NBC Bay Area (June 25, 2018) Northern California pot farmers spent decades turning the Emerald Triangle into the cannabis industry’s most rock-solid brand. But just six months into California’s legal weed foray, it’s clear that growers and governments along the state’s Central Coast are making an aggressive push to crown themselves a new pot powerhouse. According to data from the California Department of Food and Agriculture, many of those Central Coast cultivators are taking advantage of a regulatory loophole that small farmers – mostly in the Emerald Triangle – say could lead to a big business takeover of the industry.

Marijuana.com (June 25, 2018) California lawmakers prepare for a week chock full of cannabis legislation. The Legislature will hear bills affecting cannabis event licensing, veterinary services and cannabis licensing equity. These and many more are the bills on the legislative calendar in California for the week of June 25, 2018.

The Leaf Online (June 25, 2018) Things are about to change again in California, and this time many medical marijuana and adult users have one last opportunity to stock up as retailers brace for a July 1 deadline that could force them to destroy hundreds of pounds of high-grade cannabis inventory. Nobody wants that. Efforts to allow the unsold stockpile to be provided to low-income medical marijuana patients have not panned out and time is fast running out for that opportunity.

The Union (June 25, 2018) A new cannabis ordinance for Nevada County could take until March before the Board of Supervisors votes on it, the county’s planning director said Monday. Superiors at their regular meeting today will consider hiring Kimley-Horn and Associates Inc. — a North Carolina-based consultant recommended by a county panel — to complete an environmental impact report county officials say is necessary for the new ordinance.

Complex (June 25, 2018) The Food and Drug Administration has approved the first-ever cannabis-based prescription medication. The oral drug Epidiolex is intended for patients to treat two rare, and severe forms of epilepsy—Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and Dravet syndrome. Epidiolex contains cannabidiol, one of the chemicals found in marijuana, however, it will not produce a high that is commonly seen in THC.

USA Today (June 26, 2018) The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the use of a drug derived from marijuana for the first time Monday, giving the go ahead to treat two rare forms of epilepsy with the compound cannabidiol, also known as CBD, found in hemp and marijuana. Epidiolex, a form of cannabidiol, will be legally used to treat Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and Dravet syndrome, two serious and rare kinds of epilepsy.

CBS Sacramento (June 25, 2018) The US Food and Drug Administration approved a cannabis-based drug for the first time, the agency said Monday. The US Food and Drug Administration approved a cannabis-based drug for the first time, the agency said Monday. The twice-daily oral solution is approved for use in patients 2 and older to treat two types of epileptic syndromes: Dravet syndrome, a rare genetic dysfunction of the brain that begins in the first year of life, and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, a form of epilepsy with multiple types of seizures that begin in early childhood, usually between 3 and 5.

Marijuana Moment (June 25, 2018) U.S. military veterans would be allowed to receive recommendations for medical marijuana from government doctors under legislation approved by the Senate on Monday. The provision, part of large-scale legislation to fund parts of the federal government including the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) through Fiscal Year 2019, would also protect veterans from losing their government benefits as a result of cannabis use that is legal under state law.

Boston Globe (June 26, 2018)  When Bernadette Coughlin stumbled and fell in the kitchen at Holy Family Hospital in Methuen last month, she thought the only real damage was to her pride. But that clumsy stumble toward the end of her shift cost her a lot more: two broken bones and, eventually, her job. In a state where recreational marijuana use is now perfectly legal, firing someone for using on their own time and in a way that has no effect on their work is deeply unfair.

Leafly (June 25, 2018) Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia and accounts for approximately 30 million cases worldwide. Because of the increasing global life expectancy, this prevalence is expected to nearly quadruple by 2050. With these numbers on the rise, researchers are looking for novel approaches to prevent and treat the disease—and cannabis is among those being considered. But how far has research come in proving its utility?

The Blast (June 26, 2018) The Game is being roped into a multi-million dollar lawsuit over a cryptocurrency company that promised to revolutionize the cannabis industry, only to find out the company was allegedly blowing smoke about their intentions with marijuana. According to court documents obtained by The Blast, The Game was added to a class-action lawsuit over his role in a crypto business named ParagonCoins, which claimed to be looking to transform the cannabis industry.

Herb (June 25, 2018) It feels like a new cannabis study comes out every week, nowadays, alternatively praising cannabis as the cure for everything or warning us that it’s going to cause a pancreatic cancer epidemic in dogs. And even as someone who literally works full-time to keep track of it all, it often feels like being a dog at a tennis match. By far the most frustrating thing about the spotty science, however, is seeing how willing some people are to massage cannabis studies for their own ends.

Green Camp (June 25, 2018) As of October 17, you — a proud Canadian — will be able to walk across the street and buy cannabis from a store. When you go inside, a completely new universe will open up to you and you’ll be able to consult an Agent Smith lookalike of a budtender, and they will suggest some strains. Then, you’ll buy weed produced by an ACMPR licensed producer and, in doing so, you’ll help Canada destroy the black market once and for all.

New York Times (June 25, 2018) The political rise of Colorado’s cannabis industry is, in essence, the story of Garrett Hause’s alfalfa farm. Mr. Hause, a broad-shouldered, 25-year-old horticulturist who tills his family’s land in the shadow of the snow-capped Rocky Mountains, said he was never particularly interested in politics — that is, until voters legalized cannabis in 2012. He started familiarizing himself with the stringent state regulations that govern the industry.