MjLink Cannabis Business News and Press

Revolutionary Clinics, a Massachusetts-based medical cannabis dispensary, has dropped its lawsuit against Cambridge over the city’s ordinance that allowed only social equity applicants to receive adult-use retail licenses for a two-year period, according to a MassLive.com report.

A judge initially sided with Revolutionary Clinics in January 2020, ruling that licensed medical cannabis dispensaries must be able to immediately seek licensure in the adult-use market.

An appeals court then ruled in April that the city’s existing law was fair, which prompted Revolutionary Clinics to take its case back to the original judge in August. This time, the judge sided with the appeals court decision, and when Revolutionary Clinics brought the case back to court in October, it was ultimately dismissed.

“Rev firmly believes that the best remedies are developed through collaboration and partnership, rather than restrictions,” Revolutionary Clinics said in a statement to MassLive.com. “Although we maintain our position that the moratorium in Cambridge conflicts with state law, we ultimately recognize that this legal conflict needs to end. We have decided to drop the lawsuit and will instead focus more of our time, attention, and financial resources to help build impactful equity programs in the communities we serve."

DETROIT, Jan. 28, 2021 /PRNewswire/ – PRESS RELEASE – Gage Cannabis Co., a cannabis brand and operator in Michigan, announced the final closing of its Regulation A, Tier 2, equity financing. In total, Gage issued 28,571,400 subordinate voting shares for gross proceeds of US$50,000,000, the maximum amount qualified under the company's offering circular (see Gage Cannabis Co. Offering Circular). The oversubscribed offering included demand from both institutional and retail investors and significantly expanded the company's ownership base through the addition of over 1,000 new shareholders.

The company expects to use the proceeds from the offering to expand its retail footprint, pursue accretive acquisitions and help position and solidify Gage as the leading cannabis operator in the state of Michigan.

"We are humbled and excited by the significant interest and investor demand we received for our oversubscribed Reg A financing," said Fabian Monaco, president of Gage. "Michigan is one of the fastest growing cannabis markets in the United States, and Gage is well positioned with a robust balance sheet to continue to grow our market share as the leading operator with the best brands in the state. This is a great first step in our journey to becoming a publicly traded company, and we're excited to continue to drive long-term shareholder value.”

Go-public Plan in Q1 2021

As previously announced, the company continues to pursue a potential go-public transaction, which it expects to complete in Q1 2021. Gage encourages interested investors to visit www.GageInvestors.com for more information, or to contact its investor relations team for further information or to be added to its shareholder distribution list at [email protected].

Giving Tree Dispensary, the only female majority-owned dispensary in Arizona, received its license to sell adult-use cannabis Jan. 22, and the dispensary is getting ready for sales to begin.

Giving Tree opened and began selling medical cannabis in 2013. Since then, it has become one of the longest-standing cannabis companies in Arizona.

Last week, the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) began accepting applications for its newly passed adult-use cannabis law. Lilach Mazor Power, Giving Tree Dispensary founder and managing director, says she submitted Giving Tree's application the first day they opened.

"The applications were all online through our business account with the health department," Power said. "From the last eight years, the health department already has a lot of information about us. So, what we had to do is fill out a one-sheet application about our facilities, upload it at the station for each board member and show a level one clearance card, and then pay $25,000 online. It took me about 10 minutes."

A few days after Power applied, it was approved.

"Any current license holder that is already operating in the medical program and is in good standing with the health department should be approved," she said. "Good standing means that department came and did their inspection, you passed it and fixed any corrections that they asked you to fix so that your policies and procedures are now matching the medical and adult-use market."

Tennessee Rep. London Lamar (D-Memphis) introduced legislation Jan. 26 to decriminalize the possession of less than one ounce of cannabis, according to a local WTVF report.

H.B. 413 would essentially legalize the possession and the casual exchange of up to one ounce of cannabis, as long as no transaction is taking place, according to a FOX 17 report.

Nashville District Attorney Glenn Funk announced last summer that his office will no longer prosecute minor cannabis possession offenses that involve less than half an ounce of cannabis, and Lamar told WTVF that there should be a statewide standard for how law enforcement deals with cannabis.

“What we want to do is make sure there’s a unified standard across Tennessee where no matter what county you’re in, there’s the same standard around criminalization and having the possession of marijuana,” Lamar told the news outlet.

Elsewhere in the state, Sen. Janice Bowling (R-Tullahoma) has announced plans to introduce a new medical cannabis legalization bill this year after previous attempts stalled in the legislature.

The November 2020 presidential election broke records. More votes were cast for president (some 165 million) than ever before in our history. 

We have not surpassed this percentage of voters in a presidential election (approximately 67%) in 120 years, that is, since the election of William McKinley and his Vice president Theodore Roosevelt in 1900 at 73.7%. 

However, this uptick of participation in the political process has revealed entrenched partisanship. This, when coupled with what we witnessed on the steps of the capitol, shows that we are a nation riven by polarization. Reminiscent of 1860, as the nation splintered over slavery, we appear hopelessly divided by what the framers called “faction,” or as it is known today “political tribalism.”

Our politics (riffing on James Madison’s Federalist Papers Number 10) has devolved into jersey-wearing domestic factions with “citizens united and actuated in some common impulse . . . adverse to the rights of other citizens.” Social scientists have confirmed that 21st-century politics is less about principles and more like allegiances to home-town sports teams with many voters, quoting a University of Kansas study, “caring more about . . . winning . . . than they do [about] ideology or issues.”  

But partisan-Mason Dixon divisions have not infused every political issue. There is one that trumps the jersey, and has done so from the mountains to the prairies: it is cannabis legalization. Blue, red, and purple states voted green this past November.

Five states from diverse regions of the country had cannabis on the ballot in November, specifically: Arizona, Mississippi, Montana, New Jersey, and South Dakota. And as Rolling Stone magazine “vernacularly” noted, “[e]very single weed initiative passed on election day.”

While the world turned upside-down in the spring of 2020, the general profile of cannabis consumers began shifting as well.

“There was a significant amount of new customers,” Socrates Rosenfeld, co-founder and CEO of online ordering platform I Heart Jane, says. This pointed to a growing comfort with the idea of cannabis, particularly among those who perhaps hadn’t tried it in the past or hadn’t consumed anything beyond flower. “Product discovery was another trend. We saw people adding new products, new complements or substitutes to their cart. That was really interesting.”

With 500,000 SKUs on the platform, consumers across the U.S. have been able to settle into the shopping experience from their home.

“We've seen a lot more activity and searches and adding multiple items to a card, comparatively shopping, within category and cross-category,” Rosenfeld says. New product silos—like concentrates, in particular—have been rising in the sheer number of sales transactions over the past year.

This coincides with the ascent of online ordering and curbside pickup more broadly. On the retailer’s side of the transaction, this means more data—which allows for a more nuanced approach to purchasing and inventory tracking.

Before March 2020, Rosenfeld says that I Heart Jane was tracking 17% online ordering across the U.S. As the quarantine lifestyle became the norm, that stat jumped to a peak of 50%. “That’s held steady, six, seven, eight, nine months,” he says.

TORONTO, Jan. 28, 2021 /CNW/ - PRESS RELEASE - The Green Organic Dutchman Holdings Ltd. (TGOD), a producer of premium certified organically grown cannabis, has announced the launch of RIPPLE Gummies by TGOD, Canada's first cannabis-infused confectionary product to offer a scientifically validated 15-minute onset. They will initially be available in Alberta, British Columbia, and Manitoba, with plans to expand distribution across the country once provincial listings are received.

RIPPLE Gummies are made using certified organically grown cannabis, real fruit juice and all-natural flavors and colors. Each pack contains two precisely dosed 5mg THC gummies for a total of 10mg, the maximum allowed under Canada's Cannabis Act.

RIPPLE Gummies leverage the same fast-acting proprietary technology used in quick-dissolving RIPPLE powder, which rapidly became one of the top-selling SKUs within the cannabis beverage category due to its scientifically validated 15-minute onset, a first in Canada. 

"Canadian cannabis consumers love our quick-dissolving RIPPLE powder for its proven dose-controlled delivery mechanism; it offers a faster-acting, more standardized, and discreet alternative to most products currently on the market. With RIPPLE Gummies, we are bringing to market another proven product which has been a top seller where sold in the United States," commented Sean Bovingdon, TGOD's chief financial officer and interim chief executive officer. "RIPPLE Gummies offer another convenient option for Canadians to consume their desired dose of cannabinoids with a unique, predictable onset of action."

As part of its licensing agreement with Stillwater, TGOD plans to further expand its RIPPLE offering with additional flavors, Honey Infusion CBD and Mango Balance, scheduled to launch in the second quarter of 2021.

AUSTIN, Texas (Jan. 28, 2021)—PRESS RELEASE—Fluence by OSRAM, a global provider of energy-efficient LED lighting solutions for commercial cannabis and agriculture production, has announced the appointment of Jordon Musser to chief product officer. 

Musser joins Fluence from Dallas, Texas-based Flex Lighting Solutions, a division of Flex that provides LED high-bay fixtures to commercial and industrial facilities throughout the world. Musser served as Flex Lighting Solutions’ global head of commercial and horticulture LED products and technology, developing horticulture lighting solutions for commercial cannabis and agriculture growers.

“Fluence is at an exciting, critical junction in our growth,” said David Cohen, CEO of Fluence. “As the demand for LED technology continues to grow, Jordon’s deep product design and development expertise will strengthen Fluence’s product roadmap to meet the diverse needs of global cultivators. We’re thrilled to welcome Jordon to Fluence’s leadership team and look forward to the continued development of our leading LED solutions.” 

During his tenure at Flex Lighting Solutions, Musser served in various product development, design and engineering roles across multiple company divisions. His award-winning work in the company’s commercial products, aviation and defense sectors foreshadowed his future success overseeing Flex Lighting Solutions’ horticulture division. Musser was responsible for growing the nascent division to its current stature: a multi-department global organization delivering LED technology to customers throughout the world.

“After spending a number of years in the horticulture lighting space, I’m honored to join the team at one of the industry’s leading manufacturers,” Musser said. “I’ve seen how innovative lighting solutions are empowering growers to deliver high-quality food and medicine to their customers and was particularly attracted to Fluence’s dedication to researching how light can yield a healthier, more sustainable world. I’m eager to work closely with the global research team and apply the latest in photobiology research to Fluence’s expanding portfolio.”

Arizona launched its first adult-use cannabis sales Jan. 22, with the state’s mature medical cannabis industry—which was legalized by a voter-approved initiative in 2010—pivoting quickly to meet the demands of a broader consumer base.

The Mint applied for adult-use licenses at its dispensary locations in Mesa and Tempe when the application became available Jan. 19.

“[Regulators] were saying it wasn’t going to take until March to make a decision, that once you applied and put in all your paperwork for your rec license, as long as you had enough employees to be able to service [the adult-use market] and you had all the requisites, they were going to process [the application] in two to three days,” says Raul Molina, The Mint’s co-founder and chief operating officer .

Around midday on Jan. 22, The Mint received word that its adult-use applications had been approved, and it immediately sent text and email notifications to its customer base, announcing that it would launch its first adult-use sales at 4:20 p.m. that same day. As soon as the alerts went out, Molina says people started showing up, and the dispensaries had lines around the building by 1 p.m.

Arizona is currently experiencing a cold snap, Molina says, with rain and temperatures in the 40s, but the bad weather has not deterred customers, who continue to line up at The Mint’s dispensary locations.

Washington, D.C. — PRESS RELEASE — The nation’s largest marijuana policy organization, the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP), has announced the election of Sal Pace to serve as Chair to the Board of Directors. 

"We're very excited to have Sal as our new chair,” said MPP Executive Director Steve Hawkins. “Sal is a recognized leader in the cannabis reform arena having used his platform as an elected official to advance common sense reforms. With tremendous passion and an in-depth knowledge of cannabis policy issues, he is an excellent choice to lead our board." 

Pace has held elected office as a county commissioner in Pueblo County, Colo., and as a Colorado State Representative, during which time he served as House Minority Leader. Pace is widely recognized as one of the nation’s most knowledgeable former elected officials on the subject of marijuana policy.

"Sal Pace has brought a pioneering effort both in the Colorado cannabis program and his leadership nationally. I count Sal as a valuable and essential ally in my work for cannabis reform," said U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), co-chair and founder of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus.

During his time in the General Assembly, Pace played a leading role in developing Colorado’s medical marijuana model, earning him recognition as the “face of regulation” from local news media. He served on several policy and legislative interim committees focused on cannabis, and he founded a national organization of local elected officials, Leaders For Reform, in response to Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ rescission of the Cole memo.

Montana Rep. Matt Regier (R-District 4) is drafting legislation to amend I-90, the ballot initiative voters approved in November to legalize adult-use cannabis in the state, according to a local KULR8 report.

Regier plans to introduce bills that would give more cannabis tax revenue to human services, as well as allow licensed dispensaries to advertise their products, the news outlet reported.

I-90 levies a 20% sales tax on adult-use cannabis, and earmarks roughly 10% of the revenue for the state’s general fund, with the rest directed toward conservation programs, substance abuse treatment and veterans’ services, according to KULR8.

Regier’s new legislation aims to make human services, like substance abuse treatment, a priority, the news outlet reported, as well as protect state departments’ funding.

“We’ve seen in other states that have legalized recreational marijuana, that there is fallout to state agencies, and there needs to be money there for that, instead of asking the taxpayer to pick up the tab,” Regier told KULR8.

North Dakota lawmakers are considering legislation to update the state’s medical cannabis program, according to The Bismarck Tribune.

Legislators heard several bills Jan. 26 that would expand the list of qualifying conditions, allow edible products, and permit registered patients and caregivers to grow their own plants, among other changes.

Rep. Matt Ruby’s (R-Minot) H.B. 1359 focuses on patient advocacy, and would restructure the state’s medical cannabis advisory board to include members from cannabis manufacturing and retail facilities, as well as patients, The Bismarck Tribune reported. The bill would also increase the number of designated caregivers for each patient from one to three, and would eliminate the state’s $50 designated caregiver application fee.

Another bill, Rep. Gretchen Dobervich’s (D-Fargo) H.B. 1391, would allow North Dakota’s medical cannabis patients to access edible products in the form of soft or hard lozenges, the news outlet reported. A similar proposal from Dobervich was defeated in 2019, according to The Bismarck Tribune.

The House Human Services Committee also heard Rep. Marvin Nelson’s (D-Rolla) H.B. 1400, which would expand North Dakota’s list of qualifying conditions to include those that “a health care provider determines is appropriately treated by the use of medical marijuana,” The Bismarck Tribune reported. The legislation would also allow patients to submit medical records to qualify for the state’s medical cannabis program, rather than obtaining approval from a medical provider, according to the news outlet. The bill would also create a temporary medical cannabis card for qualified out-of-state patients, as well as establish a program for unannounced inspections at cannabis retailers, The Bismarck Tribune reported.

In Nassim Nicholas Taleb’s fantastic book titled Antifragile: Things That Gain from Disorder, he explains the concept of gains made through volatility (negative events). For example, he describes airplane crashes as making the airline industry stronger. Each crash is studied (via its fragility) and lessons are learned and incorporated into the industry as a whole. These lessons have led to dramatic drops in airplane crashes (antifragile) over the past 50 years.

Taleb also addresses the economy head-on by showing that our political leaders consistently make decisions to smooth out every bump in the economic road, creating complacency with risk taking that allows fragility to build up in the system (think the 2008-2009 financial crash). Complacency and 100% stability can be a killer.  

How can we apply this antifragile concept to cannabis given that the cannabis industry is hyper-volatile? The intention is to create a situation where the very nature of the fragility within the cannabis industry can benefit your firm when big, negative events occur. Looking to other industries can give us valuable insights into how companies can benefit from negative events.

Here are some negative events that can affect your cannabis business:

These examples are enough to illustrate the potential for negative events and to use in setting up a framework to thrive from the resulting chaos. Some of this may seem counterintuitive, but stick with it and know that this article is meant to jumpstart your thinking as it relates to upping your game in cannabis business risk management.

As French philosophers like to say, knowledge is historically contingent and based on power relations at any specific time. If this is so, then your knowledge of how to be successful in cannabis is also historically contingent and may just be historically out-of-date or just plain historically irrelevant. And needless to say there is always a firm more powerful than yours trying to set the agenda.

Annapolis, MD — PRESS RELEASE — On Jan. 26, the Maryland Cannabis Policy Coalition held a virtual press conference in support of Del. Jazz Lewis’ (D) comprehensive legalization bill, H.B. 32 — The Cannabis Legalization and Regulation, Inclusion, Restoration, and Rehabilitation Act of 2021. A recording of the press conference is available here.

H.B. 32 would legalize personal possession and home cultivation of cannabis for adults, automatically expunge past cannabis offenses, establish a social equity program to ensure inclusion in the industry from disproportionately impacted communities, and reinvest a significant portion of tax revenue to endowments to Maryland’s four HBCUs and communities hardest hit by the war on drugs.

"This legislation will mark a turning point in Maryland history and signify a new way Maryland handles social equity and restorative justice. And hopefully, it will help frame racial equity for other states contemplating legalization,” said Lewis..

Fifteen states and Washington, D.C. have legalized marijuana for adults 21 and over. According to a February 2019 Goucher poll, 57% of Marylanders support cannabis legalization.

Coalition members supporting HB 32 include: Progressive Maryland, National Working Families Party, 1199 SEIU, Maryland NORML, Marijuana Policy Project, Law Enforcement Action Partnership, Clergy for a New Drug Policy, Doctors for Cannabis Regulation, and Casa de Maryland.

Florida Rep. Carlos Guillermo Smith and Sen. Jeff Brandes have filed complementary bills to legalize adult-use cannabis in the state, according to the South Florida Sun Sentinel.

Smith’s H.B. 343 would legalize cannabis for adults 21 and older, while Brandes’ S.B. 710 revises “the sales tax exemption for the sale of marijuana and marijuana delivery” for cannabis purchases, the news outlet reported.

The legislation would allow adults to purchase up to 2.5 ounces of cannabis or products containing up to 2 grams of THC, according to the South Florida Sun Sentinel, but smoking cannabis in public would remain illegal.

Florida Sen. Tina Polsky and Rep. Nicholas Duran have filed legislation to protect public employees who use medical cannabis, according to a local WMFE report.

The bill would bar public employers from firing, demoting or suspending employees who test positive for cannabis, as long as they are enrolled in the state’s medical cannabis program, the news outlet reported.

Employers would still be permitted to take punitive action against employees who use medical cannabis on the job, WMFE reported, as well as those whose job performance suffers as a result of their medical cannabis use.

Polsky introduced similar legislation last year to protect private employees enrolled in Florida’s medical cannabis program, according to the news outlet, but the bill did not receive a hearing.

Kentucky Sen. Steve West has introduced a medical cannabis legalization bill, according to a local WMKY report.

West’s Senate Bill 92 would allow practitioners to recommend medical cannabis to their patients, and would legalize the cultivation, manufacturing, distribution, sale and delivery of cannabis products in the state, the news outlet reported.

West’s proposal joins Rep. Jason Nemes’ House Bill 136, a separate medical cannabis legalization proposal that was reintroduced earlier this month after stalling during last year’s legislative session.

After a judge ruled that cannabis billboards are illegal on California roads that cross state borders, the Bureau of Cannabis Control (BCC) has issued a notice announcing new rules for the advertisements.

Under the new regulations, cannabis companies cannot place new billboard ads on any interstate highway that crosses the California border, and businesses must remove any current billboards placed along these roads.

The new policy affects about three dozen state and interstate routes, according to an ABC 10 report, but cannabis billboards are allowed to remain on highways that are entirely within California’s borders.

NOVATO, Calif., Jan. 26, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Trym, a pioneering cannabis cultivation software company, is pleased to announce the release of Touchless Harvesting, a patent-pending technology that allows cultivators to compliantly and expeditiously scan, weigh, and record plant tags while harvesting cannabis plants via a mobile device.

Touchless Harvesting saves cultivators time by providing the most efficient method for recording each plant's weight in accordance with state regulations without touching their mobile devices.

Touchless Harvesting helps growers:

"At Trym, we're all about helping cultivators save time and streamline their operations. That's why we created Touchless Harvesting. It's a burden to harvest cannabis plants in California due to regulations that require tediously weighing each plant and reporting the weights to the state via METRC. Touchless Harvesting is the fastest way to harvest cannabis plants and report to METRC," says Trym CEO Matt Mayberry. "The feedback so far has been fantastic and we look forward to expanding our reach in 2021."

Trym launched Touchless Harvesting with longtime partner and customer FloraCal Farms in Santa Rosa, CA. Using Trym, FloraCal Farms was able to harvest, weigh, and report 680 plants all before lunch. Efficiency and compliance are top priorities for the FloraCal team who harvest every week in their 20,000 sq.ft. cultivation facility.

"The Touchless Harvesting feature is a great convergence of efficiency and compliance," says Andrew Rayl, director of compliance for FloraCal Farms. "It allows us to remain in full compliance with even the most conservative interpretations of harvest regulatory requirements without sacrificing any time."

North Dakota Rep. Jason Dockter has sponsored an adult-use cannabis legalization bill, despite his opposition to legalizing cannabis in the state, according to The Dickinson Press.

Dockter believes legalization is inevitable as more states regulate cannabis within their borders, the news outlet reported, and says lawmakers should draft a legalization proposal instead of leaving the issue in the hands of a ballot initiative campaign.

North Dakota voters approved medical cannabis legalization in 2016, but rejected a 2018 measure that would have legalized adult-use.

Legalize ND backed a 2020 campaign to get adult-use legalization in front of voters last year, but ultimately refocused its efforts on the 2022 election after the COVID-19 pandemic largely derailed its signature gathering efforts.

Dockter’s House Bill 1420 would allow adults 21 and older to use, possess and transport up to one ounce of cannabis or an equivalent amount of edible cannabis products, The Dickinson Press reported. Cultivators and dispensaries would be licensed under the bill to produce and sell cannabis products, according to the news outlet, and the state Health Council would ultimately establish rules to regulate these businesses.