MjLink Cannabis Business News and Press
Kansas City, Missouri, Mayor Quinton Lucas said he will begin pardoning those who have received municipal violations for marijuana possession and those non-violent offenders who were convicted for having marijuana drug paraphernalia.
Lucas made the announcement in his State of the City speech Thursday night.
“I want to empower people to be able to find work, take care of their families, make a decent living,” Lucas said, “and every day we will find ways to make their effort to do that in Kansas City just a little bit easier. This is but one step.”
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KSHB.com ~
The number of Georgians enrolled in the state’s medical cannabis program has increased by more than 70% in one year, according to a local WABE report.
The news outlet reported that 14,511 residents now hold medical cannabis cards that allow them to access low-THC cannabis oil (containing less than 5% THC), which is a dramatic increase from the 8,402 patients enrolled in the program roughly one year ago.
The leading health condition among the cardholders is intractable pain, WABE reported, followed by peripheral neuropathy, cancer, seizures, post-traumatic stress disorder, multiple sclerosis, autism and Crohn’s disease.
Nearly 1,000 physicians have registered to recommend medical cannabis oil in the state, according to the news outlet.
The Georgia Access to Medical Cannabis Commission is still working on establishing ways to distribute medical cannabis oil in the state, meaning that those enrolled in the program still have no legal way to purchase the product, but in recent months, the state has made progress in making the oil available to patients.
SXSW returns to Austin, Tex., in March, and it seems like each year delivers more cannabis and hemp (and CBD) content to the hundreds of thousand of curious attendees.
This year, “Cannabis Jumpstart: A Business Showcase,” hosted by CanopyBoulder, will see six cannabis and hemp businesses pitching onstage to venture capitalists. A panel of three industry experts will run the show.
The panel includes: Javier Hasse, Managing Director at Benzinga Cannabis; Emily Paxhia, Managing Director at Poseidon Asset Management; and Matt Nordgren, CEO of Arcadian Fund.
"Thanks to the great work by the folks over at CanopyBoulder, we were able to efficiently look through almost 100 business opportunities,” Nordgren told Benzinga. “The result will showcase a collection of diverse, proven, and capable entrepreneurs leading the cannabis and hemp industry forward.”
Here are the six businesses that will get a shot at SXSW-level visibility and capital:
Pineapple Express – a medical and adult-use cannabis company in California. Sana Packaging – a plant-based hemp plastics manufacturers that uses “100% reclaimed ocean plastic and other sustainable materials.”Quim – a plant-based sexual wellness product manufacturer.Alt Thirty Six – a point-of-sale business that sets up digital payments for cannabis retail (both in-store and online).Oppidan Wellness – a hemp-based “personalized medicine” business.Asia Horizon – a China-based company with plans to process industrial hemp for CBD extraction—while also working to distribute CBD brands in Asia. ]]>Name: Michelle Hackett
W. CONSHOHOCKEN, Pa., Feb. 13, 2020 – PRESS RELEASE – Three new ASTM International standards aim to support security for cannabis businesses. The standards cover video surveillance systems, access control systems and intrusion detection systems.
“Cannabis businesses and facilities have unique needs related to protecting cannabis products and waste as well as the people and assets on-site,” says Patricia Haley, owner and principal security consultant at PWG. “These standards can act as a supporting resource when people consider how to design for protection and safety measures in a new facility or retrofitting existing spaces.”
According to Haley, the standards provide information on topics such as: how to secure a facility location, risk considerations that should be addressed, general security measures and practices, and common terminology surrounding cannabis industry security-related issues.
Members of ASTM International’s cannabis committee (D37) developed the three standards (D8203, D8217, and D8218). Haley says that facility owners and managers, consultants, employees, auditors and others could find these standards useful.
For more information on ASTM International’s cannabis committee, please watch this video.
CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--PRESS RELEASE--Cresco Labs, one of the largest vertically integrated multistate cannabis operators in the United States, has announced a high-profile leadership hire to support its steadfast commitment to building the most important cannabis company in the U.S. Greg Butler joins Cresco Labs as its first Chief Commercial Officer (CCO). Butler brings to Cresco Labs a strong background in driving brand growth for top-tier CPG companies including Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson and Molson Coors, wellness retail execution for Walgreens, and business growth and capital management strategic advising for leading private equity portfolio companies.
In this newly created position, Butler is responsible for demand and commercial strategic planning, bolstering Cresco Labs’ sales and marketing teams with top talent, leading the launch of all new products and innovation, brand M&A and integration, and driving enterprise strategies to deliver on the company’s vision to be the most important cannabis company in the U.S. among patients, customers, consumers and industry stakeholders.
“One of the key components of our success is the ability to strategically curate a leadership team with both institutional expertise and the highest caliber of subject matter experts across different industries—from retail to healthcare to beer to CPG,” said Charles Bachtell, CEO of Cresco Labs. “Greg has a remarkable general management pedigree and an impeccable reputation from his work driving growth for the world’s most iconic brands. Cannabis is an industry where his background in patient marketing, wellness retail, corporate planning and traditional CPG brand building are all necessary to deliver growth, and I couldn’t be more pleased to add these capabilities to our arsenal for driving long-term value. Greg’s addition strengthens an already accomplished team that’s well positioned to usher in the next generation of normalized and professionalized cannabis.”
After a year serving as Operating Partner at MNML Ventures, an affiliate of Cresco Labs, Butler has stepped into a full-time CCO role to continue to execute the long-term growth plan that has already delivered significant results. He led the creation of a pioneering occasion-based portfolio strategy, relaunched seven cannabis brands with new brand positionings, identities and packaging design, oversaw the creation of a multi-year innovation pipeline, and drove the concepting and launch of the national Sunnyside* retail brand. He also helped reshape Cresco Labs’ robust marketing, retail operations and sales teams that are made up of notable hires from Apple, Starbucks, PepsiCo and Red Bull.
“The results of Greg’s leadership speak for themselves,” says Tom Manning, chairman of the Cresco Labs Board of Directors. “He oversaw the Miller portfolio and developed a commercial strategy for the billion-dollar Miller Lite brand, delivering 13 quarters of sustained growth after years of declining sales. He also has launched innovation consumer campaigns for global brands that drove share growth and has won a wide range of awards from the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity to the Effie Awards.”
Butler graduated from Queen’s University and received his MBA from Harvard Business School.
TORONTO, Feb. 13, 2020 /CNW/ - PRESS RELEASE - SLANG Worldwide Inc., a global cannabis consumer packaged goods company with a diversified portfolio of popular brands, has announced that it has expanded its strategic partnership with Cookies, a California-based cannabis and lifestyle brand, to bring Cookies' products to the Oregon market which will expand and diversify SLANG's product offering in the state.
Pursuant to the expanded partnership with Cookies, SLANG has signed an exclusive licensing and distribution agreement in connection with the proposed sale of Cookies products for the Oregon market. A SLANG Network partner will cultivate the Cookies strains, and SLANG will market and sell the products through its statewide distribution channels. The addition of the Cookies portfolio to the company's already sizeable product offering in Oregon will further enhance its existing portfolio across additional high value product segments.
The Oregon market had retail sales of $810M USD during 2019 and is a core market to SLANG's strategy given its status as one of the most mature recreational markets in the US. As a whole, the Oregon cannabis market grew 27% year over year as of December 2019 (per BDS Analytics), which also reflected a 7% gain versus the prior month. Key product segments in Oregon are dried flower, concentrates and ingestibles.
SLANG already has a strong position in Oregon, with its O.penVAPE Craft RESERVE and Bakked Dabaratus products positioned as leading brands. The addition of Cookies branded products is expected to help expand SLANG's market share in the state and create new revenue streams for the Company in previously untapped product categories. SLANG and Cookies will also continue to work together to evaluate additional opportunities in other markets where SLANG operates.
"Cookies has established one of the strongest brands in the history of legal cannabis and we're excited to be bringing them to cannabis consumers across the great state of Oregon," said SLANG CEO Peter Miller. "The SLANG network has been built through collaboration with strong partners like the team at Cookies. The expansion of this partnership deepens our working relationship and creates exciting new commercial opportunities for both companies in the Oregon market."
Amsterdam is struggling to cope with the huge numbers visiting the city centre to the point that its attractions are no longer being promoted.
The mayor of Amsterdam has sought to win political backing for her cleanup of the overcrowded red-light district by revealing that a third of foreign tourists and nearly half of Britons would be less likely to visit the city again if they were barred from buying cannabis in the coffee shops.
Femke Halsema, who is understood to want to reduce the number of outlets selling cannabis, attached the survey results to a letter to councillors announcing her intention to examine how they may reduce the attraction of drug use to tourists.
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Daniel Boffey and Jon Henley ~ TheGuardian.com ~
The Medical Board of Ohio’s Medical Marijuana Committee has asked medical experts to study anxiety, autism and Cachexia/Wasting Syndrome to determine whether the conditions should be added to the medical cannabis program’s existing list of 21 qualifying conditions, according to a News 5 Cleveland report.
The conditions were selected from 27 petitions that the public had submitted for conditions to be added to the program, the news outlet reported. The committee narrowed the list down to six conditions, including anxiety, autism, depression, insomnia, opioid use disorder and Cachexia.
The committee then discussed the value of the studies submitted with the petitions and narrowed it down to the three that are now moving to expert review, according to News 5 Cleveland. Recommendations from the medical experts are expected this summer, and then the committee will make its recommendation to the full Medical Board, the news outlet reported.
Written public comment on the three accepted conditions will be accepted through March 11, and can be submitted to [email protected].
A bill to legalize medical cannabis in Alabama has been introduced in the state legislature following a study commission’s discussions on the best approach to a legislative proposal.
Alabama Sen. Tim Melson (R-Florence) is sponsoring Senate Bill 165, titled “The Compassion Act,” and the legislation is scheduled for a Feb. 19 hearing by the Senate Judiciary Committee, according to a local CBS 42 report.
Melson sponsored a medical cannabis legalization bill last year, as well. While the Senate approved the legislation, it ultimately stalled in the House when the bill morphed into a proposal to create a commission to develop legislation and regulations for a medical cannabis market in the state.
That proposal earned the legislature’s approval at the end of last year’s legislative session and the Alabama Medical Cannabis Study Commission was born. The group launched discussions on medical cannabis legalization last fall.
The resulting draft bill outlines the process for patients to enroll in the program and establishes a commission to oversee the patient registry and business licensing process, according to CBS 42. The legislation decriminalizes cannabis possession for qualified patients, the news outlet reported, and allows physicians to recommend medical cannabis for 15 qualifying conditions.
A bill that would legalize and regulate medical marijuana in Kentucky passed its first hurdle on Wednesday.
The House Judiciary Committee approved House Bill 136 with a vote of 17 to one.
The passage followed a debate in a crowded committee room in Frankfort.
Among those most pleased by the advancing of the bill, is Eric Crawford, of Mason County. A 1994 car accident left Crawford in a wheelchair with life-changing health conditions and he says marijuana allows him to get out of bed.
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The New Mexico Senate Judiciary Committee has voted 6-4 to table a bill that would have legalized adult-use cannabis in the state.
The bill’s supporters told the Albuquerque Journal that after the committee’s Feb. 12 vote, the legislation is likely dead for this year’s 30-day legislative session, which ends next week.
“We’d have no chance of getting it through now,” Sen. Gerald Ortiz y Pino (D-Albuquerque) told the news outlet. “This is a setback, but I think in the long run it will produce a better bill.”
Ortiz y Pino introduced NM S.B. 115 Jan. 16, and Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham seemed eager to sign a legalization bill this year after announcing that she was officially adding cannabis legalization to the state’s 2020 legislative agenda.
RELATED: New Mexico Lawmakers Introduce Legislation to Legalize Adult-Use Cannabis
International cannabis companies are rushing to Colombia, attracted by the country’s relatively advanced regulation, beefed-up security, cheap production costs and perfect weather conditions with many companies already anticipating growing exports of medical cannabis beginning this year.
Unlike many countries in the region that only recently approved the clinical use of cannabis (like Perú), Colombia is further along the track after approving its regulatory framework in July 2016, which sets rules for the production, distribution, sale and export of seeds as well as derivative cannabis products.
With the passage of Law 1787, Colombia joined the more than a dozen countries that have put into practice different types of regulation to explore the advantages of this plant as an alternative pharmaceutical, Rodrigo Arcila, president of the Colombian Cannabis Association (Asocolcanna), said.
“Colombia will be a world leader in cannabis in a few years. Investors have poured about US$600 million in medical cannabis, including farms and laboratories of by-products in about three years,” Arcila told Cannabis Business Times, noting that companies invested between US$200,000 and $300,000 per hectare cultivated and as much as $1.5 millionper hectare in laboratory buildout.
Located close to the equatorial line, cannabis plantations can soak up sun 12 hours all year, compared with cannabis producers in Europe or North America who must install greenhouses to guarantee production throughout the year.
Investors have also compared the costs of growing cannabis in Colombia with international counterparts as they can find skilled cheap labor force with experience in the flower industry and inexpensive land. According to the consultancy firm Crop America, while a gram of cannabis flower costs between US$0.50 and US$0.80 to produce in Colombia, in Canada it can cost US$2.10.
OHIO: The State of Ohio Board of Pharmacy today published updated patient & caregiver numbers for January 2020. These numbers include: 94,771 Recommendations 84,023 Registered patients 6,163 Patients with Veteran Status 5,382 Patients with Indigent Status 473 Patients with a Terminal Diagnosis 60,260 Unique patients who purchased medical marijuana (as reported to OARRS by licensed dispensaries) Read the full article...
ILLINOIS: Cresco Labs, one of the largest vertically integrated multi-state cannabis operators in the United States, today announced a high-profile leadership hire to support its steadfast commitment to building the most important cannabis company in the U.S. Greg Butler joins Cresco Labs as its first Chief Commercial Officer. Greg brings to Cresco Labs a strong Read the full article...
Late last month, multistate cannabis operator Justice Grown announced that it had secured a total of 11 licenses in Missouri’s forthcoming medical cannabis market, an accomplishment that CEO Darin Carpenter says will not only help connect the state’s rapidly growing patient base with the medicine they need, but also create a slew of new jobs for local Missourians.
The company, which holds licenses in California, Pennsylvania, Illinois, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Utah, will enter the Missouri market with three cultivation licenses, three manufacturing licenses and five dispensary licenses.
Here, Carpenter, who previously served as the director of operations for Tryke Companies/Reef Dispensary prior to that company’s acquisition by Cresco Labs, shares insight into Justice Grown’s background, the company’s plans for Missouri and his predictions for how market trends might unfold.
Cannabis Business Times: How did Justice Grown get started? Can you describe the company’s background and its journey to securing multiple licenses in Missouri’s medical cannabis market?
Darin Carpenter: Justice Grown has been around approximately four and a half years. Justice Grown started in Chicago, Ill., [and its] ownership consists of a couple attorneys who own a social equity law firm, [Loevy & Loevy, which is] focused on social injustices. In 2014 or 2015, there was the opportunity to enter the Illinois cannabis space. They decided to submit an application, and at the time, the application was molded around social equity. Through a merit-based application process, they scored extremely high in the Illinois licensing process and were awarded a license in Illinois.
That’s how everything started, and as more states reformed their cannabis policies, Jon Loevy and Mike [Kanovitz] decided to try applying in some of these other states where there are limited licenses and the application process is based on merit. They’ve become extremely successful at the application process as one of the core competencies of the business itself.
Frankfort, KY — PRESS RELEASE — On Wednesday, the House Judiciary Committee voted in favor (17-1) of a bill that would legalize medical cannabis for patients with debilitating medical conditions in Kentucky. HB 136 will now head to the House of Representatives for a full vote.
The sponsor of HB 136, Rep. Jason Nemes (R-Louisville), filed similar legislation in 2019 that was approved by the House Judiciary Committee in a 16-1 vote, but the House adjourned without taking action. Fifty-one of the state’s 100 representatives are listed as sponsors of HB 136.
A 2019 Kentucky Health Issues Poll showed that nine out of 10 Kentucky residents support legalizing cannabis for medical use. If enacted into law, Kentucky will join the 33 states (and Washington, D.C.) that have passed medical cannabis laws.
Gov. Andy Beshear was elected in November after supporting medical cannabis legislation on the campaign trail.
Matt Simon, legislative analyst at the Marijuana Policy Project, said, “Kentuckians have been waiting far too long for safe, legal access to cannabis for medical use. Patients and doctors in other states have learned through experience that cannabis is beneficial as an alternative to opioids and other prescription drugs. Passing HB 136 is a moral imperative for Kentuckians who are suffering with debilitating medical conditions. Patients are very grateful to Rep. Nemes for his leadership and to the committee for moving this important bill forward."
Hemp-derived pain relief products are growing in popularity across the U.S., with many users turning to cannabidiol (CBD) for everyday relief or as a substitute for addictive opioid painkillers.
However, the U.S. Coast Guard has issued a warning to mariners that CBD products come with a risk for mariners.
Some products marketed as hemp or CBD may contain enough tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) to cause the user to fail a drug test, with an outcome identical to the results for the use of marijuana.
Over-the-counter hemp and CBD products are not regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the purity of their active ingredient varies.
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Rather than going door-to-door in hopes of selling a few boxes of cookies, one group of Chicago Girl Scouts went straight to their potential customers.
The troop set up shop outside of Dispensary33, 5001 N. Clark St. in Chicago last weekend and reportedly sold hundreds of boxes of cookies.
“The cookies they’re selling and our clientele -- it’s a great match,” Abigail Watkins, marketing and outreach manager for the dispensary told Block Club Chicago. “As a former Girl Scout, I admire the hustle.”
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Dan Plutchak ~ WKOW.com ~
It’s been over a month since recreational marijuana sales have been made legal in Illinois and medical marijuana was legalized in Missouri. So how do police officers spot high drivers on the road?
Officers with the St. Louis County Police Department said it’s a 12-step process on what officers see and what medical tests reveal.
Officer Stephanie Ihrig is one of the two officers with the St. Louis County Police Department qualified to identify people who drive while impaired from drugs.
Ihrig said most people think of alcohol when it comes to drivers being impaired but she said drug recognition experts say they find more people impaired with prescription medicine, cocaine and marijuana.
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