POLITICS The latest cannabis news today including what's new in politics

Why Cannabis Legalization in Other Parts of the World Could Be Bad News for North American Pot Stocks

Why Cannabis Legalization in Other Parts of the World Could Be Bad News for North American Pot Stocks, Cannabis legalization is generally good news for the industry and companies looking to expand into other parts of the world. However, that’s not necessarily always the case, as it also creates opportunities for those countries to start becoming exporters of cannabis themselves, and they could end up competing head-to-head with large North American producers. Canada-based Aurora Cannabis (NYSE:ACB) prides itself on its global presence, and according to its website, it has a footprint in 25 countries and has 15 global production facilities.

While that’s great for growth opportunities, especially when the U.S. market is still off-limits for the foreseeable future, the company’s presence in more markets also means it will face more competition. Not only will it be competing with other cannabis stocks, but also many of its peers that are vying for positions in those markets.

A good example is hemp, which is legal in the U.S. thanks to the farm bill passed last year. And while Aurora and other Canadian companies see this as an opportunity to expand into the U.S. market, the problem is that they will not only be competing with other Canadian producers but with U.S. hemp producers as well.

Zimbabwe targets hemp as its next big export

In Zimbabwe, there is a pilot project underway that will see industrial hemp being grown on prison grounds in Harare. One of the motivations for the government to permit hemp cultivation is that it could be a substitute for tobacco, which according to 2017 data, made up more than half of the country’s total exports.

With hemp growing in popularity for cannabidiol-based products, it could present a significant opportunity for the country to diversify its exports and be less dependant on tobacco. And that could lead to its products making their way to North America and other parts of the world as well.

Last year, Zimbabwe became the second African country after Lesotho to legalize marijuana for both scientific and medical use.

Thailand is another country that’s looking to expand its cannabis program

Asia is another part of the world where cannabis legislation just hasn’t made much progress. But one country, Thailand, has been receptive to medical marijuana. It’s not only building Southeast Asia’s largest medical marijuana facility, but it’s also expected that legalization will be expanded to allow individuals to grow as many as six cannabis plants for medical purposes. And while that’s good news for the industry, the government is looking to be the main producer of medical marijuana, with the Government Pharmaceutical Organization projecting that by February, it will have 1 million bottles of cannabis oil, containing 5 milliliters each, available.

And while it may present an attractive opportunity for North American producers, Thailand looks to be wary of allowing foreign competitors to come in and take over the industry. And that could help local companies succeed and build up their presence on the global stage.

Why North American cannabis companies could be in trouble

A year ago, the opportunities presented by the legalization of cannabis in many parts of the world would have excited investors. Expansion and growth were all the talk in the industry. But with a company like Aurora Cannabis coming under fire for its poor financials and the amount of cash it’s been burning through, it may no longer be an easy decision to simply expand in a part of the world because cannabis has been legalized there. There’s going to have to be a good business case for it.

Investors need to look no further than Aphria (NYSE:APHA) as to how quickly an international strategy can go sideways. Last year, the company’s stock took a big hit following allegations that it vastly overpaid for assets in Latin America and the Caribbean. Investors are paying much closer attention to the actions companies are taking to make themselves more or less profitable. And expanding for the sake of expansion isn’t going to win over shareholders, not when it’s going to saddle the company with more expenses along the way.

Key takeaways for investors

With the markets being more sensitive to a company’s financial statements, it’s likely that cannabis producers are going to have to put the brakes on international expansion. And that means international growers will have an opportunity to build up their own positions in the industry and could end up competing with North American companies in Europe, Canada, and other markets where hemp or medical marijuana has been legalized.

For companies like Aurora and Aphria that are banking on international growth, it could impact their market share and overall valuations. With more of a focus on profitability, they won’t be able to be aggressive in pursuing new market opportunities. And while they may become stronger companies by improving their bottom lines, their positions internationally will likely get weaker. The good news, however, is that the international markets are still a long way from being as developed as those in North America, and that gives Aphria and Aurora a lot of time to strengthen their financials in preparation for what could prove to be a big battle on the global stage.

28Jul

FDA Puts America on Notice: Stop Touting CBD Claims

FDA Puts America on Notice: Stop Touting CBD Claims America’s booming CBD market received a cold splash of reality this week when the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a letter to Curaleaf, a major US cannabis and CBD brand, warning that some of its product marketing violates the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.

Reaction from vendors and investors was swift and harsh. Within 24 hours the national drug store chain CVS announced it would remove some Curaleaf CBD products from its shelves. Shares of Curaleaf stock fell 8% in a day.

All that happened because of a single warning letter—not a product recall, a tainted batch, or an expose on 60 Minutes. It’s worth noting that the FDA did not warn that Curaleaf’s products themselves were illegal. Rather, it was the way in which Curaleaf marketed the products.

CBD Ties the FDA Into Knots

The FDA currently has nothing to say about the legality or illegality of cannabidiol (CBD). That may change. The agency has fast-tracked a review of CBD products, held a widely seen public hearing on the substance at the end of May, and many are expecting FDA officials to announce some sort of regulatory action by the end of 2019.

The FDA has made one thing very clear about CBD, however. The agency will not tolerate manufacturers making pharmaceutical-like claims about the product. If you claim your product will heal cancer or alleviate pain, and it is not an FDA-approved drug, the agency will come knocking at your door.

Make No Claims

The Curaleaf file wasn’t even a heavy lift for the FDA. According to the warning letter, an agency official simply went to Curaleaf’s website and took notes on the phrases posted.

Here are a couple of the phrases that got the company in trouble:

“For chronic pain,” on the page for the company’s Relieve brand CBD Disposable Vape Pen
“Soothing tincture for chronic pain,” on the page for Relieve’s CBD Tincture

The FDA also objected to Curaleaf posting basic health claims about CBD on pages unrelated to products: “Some of the most common reasons to use CBD oil include… Chronic pain… Mental conditions like anxiety, depression, and PTSD…”

It’s a Complex Process

While there are studies and anecdotal evidence indicating that CBD may help some patients suffering from those conditions, it’s not accurate to claim that CBD can cure or offer “quick relief” from all those maladies with just a dose. That’s not to say CBD is ineffective in all cases. It means there’s more complexity involved.

Curaleaf isn’t trying to peddle snake oil. It looks like the company’s marketing and brand design team outkicked their legal coverage while trying to condense complicated information into bite-size phrases that fit in a tweet or on a web page. But at the same time, the FDA hasn’t exactly been hiding their prickliness over health claims made for cannabidiol.

Everybody involved with CBD—from cannabis and hemp growers to entrepreneurs, regulators, and patients—is struggling to handle this new product responsibly and legally. Outside of a handful of legal cannabis states (where CBD is strictly regulated and tested), there are almost no rules to go by.

Curaleaf is not the only company making health claims about its products. It’s likely the FDA went after the Wakefield, Massachusetts–based company precisely because it’s a national brand working with CVS, and the federal agency wanted to make a loud and clear statement to all the other CBD brands out there. A quick scan of the headlines in yesterday’s media will confirm: Mission accomplished.

27May

Kern County Just Became California’s Worst Cannabis Desert

Kern County Just Became California’s Worst Cannabis Desert, Just in time for Memorial Day, a rural California county is shuttering its medical cannabis dispensaries and making its residents—many of them military veterans—drive at least 150 miles round-trip to the nearest legal store.htt

Friday, May 24 marks the end of limited immunity for unincorporated Kern County’s 28 medical cannabis dispensaries. They had been grandfathered in for years, and amassed tens of thousands of patients. But come midnight tonight, those business risk being raided by the local sheriff, and having their property, cash, and medicine seized.

In a state where medical dispensaries and adult use stores are opening up by the dozens, Kern County—which is the size of New Hampshire—is going backward.

“This is the most regressive county I can think of,” said California NORML coordinator Ellen Komp.

At The Crop medical dispensary outside of Bakersfield, manager Jacob Gonzalez said the law-abiding, tax-paying shop will cease serving its 9,800 patients after today. The ban is only hurting the most vulnerable, he said. That includes senior veterans getting off opioids or fighting chronic illness, the type of people who don’t have a hookup in the local illicit market.

“Younger kids looking for cheap deals and dabs—they go to other places,” said Gonzalez. “It is hurting a lot of people here. I’ve just seen the reaction on patients’ faces—they’re not happy at all.”

“We’re seven to ten years behind everyone else,” said Gonzalez, who graduated from a local high school and worked his way up from security guard to manager. “It’s like going back in time.”

The Edge of Freedom

If you’re looking for the avatar of recalcitrance to cannabis law reform, look no further than the arid, low-income wastelands northeast of Los Angeles.

Across California, more than 800 licensed medical or adult-use stores or delivery services generated more than $350 million in tax revenue in 2018. Not in Kern.

More than 23 years after Proposition 215, the first licensed stores are coming to big coastal cities like San Leandro, Emeryville, and Alameda. The adoption of medical regulations in 2015, and Proposition 64 in 2016, have given local cities a legal scaffold on which they can develop retail ordinances.

More stores are also opening in California’s longtime cannabis deserts than ever before—places you’ve never heard of: Pt. Hueneme, Adelanto, Needles, and Sylmar.

These new shops are the low-hanging fruit. Roughly 75% of jurisdictions in the state still ban stores.

California legalized medical marijuana in 1996, but Kern County has never regulated medical dispensaries. Its 800,000 people, though, most certainly use them.

In 2016, voters in Kern County sided against the state’s adult use legalization ballot measure by a wide margin, 53% to 47%.

Reefer Madness Country

In 2017, the Board of Supervisors—faced with contracting oil taxes, and at least $20 million in county deficits—considered allowing a local legal cannabis industry worth 8,750 jobs and $37 million in estimated taxes.

Local prohibitionists proved louder than supporters, however. Some critics even invoked the gateway theory.

“Do our county officials want to make it easier for our families to fall into a lifetime of drug addiction — is that what they want? Hopefully the answer is no,” said longtime Bakersfield city councilmember Jacky Sullivan.

Komp noted that the gateway theory has been rejected by the federal government, and cannabis use rates by teens have fallen amid adult-use commercialization in California. This May, Gov. Gavin Newsom budgeted $26 million in 2019 and 2020 for public health messaging in cities that license stores.

Other critics said essentially ‘not in my back yard.’

“Now that it is legal, statewide, Kern county does not need to provide that service,” said local resident Carol Bender in a letter to officials that concluded with a Bible passage about greed.

But Komp said there are tens of thousands of Kern locals who’ll prefer safe, tested, taxed cannabis, instead of the illicit market—which is expected to thrive under the ban.

“It’s already pretty easy to get,” said one local. “The high school I went to 90% of people smoked before there was even stores.”

Still, Supervisors rejected the legal market in 4-1 vote and gave the 28 grandfathered shops a hard deadline to close up shop.

Kern County voters are more divided than ever. In 2018, a countywide ballot measure to allow adult-use stores lost at the ballot box by just 9,243 votes, just 2.4% of all registered voters.

“It was so close,” said Gonzalez.

The Clock Runs Out

Now the clock has run out on the grandfathered dispensaries, adding to the county’s tough economic and environmental conditions, Gonzalez said.

The local oil industry is laying off people, and homelessness is rising. Kern has atrocious air pollution, chronic drought, and an economy reliant on drilling, farming, prisons, and the military.

The population center of Bakersfield’s nearest licensed outlet is 80 miles south to Sylmar, 76 miles north to Woodlake, 273 miles east to Needles, or 132 miles west to San Luis Obispo, the beach.

“I’ve been here all my life and it’s tough to stay here,” Gonzalez said. “I would love to tell you there’s a lot keeping me here. But when I think about having my family here, the past ten years I’ve been out of high school it’s gotten considerably worse.”

“The thing that’s been keeping me here the most is this shop,” he said. “If I have the chance to leave, I would take it.”

What About Delivery?

Lastly, licensed delivery is legal only in name in Kern County. Kern is so remote, most state-legal delivery services won’t drop there.

In April, the city of Tehachapi in Kern County joined 23 California cities and one county suing the state to overturn the legality of licensed couriers.

Eric Sklar, member of a new alliance of legal cannabis businesses called Californians for Equal Access, said “the situation in Kern County is an example of why we need cannabis delivery to be available in every county in the state. Prohibition is over. Restricting a legal product from being delivered is as ridiculous as banning Fedex from delivering a case of wine.”

And by the way, illicit couriers are definitely serving Kern.

When I called a licensed delivery service and asked if they dropped in Kern, they said no, too far. When I asked if they knew of any licensed couriers out that way—the service rep pointed me to a website listing 17 unlicensed delivery services serving Kern.

11Apr

Trump Agriculture Secretary Accepts Invitation To Tour Hemp Farms

Trump Agriculture Secretary Accepts Invitation To Tour Hemp Farms The head of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has accepted an invitation to tour hemp farms in Oregon, telling Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) that it would help him learn about the industry as a whole.

In the latest in a series of lawmaker queries about hemp for federal officials during congressional hearings in recent weeks, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue was again pressed on the issue when he appeared before a Senate appropriations subcommittee on Thursday, with two members imploring him to “speed up” the rulemaking process to enact regulations that are required under the 2018 Farm Bill.

Perdue said that he would “love to” expedite the regulations but that the department was currently prioritizing the dairy industry and it was more likely that the rules would be implemented in time for the 2020 planting season.

“This is obviously a new issue. It requires a lot of complexities because of its uniqueness in its product and similarities and things that many states and the federal government considers illegal,” Perdue said, referring to marijuana.

Merkley, the ranking member of the subcommittee, then extended an invitation to join him in Oregon for a “little tour of our hemp industry.”

“I welcome that actually,” Perdue said. “We need to know more about the industry as a whole. I probably know less about that than I do most of the crops, and certainly I would welcome that.”

“There’s no lack of enthusiasm for sure for the CBD oil and the others, and I’m interested really in what the fiber utilization is, because what are all of those industrial uses? Because as productive as an American producer is, I’m fearful that we can crash this market before it gets off the ground,” he said.

Later in the hearing, Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT) asked Perdue if he was able to approve state regulatory plans for hemp and claimed that the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) was blocking Montana farmers from importing hemp seeds from Canada because of the 2018 Farm Bill.

Perdue said that farmers are able to continue cultivating the crop under the rules of the prior 2014 Farm Bill that allowed limited research programs focused on hemp while the department develops new regulations for a commercial market. USDA is currently accepting state regulatory plans, he said, and it’s “news to me” that the DEA is interfering in hemp seed imports.

The head of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has accepted an invitation to tour hemp farms in Oregon, telling Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) that it would help him learn about the industry as a whole.

In the latest in a series of lawmaker queries about hemp for federal officials during congressional hearings in recent weeks, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue was again pressed on the issue when he appeared before a Senate appropriations subcommittee on Thursday, with two members imploring him to “speed up” the rulemaking process to enact regulations that are required under the 2018 Farm Bill.

Perdue said that he would “love to” expedite the regulations but that the department was currently prioritizing the dairy industry and it was more likely that the rules would be implemented in time for the 2020 planting season.

“This is obviously a new issue. It requires a lot of complexities because of its uniqueness in its product and similarities and things that many states and the federal government considers illegal,” Perdue said, referring to marijuana.

https://greenweedfarms.com/blog/

Merkley, the ranking member of the subcommittee, then extended an invitation to join him in Oregon for a “little tour of our hemp industry.”

“I welcome that actually,” Perdue said. “We need to know more about the industry as a whole. I probably know less about that than I do most of the crops, and certainly I would welcome that.”

“There’s no lack of enthusiasm for sure for the CBD oil and the others, and I’m interested really in what the fiber utilization is, because what are all of those industrial uses? Because as productive as an American producer is, I’m fearful that we can crash this market before it gets off the ground,” he said.

Later in the hearing, Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT) asked Perdue if he was able to approve state regulatory plans for hemp and claimed that the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) was blocking Montana farmers from importing hemp seeds from Canada because of the 2018 Farm Bill.

Perdue said that farmers are able to continue cultivating the crop under the rules of the prior 2014 Farm Bill that allowed limited research programs focused on hemp while the department develops new regulations for a commercial market. USDA is currently accepting state regulatory plans, he said, and it’s “news to me” that the DEA is interfering in hemp seed imports.

Watch the video of Perdue’s hemp comments at about 32:50 and 48:02 into the video below:

A spokesperson for DEA told Marijuana Moment that she was unaware of any ongoing involvement by her agency in hemp imports, noting that the 2018 Farm Bill removed hemp and hemp-derived products from the Controlled Substances Act and shifted regulatory responsibility for the crop from the Justice Department to USDA. The crop is “not our problem” anymore, the spokesperson said.

During the hearing, Tester also complained that, without USDA regulations in place, individuals can’t develop various aspects of the hemp market and he touted the longevity of hemp materials.

“I have a hemp hat that I’ve been trying to wear out for 20 years that I got out of Canada,” Tester said. “You can’t wear the stuff out.”

Perdue made similar comments about the timeline for USDA hemp regulations when asked about it during a House appropriations subcommittee hearing on Tuesday.

11Apr

Indiana Lawmakers Amend Hemp Bill To Allow Smokeable Flower

Indiana Lawmakers Amend Hemp Bill To Allow Smokeable Flower, as Indiana lawmakers consider a bill to legalize the production and sale of hemp, the state House of Representatives approved an amendment allowing people to smoke the flower of the plant.

MARIJUANA NEW : https://greenweedfarms.com/blog/

Currently, low-THC CBD products are legal in Indiana, but there are no clear processes in place to allow local licensed farmers to grow and manufacture the cannabis extract for commercial purposes.

The 2018 Farm Bill legalized hemp on the federal level, but left the responsibility of how to regulate the crop to states. Indiana Senate Bill 516, which aims to create those necessary systems passed a second reading in the House on Monday. The Senate approved the bill in February with a vote of 47 to 1.

To the dismay of many hemp advocates, the original text of SB 516 banned smokeable hemp flower.

Law enforcement have expressed concerns about officers’ inability to distinguish it from marijuana flower, which looks and smells similar. But Rep. Jim Lucas (R) proposed a motion amending the bill to allow smokeable hemp. The change was approved by the House in a narrow vote of 49-47, as first reported by TheStatehouseFile.com.

The amended bill now heads to a third reading vote, before which legislators will continue to debate its merits.

“The hemp flower, whether you agree with its medicinal benefits or what not, it’s still the easiest way for Hoosier farmers to enter this really emerging hemp market with the least amount of overhead,” Rep. Christy Stutzman (R) told Indiana Public Media.

Gov. Eric Holcomb (R) has said he is “supportive of efforts to establish a hemp program” and is expected to sign SB 516 into law.

Shawn Hauser is one of the lead authors of the American Hemp Campaign’s model plan for state hemp programs. She told Marijuana Moment in a phone interview that the move to allow hemp flower in Indiana is “a positive development” for the industry, especially as other states work to create their own systems for regulating hemp.

A hemp bill in Texas, for example, passed out of committee on Tuesday without allowing smokeable hemp.

Smokeable hemp is a popular product in other countries, Hauser explained, and one that concerns law enforcement because of its likeness to marijuana. “There is still a lot of education happening with enforcement and regulators as to the difference,” she said. “We’re coming out of decades of hemp and marijuana being lumped together, which is why we haven’t been able to grow hemp in the United States for all these years.”

“It is important for hemp and hemp-derived products to be regulated and seen differently than marijuana,” she continued.

Not only are these plants different, but they have historically been consumed for different reasons. “A hemp cigarette and a marijuana cigarette are not used for the same purpose,” Hauser said.

With the right regulations in place—including those covering packaging and labelling—consumers and law enforcement will be better equipped to clearly distinguish between the two products, she said.

https://www.marijuanamoment.net/indiana-lawmakers-amend-hemp-bill-to-allow-smokeable-flower/

06Apr

Illinois Senate committee OKs pot legalization bill without releasing details

CANNABIS NEWS: GREENWEEDFARM.COM

Pritzker told Capitol News Illinois in a podcast interview last week that there will have to be new entrants into the market, as well as added licensing fees for existing growers.

Illinois Senate committee OKs pot legalization bill without releasing details, SPRINGFIELD —There are no details filed yet for a bill to legalize recreational adult-use marijuana in Illinois, but that did not stop the state Senate Executive Committee from voting on the measure Wednesday.

As it stands now, Senate Bill 7 is what is referred to as a “shell bill,” or a vehicle to be amended with substantial language in the future. The shell bill passed committee by a 12-4 vote, with all four Republicans present voting against.

“We’re going to be coming back to the committee with the full amendment,” said state Sen. Heather Steans, the bill’s sponsor. “Hopefully we’re going to file it by the end of April and we’re going to have plenty of time to hear it and debate it.”

The actual details of the bill are being negotiated privately by lawmakers, the governor’s office and cannabis industry advocates who say the existing medicinal growing market has the capacity to meet the initial demand of adult-use marijuana legalization.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s proposed fiscal year 2020 budget contains $170 million in projected revenue from legalization. His office has said that projection is entirely dependent on licensing fees, not tax revenue.

If those revenue projections are to be realized, fees for cultivation centers and dispensaries would have to be exponentially larger than those in the medicinal program or hundreds of new licenses would have to be granted.

Steans, a Chicago Democrat, has said the program could include additional licenses for processing and transportation of cannabis and for craft cultivation centers.

Pritzker told Capitol News Illinois in a podcast interview last week that there will have to be new entrants into the market, as well as added licensing fees for existing growers.

“Some of them will be new entrances, no doubt about it,” Pritzker said. “Some of them will be existing growers that want to get into the adult-use side of the business, but they’ll all have to pay a licensing fee to get into the business.”

But it is unclear how much those licenses would cost, how many would be granted, when they would be made available, or in which fiscal year the revenue resulting from them would be realized.

Pro-legalization lawmakers and Pritzker’s office have also said criminal justice reforms would be included in the package for those incarcerated for marijuana-related offenses.

“The legalization of adult-use cannabis will bring fairness into a criminal justice system that has been unfair in particular to people of color more often than to others,” Pritzker said.

Pritzker also said it will be important for the state to regulate potency and purity of cannabis, as it is already being purchased, potentially unsafely, on the black market in the state.