CCMA Political greenBrief
Thursday, October 4, 2018
www.cannabismanufacturers.org
When Canada Legalizes Marijuana On Oct. 17, It Will Join Uruguay As The Only Countries To Allow Recreational Cannabis Nationwide
“There’s definitely the concern of what’s going to happen over the next few years with cannabis here in California. If you look at Oregon and Washington and Colorado, prices have gone down pretty low, and for us to do the top-shelf quality product I want to do, I can’t be selling for $400 or $600 a pound or whatever – and (prices have) gone lower than that.”Walter Wood, Owner Of Sol Spirit Farm In Trinity County, On Cost Issues In The CA Cannabis Market
“This industry is driven by grass roots. There’s a very strong consumer demand for small farms that operate with certain values that align with the broader consumer market. There’s going to be a need in the supply chain that larger companies can provide.”Jonathan Vaught, Co–Founder And CEO Of Front Range Biosciences On Cannabis Supply Chains In CA
Veto Of Medical Marijuana Donation Bill Prompts Outcry (CA – Cannabis Legislation)
Santa Cruz Sentinel (October 2, 2018) A bill that had been hailed as a much-needed fix to California’s cannabis regulations was vetoed by Gov. Jerry Brown on Sunday, prompting outcry from advocates and promise from the bill’s author to continue pushing for the change. When recreational pot became legal in California in January, advocates warned the new rules overlooked the neediest medical marijuana users who had relied on donated cannabis from not-for-profit programs. Since Jan. 1, most of those programs have reportedly shut down, leaving medical marijuana users in limbo. In August, state lawmakers overwhelmingly approved SB 829, a bill carving out a path to allow cannabis to be donated to medical users tax free.
https://www.santacruzsentinel.
California Marijuana Growers Optimistic While Seeking Paths Around Slew Of Obstacles (CA – State Regulations)
Marijuana Business Daily (October 4, 2018) California’s cannabis cultivation market is a maze of farms that run the gamut from cottage growers with a few dozen plants to commercial-sized industrial operations. That also means the scope of business difficulties – and opportunities – are wide-ranging in the state’s newly regulated medical and recreational marijuana industries. Golden State growers have had to deal with a number of expensive and hard-to-navigate obstacles in 2018. Despite those hurdles, many California cultivators are optimistic about the future and believe they’ve positioned themselves to succeed. Still, many growers are wary: They’ve watched wholesale marijuana prices drop through the floor in markets such as Oregon and Colorado. And many growers are expected to exit the business.
California Implements Mandatory Purity Testing For Recreational Pot (CA – State Regulations)
Fox LA (October 3, 2018) Legal recreational marijuana must now be tested in California. Just like any other consumer product to make sure it’s safe before you smoke it or eat it. The state says it’s all about consumer protection. But as Phil Shuman found out a high percentage of weed is not passing the contamination test. It seems a little unusual, perhaps even contradictory, to ask if a drug is ”safe.” After all, the purpose of drugs in most cases is to alter something in your body. When it comes to recreational and now medical pot, the state of California has implemented mandatory testing to make sure your marijuana is free of any potential dangerous contaminants, such as pesticides or heavy metals typically found in soil.
SF To Launch Cannabis Oversight Committee To Monitor Industry (CA – Regulation Effectiveness)
SF Examiner (October 3, 2018) Ten months after San Francisco permitted retail sales of cannabis, officials are developing plans for a new committee to assess how the regulations are working. The Cannabis Oversight Committee, proposed by Supervisor Sandra Fewer, is intended to examine the work being done by the Office of Cannabis, gauge the effectiveness of existing regulations and make sure those hardest hit by the War of Drugs are benefiting through retail permits and living wage jobs. One of the more glaring issues is that The City has yet to approve permits for applicants impacted by the War on Drugs under the cannabis equity program established as part of The City’s recreational cannabis regulations, as the San Francisco Examiner previously reported.
http://www.sfexaminer.com/sf-l
California Governor Signs Bill Allowing Vets To Talk Cannabis Meds For Pets (CA – Medicinal Cannabis)
MG Retailer (October 2, 2018) California Governor Brown last Thursday signed Assembly Bill 2215, which will allow veterinarians to discuss cannabis-based medicines with pet owners, as of January 1, 2019. Veterinarians will not be allowed to dispense cannabis medications to furry or feathered patients, however. Veterinary cannabis-based tincture company VetCBD tweeted their support for the governor’s action. Dr. Tim Shu, founder of VetCBD, exhibited products at September’s CBD Expo West held in Anaheim, alongside many other CBD-infused lines that featured pet products, from tinctures to treats.
OpEd: If Cannabis Is Legal In California, Why Are So Many Minority Businesses Considered Illegal? (CA – Illicit Market)
On Me News (October 2, 2018) One of the great advantages of Proposition 64 – the 2016 ballot initiative that legalized adult use cannabis – was the idea that it could start to address the disproportionately negative impact of marijuana arrests among communities of color. This disparity is well documented. Just a few years ago, the American Civil Liberties Union reported that African Americans were nearly four times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession than whites, even though use of the drug was roughly equal among both populations. Prop 64 not only promised to reduce or expunge certain past convictions, it also presented employment opportunities in the newly legalized cannabis industry as a gateway to the middle class for many underserved communities.
Cannabis Capitalism: Who Is Making Money In The Marijuana Industry? (USA – Cannabis Industry)
The Guardian (October 3, 2018) Two hours north of San Francisco, in Mendocino county, orderly roadside vineyards give way to the rugged forests and misty coast of the Emerald Triangle, America’s most celebrated marijuana growing region. In June, more than 300 cannabis industry insiders gathered there for a weekend of bonfires, starlit hikes and river swims. It was a lovely setting to discuss why none of them seemed to be making money. Americans spend roughly $40b anually on legal and illegal marijuana. Their appetite is almost certain to increase as it becomes easier to legally access the drug and the industry continues to promote pot as compatible with a healthy adult life.
https://www.theguardian.com/so
15 Pro-Pot Congressmen Complain To Trump Admin. About Plan To Buy Canadian Cannabis (USA – Cannabis Imports)
CNS News (October 2, 2018) Fifteen U.S. congressmen sent a letter to U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Acting Administrator Uttam Dhillon expressing dismay at DEA’s plans to import Canadian marijuana. The letter also chides the Trump Administration for not approving the applications of addition marijuana manufacturers, despite its “Buy America” campaign. The letter urges the Trump Administration to set and reveal a plan for the approval of more domestic pot-producing plants, and offers to support those efforts. The letter was posted Monday on the Facebook page of Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.), whose signature, along with that of Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), tops the 15 signatures.
This Lab Raised $10 Million To Expand Cannabis And Hemp Cloning Production (USA – Cannabis Cultivation)
Forbes (October 4, 2018) Industrial scale production has dominated store shelves for decades. Now that formula is being adopted by the cannabis industry. For Front Range Biosciences (FRB), mass propagation of crops starts in the lab, where consumer cannabis is selectively cultivated and sold to licensed growers. Today, the agricultural biotech startup, which works with coffee strains and industrial hemp clones as well as tissue-culture cannabis, closed a Series A round of $10 million. Investors remain slow to put their money in marijuana while it remains illegal under federal law, even in states where it’s legalized for medical use, so it’s no surprise that FRB’s latest round is one of the largest biotech cannabis investments in the United States. The fresh cash influx will go toward expanding FRB’s trademarked Clean Stock program headquartered in Lafayette, Colorado. The program aims to produce quality-controlled curated cannabis plants in abundance.
Canada Is About To Legalize Marijuana. How Did That Happen? Justin Trudeau, For Starters (Canada – Legalization)
Los Angeles Times (October 4, 2018) Politicians herald it as transformative. Residents offer resounding support in the polls. Investors see billions of dollars on the horizon. When Canada legalizes marijuana on Oct. 17, it will join Uruguay as the only countries to allow recreational cannabis nationwide. The South American country became the first in 2013. The effort, years in the making, is unlike the piecemeal approaches to marijuana legalization that have been passed in the United States and the Netherlands. For pot proponents around the world, Canada’s implementation of legal marijuana is being closely watched.
http://www.latimes.com/world/l
What’s Happening With Cannabis Around The Globe? (World – Global Market)
Inlander (October 4, 2018) Canadian news outlets recently reported that seven cannabis producers from that country have set up shop in Colombia, investing over $100 million, according to company filings. It is worth noting that outside investors are ordered to give 10 percent of production to small farms and indigenous workers/groups. It remains to be seen how those demands will exactly be met, other than larger corporations bringing satellite farms to smaller towns deeper in remote locations. In Mexico, Secretary of Tourism Enrique de la Madrid Cordero suggested that cannabis should be legal in tourist resorts as a way to lessen the impact of drug violence. Citing Baja California Sur, a state with two of the largest resorts but also the second highest murder rate, Madrid believes that streamlining access to the drug could impact how the cartels operate.
https://www.inlander.com/spoka
5 Breakout Companies In The Global Cannabis Boom (World – Cannabis Investments)
Yahoo! Finance (October 1, 2018) Fall is here, and things are looking a lot…greener. That’s right. Weed is back. Interest in cannabis stocks is peaking again, and everyone is trying to get in on the action. Some weed stocks have risen by 30 percent or 40 percent. A few have shot up more than 300 percent in the last few months. The crucial date is October 17. That’s the day that cannabis will become fully legal in Canada…the first industrial economy to permit recreational cannabis use. Sales are expected to reach $5 billion almost immediately. And that’s just the beginning. Worldwide, legal cannabis sales could reach $57 billion by 2027. Some of the cannabis stocks out there are riding the wave. Others are creating it. It can be hard with talk of a bubble to tell which is which.
https://finance.yahoo.com/news
New Rulings On Medical Marijuana Use Go Against Employers (CT – Medicinal Cannabis)
My ND Now (October 2, 2018) Health care worker Katelin Noffsinger told a potential employer that she took medical marijuana to deal with the effects of a car accident, but when a drug test came back positive, the nursing home rescinded her job offer anyway. A federal judge last month ruled that the nursing home, which had cited federal laws against pot use, violated an anti-discrimination provision of the Connecticut’s medical marijuana law. It was the latest in a series of clashes between U.S. and state laws around the country that came out in favor of medical marijuana users trying to keep or obtain jobs with drug-testing employers. The Connecticut decision was the first ruling of its kind in a federal case and followed similar recent rulings against employers by state courts in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Earlier rulings had gone against medical pot users in employment cases by state supreme courts including those in California, Colorado, Oregon and Washington over the past few years.
https://www.myndnow.com/news/n
