia’s lawmakers have considered creating new crimes for cannabis possession, the news outlet reported, despite former Gov. Ralph Northam signing an adult-use legalization bill into law last year.

RELATED: Virginia Lawmakers Reject Governor’s Cannabis Misdemeanor Proposal in Veto Session

The latest proposal lies within the proposed two-year state budget, which was revealed to the public Sunday, the Richmond Times-Dispatch reported.