MjLink Cannabis Business News and Press
Editor's note: This is an updating story.
The United Nations Commission for Narcotic Drugs (CND) voted narrowly Dec. 2 to remove medicinal cannabis from Schedule IV of a 1961 treaty on narcotic drugs.
The CND, an organization based in Vienna with members from 53 different countries, voted on six different cannabis-related recommendations presented by the World Health Organization (WHO). Those recommendations outlined protocol for internationally regulating the medical use of different parts of the plant, including cannabis as a whole, cannabidiol (CBD) and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). (Kenzi Riboulet-Zemouli, a Barcelona-based independent researcher and cannabis advocate, has a breakdown of what each recommendation would do on his blog.)
During its meeting Dec. 2, the CND also voted not to approve a recommendation from WHO to schedule medical CBD, leaving it outside of treaty controls.
However, the vote to classify cannabis remained the main topic of the meeting. The CND voted 27-25 to reclassify both cannabis and cannabis resin for medicinal purposes from Schedule IV to Schedule I, removing them from being regulated like some of the world’s most dangerous drugs, the New York Times reports. (The CND’s scheduling system works in an opposite sequence when compared to the U.S. Controlled Substances Act.)
Experts say this move could not only improve accessibility to medical cannabis across the world, but also affirms international support of scientific evidence on cannabis as a medicine.
BOCA RATON, Fla., Dec. 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- PRESS RELEASE -- Jushi Holdings Inc., a vertically integrated, multi-state cannabis operator, announced it completed the acquisition of the remaining 21% of the issued and outstanding equity of Dalitso LLC, a Virginia-based pharmaceutical processor permit holder. The company now owns 100% of the issued and outstanding equity of Dalitso.
Dalitso is one of only five applicants to have received conditional approval for a pharmaceutical processor permit issued by the Virginia Board of Pharmacy, and one of only four to have received final approval and permit issuance in the Commonwealth. Dalitso’s permit allows Dalitso to cultivate, process, dispense and deliver medical cannabis to registered patients in Virginia. The designated area for Dalitso to operate is Health Service Area II, in Northern Virginia, which includes two of Virginia's most densely populated counties, Fairfax and Prince William, and has a population of approximately 2.5 million people or nearly 30% of the state's total population according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Dalitso has completed the initial build-out of its cultivation, manufacturing and processing footprint, while also prefabricating the remaining 90,000-square-foot facility in Prince William County, Va., to allow for efficient scaling as patient demand increases. On Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2020, BEYOND / HELLO Manassas, located at 8100 Albertstone Circle, Manassas, officially began serving patients in-store with consultations bookable online through beyond-hello.com.
Jim Cacioppo, chief executive officer, chairman and founder of Jushi, said, “I am thrilled to announce that Jushi completed the acquisition of the remaining equity interests of Dalitso. Since the recent opening of BEYOND / HELLO Manassas, we have received positive feedback for providing a patient-focused retail experience delivered by our expertly trained pharmaceutical staff. We look forward to continuing to build out Dalitso’s vertically integrated cultivation, manufacturing, processing, and retail footprint to better serve medical patients in Virginia.”
Over the prior two months, in three independently negotiated transactions with distinct minority owners of Dalitso, Jushi consolidated its ownership position from 61.765% to 100% by issuing a total of only 4.2 million shares or share equivalent, of which approximately half is subject to indemnification provisions and trading restrictions for a year.
VANCOUVER, Dec. 2, 2020 /CNW/ - PRESS RELEASE - C21 Investments Inc., a vertically integrated cannabis company, today announced the planned expansion of its licensed cultivation and production facility in Nevada.
Expansion Highlights (All currency is in U.S. dollars):
40,000-square-foot buildout to existing operations at the Nevada facility, including 11 new flowering rooms and two new vegetative rooms.This 200% of additional canopy is expected to yield an incremental 7,500 pounds of premium indoor flower and 3,000 pounds of trim/biomass annually.Upon completion of the buildout, 60% of the 100,000+ square foot licensed facility will be utilized. Significant capacity remains to accommodate future growth.CEO and President Sonny Newman said, "With our recently announced debt restructuring and debenture backstop now complete, we are excited to move into this next phase of growth. This expansion will give us significant economies of scale and the ability to deliver even stronger margins. Cultivation expansion supports our plan to increase the degree of vertical integration for in-house products, as well as take advantage of wholesale opportunities in the state for premium indoor flower. Most importantly, this positions us well for accretive expansion of our retail footprint in Nevada."
The company expects the expansion to be funded internally at a cost of approximately $6 million. Plans for its licensed Nevada facility are subject to local building permit approvals and the xcompany anticipates completion of the project in the second half of 2021.
Release Date of Third Quarter Financial Results:
CHICAGO– December 1, 2020 — PRESS RELEASE — Cresco Labs, one of the largest vertically integrated multistate cannabis operators in the United States, announced today the launch of Wonder Wellness Co., the newest brand to join its expanding portfolio of national cannabis brands. Wonder addresses the direct needs of the large segment of consumers who are accepting of cannabis but have yet to enter the category. Created to take the guesswork out of cannabis, the portfolio offers low-dose, approachable forms that are simple to use with packaging that is easy to understand, so newcomers can explore the plant and control their experience with confidence. The brand debuts in Illinois with Wonder Minis, a line of 3 mg hard sweets focused on effects-driven benefits.
“A top priority of our business is to build the most important and trusted portfolio of national cannabis brands that appeals to and supports a variety of consumers,” said Greg Butler, chief commercial officer at Cresco Labs. “Cannabis acceptance in Illinois is now mainstream and consumption is growing; however, there are still 38% of adults aged 21 and older who are not currently consuming cannabis but are open to it. This is a sizable audience who could benefit from the plant if offered products that met their direct needs. With Wonder, our goal is to drive continued wholesale growth through approachable, low-dose effects-driven products that newcomers can confidently consume to find the right balance and satisfy a desired experience.”
Wonder Minis are the first low-dose (3 mg THC or less), effects-driven hard sweets to arrive in the Illinois market. Each of the three Wonder Minis has a distinct blend of botanically derived terpene formulas, containing a total of 3 mg of cannabinoids per hard sweet. Laugh (Tangerine flavor) offers 3 mg THC; Sleep (Plum flavor) has 2 mg THC and 1 mg CBD; and Relax (Blueberry flavor) provides 1 mg THC and 2 mg CBD. Wonder Minis also represent the first dry blended and pressed product to enter Cresco’s House of Brands. The development of Wonder Minis involved new manufacturing and infusion processes to obtain low doses per serving, along with new tablet pressing and tablet packaging lines.
“It is our obligation as a leader in the industry to invest in solutions that will appeal to the needs of the broader audience who isn’t a consumer but is interested in cannabis,” said Cory Rothschild, SVP of Brand Marketing at Cresco Labs. “When you think about the needs of cannabis newcomers, their needs look quite different than experienced consumers. They might feel intimidated or worry that only an expert can enter a category filled with intimidating forms, potencies and packaging. It was clear to our company that we needed a brand that would speak directly to this group and offer products that would meet their preferences and ease their hesitations. We’ve developed Wonder to be a trusted and guided source for education so that new consumers can start their cannabis journey with confidence.”
Cresco Labs is the largest wholesaler of branded products in the industry with $90.5 million in wholesale revenue. The launch of Wonder grows Cresco’s portfolio to eight cannabis brands—Cresco, Mindy’s Chef Led Artisanal Edibles, Remedi, Cresco Reserve, High Supply, Good News, FloraCal and Wonder Wellness Co.—all developed with differentiated positionings and products to meet the diverse needs of different consumers.
For the cannabis industry, Q3 2020 marked somewhat of a return to normalcy. Most multi-state operators (MSOs) saw an increase in both net and gross revenue, while also reigning in costs. And while a Democratic victory in November’s election is bringing some optimism to the field, experts and industry execs agree there is still a long road ahead to market maturity.
Cannabis Business Times and Cannabis Dispensary spoke with leadership at the industry’s largest companies for a snapshot of this quarter’s results and the industry’s position as a whole moving into the final quarter of 2020.
Green Thumb Industries (GTI)
Chicago, Ill.
Q3 Revenue: $157.1 million (131.1% year-over-year increase)
Net Income: $9.6 million adjusted net income
Highlights:
MANASSAS, Va. – PRESS RELEASE – The Virginia Medical Cannabis Coalition (VMCC) has announced that BEYOND / HELLO, located in Manassas, has officially opened its dispensary to registered patients seeking medical cannabis products. BEYOND / HELLO is the third medical cannabis processor to open in the Commonwealth.
BEYOND / HELLO is the trade name for Dalitso, LLC. Dalitso holds the pharmaceutical processor permit for Health Service Area II, which covers Loudoun, Fairfax, Arlington, Alexandria and Prince William Counties. Starting Dec. 1, medical cannabis patients will be able access Board of Pharmacy-approved medicinal cannabis products at BEYOND / HELLO’s 8100 Albertstone Circle, Manassas location.
“We are looking forward to providing best-in-class care to medical cannabis patients in the Commonwealth,” said Farzana Kennedy, Pharmacist-in-Charge at BEYOND / HELLO and President of VMCC. “We believe in going above and beyond to deliver exceptional service, top quality medical cannabis products and the best patient experience possible."
Even though BEYOND / HELLO is located in Manassas, any registered patient in the state can visit the facility to purchase their cannabis medicine.
“We are honored to share the news that BEYOND / HELLO is open to serve medical cannabis patients in Virginia,” said Adam Goers, chairman of VMCC. “With our third member-processor open, Virginia’s medical cannabis patients have another option to access this important alternative therapy.”
RICHMOND, Va. – PRESS RELEASE – The Virginia Medical Cannabis Coalition has announced that Green Leaf Medical of Virginia, located in Richmond, is officially open to patients seeking medical cannabis treatment. Green Leaf Medical of Virginia (gLeaf) is the second medical cannabis processor to open in the commonwealth.
gLeaf provides a variety of high-quality medical cannabis treatments to registered patients. On Friday, Nov. 27, 2020, registered patients will be able to visit gLeaf and speak to a pharmacist to determine the best treatment options for their specific conditions. A mid-December Grand Opening is planned. Please visit the gLeaf website for more information.
“We are excited to bring not only relief to patients but also a boost to the Richmond area economy through our local hires and commitment to growth,” said Joy Strand, executive vice president of Green Leaf Medical and vice president of VMCC. “Green Leaf Medical has been working to provide the highest quality of product available to our patients and have the knowledge and expertise to do it well.”
Though Green Leaf Medical is located in Richmond, any registered patient from across the state can visit the facility to receive treatment.
The Virginia Marijuana Legalization Work Group, which was tasked with studying the impact of adult-use legalization in the state, released its recommendations Nov. 30, according to a WTVR.com report.
The group, which was made up of community leaders, healthcare professionals, policy experts and members of Gov. Ralph Northam’s administration, was created by lawmakers as part of a cannabis decriminalization bill that became law earlier this year, the news outlet reported.
RELATED: Virginia Will Decriminalize Cannabis on July 1
The roughly 400-page report outlines guidelines for taxation, banking, criminal justice, licensing, regulation and consumer safety, according to WTVR.com, and includes recommendations on five key principles that Northam wants to see in a final legalization bill: social, racial and economic equity; public health; protections for youth; upholding the Virginia Indoor Clean Air Act; and data collection.
The Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission (CCC) approved delivery regulations Nov. 30 that create a legal framework for home delivery in the state’s adult-use cannabis market with two new license types that are expected to launch next year, according to an NBC Boston report.
The new rules create “Marijuana Courier” and “Marijuana Delivery Operator” licenses, which will be available only to social equity applicants for the first three years.
The CCC initially agreed on a framework for cannabis delivery regulations in September and approved a set of policy changes to the draft rules last month.
The regulations have faced pushback from some of the state’s lawmakers, who said in an October letter to the CCC that the Marijuana Delivery Operator License, previously referred to as a “Wholesale Delivery License,” is not supported by Massachusetts’ cannabis law.
Last month, a group of the state’s existing cannabis retailers threatened to sue over the delivery rules, which they say unfairly shut them out of the market.
In late November, Detroit City Council formally approved a plan to allow adult-use cannabis sales within the city. Until then, the largest city in Michigan had joined the 1,400 or so municipalities that had opted out of an adult-use cannabis market approved by voters in 2018.
The new ordinance will give licensing priority to longtime residents who have lived in Detroit for 15,13 or 10 of the past 30 years (with other qualifying factors, such as living in a low-income household or holding a past cannabis conviction), according to the Detroit Free Press. Those residents will have the first crack at half of the 75 retail licenses.
Councilman James Tate has been out in front of this cause for the past year, insisting that a legal cannabis market represents an opportunity to broaden the scope of social equity in the city’s commercial landscape.
"This is an industry that is in its infancy in Detroit, and we have to make sure that we nurture it properly and make sure that it grows strong, not reckless, and is a bridge to generational wealth that has been out of reach for so many families in our city," he said in October.
Since the first day of adult-use sales, on Dec. 1, 2019, one year ago today, Michigan has recorded $439 million in cannabis sales (and $73 million in tax revenue).
]]>CanBreed, an Israeli cannabis genetics seed company, announced this week its acquisition of a 3.5-acre hemp farm in San Diego. The company is part of the Smart-Agro R&D Partnership, a publicly traded firm on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange.
Construction of new facilities and greenhouses on the San Diego site is expected to begin early in the new year, with CanBreed selling stable genetics into the market by the end of 2021. Initial output, according to the company, is estimated at 12.5 million seeds annually. CanBreed’s goal runs up to 50 million seeds annually.
In September, CanBreed secured a licensing agreement for foundational CRISPR-Cas9 patents held by Corteva Biosciences (MIT) and Broad Institute (Harvard) allowing the company to selectively edit its cannabis plants’ genetic material. In November, the company announced that its genome editing research had led it to a powdery mildew-resistant chemotype.
“We want to be world leaders in using CRISPR technology for cannabis,” CERO Ido Margalit told the Times of Israel after signing the CRISPR-Cas9 agreement. “The idea is to sell stable enhanced cannabis seeds to the entire global market.”
Two years ago, the European Union declared that CRISPR-edited crops are deemed genetically modified organisms (GMOs), making them illegal to sell. In the U.S., however, shortly after the EU decision, the federal government stepped aside to allow for more product innovation in the agricultural space.
“While these crops do not require regulatory oversight, we do have an important role to play in protecting plant health by evaluating products developed using modern biotechnology,” U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said at the time.
]]>New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal has directed prosecutors to halt possession charges for small amounts of cannabis as the state’s lawmakers work on legislation to implement an adult-use cannabis program, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Guidance distributed by Grewal on Nov. 25 instructs all municipal, county and state prosecutors to put a hold on cases until at least Jan. 25, 2021, the news outlet reported, although the directive does not cover driving under the influence or order police to stop arresting people for the possession of small amounts of cannabis.
A decriminalization bill stalled in the New Jersey Assembly earlier this month after the Senate approved a version of the legislation that included an amendment to lessen the penalty for the possession of up to one ounce of psilocybin, or psychedelic mushrooms.
Also pending in the legislature is legislation that would roll out an adult-use cannabis program in the state, following voters’ approval of legalization on Election Day. Lawmakers passed two different versions of the bill earlier this month and must now agree on a unified proposal before the legislation can receive floor votes.
Lawmakers are expected to take up the bill again on Dec. 7, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.
A New Jersey appellate court ruled Nov. 25 that the state needs a better system for licensing its medical cannabis operators, according to an NJ.com report.
According to the ruling, the state wrongly rejected applicants when it awarded six additional licenses in 2018, and the Department of Health must now establish a new scoring system, the news outlet reported.
The decision will not revoke the licenses of the state’s current medical cannabis operators, according to NJ.com, but it could give other applicants a second chance at licensing in the future, as well as create a more transparent licensing process going forward.
The New Jersey Department of Health accepted applications in 2018 for six new medical cannabis licenses, and seven of the rejected applicants filed a lawsuit over the scoring process, NJ.com reported.
In its decision last week, the court said that it does not have the authority to issue licenses to the rejected applicants, according to the news outlet, but the ruling could change how licenses are issued in the future, especially as New Jersey works to implement an adult-use cannabis program after voters approved legalization in the November election.
Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam has unveiled plans to introduce an adult-use cannabis legalization bill when the General Assembly reconvenes in January, following the release of a study on the potential impacts of legalization in the state, and the Virginia Medical Cannabis Coalition (VMCC) hopes that the state builds on its existing medical program when planning the launch of an adult-use market.
VMCC is a coalition of vertically integrated cannabis operators that had won conditional approval from the Virginia Board of Pharmacy with the goal of advancing the medical market through patient education and connecting the state’s industry stakeholders with legislators, according to Jack Page, VMCC member and the founder and CEO of medical cannabis operator Dharma Pharmaceuticals.
Dharma opened for business Oct. 17, marking the first day of medical cannabis sales in Virginia. From his experience in the medical market, Page says the state has a lot to consider when it comes to legalizing and regulating adult-use cannabis, as well as fine-tuning the medical program.
Virginia law requires medical cannabis operators to be vertically integrated, and Dharma currently operates one location that houses its cultivation, processing and retail operations. Page says patient response has been positive in the month or so since the market launched, and in January, Dharma will be able to open up to five additional retail locations within its health service area.
Page and the VMCC support adult-use legalization, but want to ensure that the medical program remains part of the overall cannabis industry in Virginia, and that changes are made to the medical program to make it more accessible to patients.
This week, preliminary sales data from the Maine Office of Marijuana Policy indicated that the state’s adult-use dispensaries logged 21,194 transactions for a total of approximately $1.4 million in sales during the first month of the program. Elsewhere, in Georgia, regulators announced plans to accept medical cannabis cultivation applications through Dec. 28.
Here, we’ve rounded up the 10 headlines you need to know before this week is over.
Pennsylvania: Multistate, vertically integrated cannabis operator Jushi Holdings has announced plans to nearly double the square footage of its subsidiary’s grower-processor facility in Scranton, Pa., from approximately 90,000 square feet to more than 160,000 square feet. The first phase of the expansion is expected to come online in mid-2021 and the final phase will be completed by the second quarter of 2022. Read moreMaine: Preliminary sales data from regulators at the state’s Office of Marijuana Policy indicate Maine’s adult-use cannabis retailers grossed approximately $1.4 million and made 21,194 transactions during the first month of retail sales. The reporting period covers sales made from Maine’s retail sales launch date of Oct. 9 through the end of the day on Nov. 8, a total of 31 days. Read moreCalifornia: San Luis Obispo County Superior Court Judge Ginger Garrett ruled Nov. 20 that cannabis billboards are illegal under California’s Prop. 64. Roughly 35 of California’s highways will be impacted by the ruling, although cannabis can still be advertised on billboards along highways that don’t cross state borders. Read more4Front Ventures Corp. has announced that its 185,000-square-foot production facility in Commerce, Calif., is nearing completion and will be ready to serve the state’s market in Q2 2021. The project is on target to be completed in April 2021 with the company planning for the first of its full line of edibles, tinctures and vape products to be on California retail shelves by May. Read moreWest Virginia: The West Virginia Office of Medical Cannabis has issued 10 medical cannabis processing licenses to businesses that can now manufacture pills, oils, topicals, vaporizable products and tinctures, which can then be sold to the state’s licensed dispensaries. Regulators will now move forward with scoring dispensary applications, which is the last stage in the state’s cannabis licensing process. Read moreSouth Dakota: Pennington County Sheriff Kevin Thom and South Dakota Highway Patrol Col. Rick Miller have filed a lawsuit challenging Amendment A, South Dakota’s voter-approved adult-use cannabis legalization measure, arguing that it violates the state’s one-subject rule and the amendments and revisions article of the South Dakota Constitution. Amendment A is a constitutional amendment that legalizes the use of cannabis for adults 21 and older, and allows the possession of up to one ounce of cannabis per adult. Read moreNew Jersey: The state’s voters passed legalization in November’s election by a landslide, but New Jersey cannabis advocates are now calling out serious shortcomings in the proposed A-21/S-21 bill, saying it doesn’t do enough to address the harsh repercussions of the drug war and will keep minority and disadvantaged small businesses from participating in the upcoming industry. New Jersey’s State Assembly and Senate both canceled meetings scheduled for Nov. 23 that were partially devoted to ironing out these issues, and the next scheduled legislative meeting is Dec. 7. Read moreMassachusetts: Some of the state’s existing cannabis retailers are prepared to sue over the Cannabis Control Commission’s delivery rules, which, if approved, would allow a new set of cannabis licensees to provide home delivery. CCC Chairman Steve Hoffman has said that the commission feels it has the authority to move forward with its plan to regulate cannabis delivery, and a final vote on the rules, which was initially scheduled for late September, has been postponed until Nov. 30 to allow the CCC to accept additional public comment on the regulations. Read moreGeorgia: The state is now accepting applications from companies that want to cultivate cannabis and manufacture low-THC oil for the state’s registered medical cannabis patients. Applications must be submitted by Dec. 28, and Georgia will ultimately issue a maximum of six cultivation licenses. Read moreInternational: The United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs is scheduled to vote on the rescheduling of cannabis and cannabis-related substances during the 63rd reconvened session in December. This scheduled vote follows an earlier meeting of the World Health Organization Expert Committee on Drug Dependence, during which the Committee recommended the rescheduling of cannabis and several cannabis-related items, effectively removing cannabis from the list of scheduled substances. Read moreGeorgia is now accepting applications from companies that want to cultivate cannabis and manufacture low-THC oil for the state’s registered medical cannabis patients, according to Saporta Report.
The Georgia Access to Medical Cannabis Commission met Nov. 23 to approve the application forms, and Andrew Turnage, the commission’s executive director, told Saporta Report that there is a social equity component to the licensing process.
“We want to encourage minority-, women- and veteran-owned business to look at this commission as an opportunity that they want to invest in and grow a business in,” Turnage said.
Although state lawmakers have not established formal social equity regulations, the commission plans to gather data from applicants for a disparity study that will determine whether the state is inclusive in its cannabis licensing process, according to Saporta Report.
Applications must be submitted by Dec. 28, and Georgia will ultimately issue a maximum of six cultivation licenses, which will allow a maximum of 400,000 square feet of greenhouse space to be cultivated in the state. Up to four licensees will be authorized to grow up to 50,000 square feet of cannabis, while up to two licensees will be able to grow up to 100,000 square feet.
Some of Massachusetts’ existing cannabis retailers are prepared to sue over the Cannabis Control Commission’s delivery rules, which, if approved, would allow a new set of cannabis licensees to provide home delivery, according to a WBUR report.
The CCC initially agreed on a framework for cannabis delivery regulations in September, proposing a set of rules that would create two types of delivery licenses: a “limited delivery license” that would allow a licensee to charge a fee to deliver from licensed cannabis dispensaries and a “wholesale delivery license” that would allow a licensee to buy cannabis wholesale from licensed cultivators and manufacturers, store it in a warehouse and sell it to consumers.
The delivery licenses would be available only to social equity applicants and certified economic empowerment applicants for the first three years.
A bipartisan group of Massachusetts lawmakers have voiced opposition to the proposed regulations, saying in a letter to the CCC that that the wholesale delivery license is not supported by the state’s cannabis law.
The CCC approved policy changes to the draft regulations last month, recategorizing the two delivery license types as “Marijuana Courier” and “Marijuana Delivery Operator” licenses and establishing operations restrictions, modified caps on ownership and control, and limits to financial relationships with third-party technology platform providers to help prevent companies from dominating the delivery market.
Earlier this month, the California Bureau of Cannabis Control (BCC) announced the recipients of public university grant funding that will allow universities across the state to research the legal cannabis system and its impacts, and researchers are eager to launch their wide-ranging studies.
More than 100 universities applied for grants of up to $2 million to fund research proposals that had to fall within one of several specified categories, including public health, criminal justice and public safety, and economic and environmental impacts of the legal cannabis industry.
The BCC ultimately awarded nearly $30 million in funding to UC San Francisco, UC Santa Barbara, CSU Dominguez Hills, UC Berkeley, UC Los Angeles, UC Irvine, UC San Diego, UC Davis and CSU Humboldt for their specified research proposals.
UCLA received seven grants totaling $6.4 million to fund studies that will be conducted through the Semel Institute/Department of Psychiatry, Integrative Substance Abuse Programs (ISAP), Center for Health Services and Society, Department of Family Medicine, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care, Division of Infectious Disease, Luskin School of Public Policy and the UCLA Labor Center.
Funded studies will focus on the impact of Prop. 64 on maladaptive cannabis use and treatment for cannabis use disorder, as well as the toxicity of inhaled and second-hand cannabis smoke, the neurobiological and behavioral impact of cannabis marketing, employment conditions in California’s cannabis industry, a demographic analysis of the licensed cannabis industry and cannabis consumers, and an assessment of the feasibility and consequences of implementing a cannabis potency tax.
The United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) is scheduled to vote on the rescheduling of cannabis and cannabis-related substances during the 63rd reconvened session in December 2020. This scheduled vote follows an earlier meeting of the World Health Organization (WHO) Expert Committee on Drug Dependence, during which the Committee recommended the rescheduling of cannabis and several cannabis-related items, effectively removing cannabis from the list of scheduled substances. While participating countries will make the decision regarding rescheduling cannabis through an international forum, domestic lawmakers and international policymakers will maintain a close watch over the outcome, as the consequences of such a vote may affect the direction of the cannabis industry in their respective countries going forward.
The recreational use of cannabis is legal in four countries—Canada, Uruguay, South Africa and Georgia—and is decriminalized in several others. A vote to remove cannabis and cannabis-related substances from the list of scheduled drugs will likely encourage more countries to revisit how they approach the legal classification of cannabis on a domestic level. This extends to the possibilities of more countries legalizing cannabis or decriminalizing it in an effort to take a softer stance against the use of cannabis and prepare for involvement in a potentially extensive and financially lucrative global cannabis trade market.
There are three international drug treaties governing cannabis that strictly oppose the legalization of cannabis in any of the participating countries. The Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of 1961 classifies cannabis as a Schedule I and Schedule IV substance, requiring countries to adopt special measures of control to prevent the illicit traffic in and misuse of cannabis.
The Convention on Psychotropic Substances of 1971 focuses on the psychoactive component in cannabis, THC, and regulates cannabis-related substances. The recommendation of the WHO’s Expert Committee on Drug Dependence is to remove cannabis and THC from the scheduled drugs on this convention altogether. Finally, the 1988 Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances governs the trafficking of cannabis and requires participating states to maximize efforts to prevent such offenses. Rescheduling cannabis will likely mean revisiting and amending all three international drug treaties in part to account for this change in policy.
A vote to reschedule cannabis will also drastically change the landscape of the global cannabis trade market and open the door for countries to enter new international treaties that focus specifically on the international regulation of cannabis. The result is the creation of a new international cannabis market where participating countries can benefit from working with one another as opposed to operating under the current landscape, which leads to legal disconnect and invites the illegal smuggling of cannabis across international borders.
New Jersey, despite its left-leaning politics and proximity to one of the world’s largest urban centers, has lagged behind in cannabis. As the 11th-largest state in the country by population, New Jersey has fewer than 14 medical cannabis dispensaries serving close to 100,000 patients. Possession of marijuana was just decriminalized there last year.
Garden State cannabis also has a racial equity problem. Black residents are between two and three times more likely to be arrested for possession of marijuana despite relatively equal rates of use across races. In some counties, Black people are arrested over 30 times more frequently for cannabis, according to a 2020 report from the ACLU of New Jersey.
New Jersey passed legalization in November’s election by a landslide—more than two in three voters approved. But state cannabis advocates are now calling out serious shortcomings in the proposed A-21/S-21 bill, saying it doesn’t do enough to address the harsh repercussions of the drug war and will keep minority and disadvantaged small businesses from participating in the upcoming industry.
What’s in (and not in) A-21/S-21?
“[The bill] has been introduced as the most progressive cannabis legislation in the country yet it falls short of substantive social equity provisions seen in other states,” said Jessica Gonzalez, General Counsel for Minorities for Medical Marijuana (M4MM), in an email to Cannabis Business Times and Cannabis Dispensary.
“The bill is riddled with vague language and predatory programs aimed at minority communities while increasing the barriers to entry,” said Gonzalez. Specifically, she identified five points where it falls short:
