CCMA Political greenBrief
Monday, September 17, 2018
www.cannabismanufacturers.org
A Cannabis Activist Displays A
“A delivery service isn’t a big truck with cannabis leaves painted all over it, ringing a bell and driving around the neighborhood like an ice cream truck looking for kids to sell to.”Weedmaps In A Statement Regarding The Anti-Delivery Movement Throughout California
“Along with many others in the beverage industry, we are closely watching the growth of non-psychoactive CBD as an ingredient in functional wellness beverages around the world. The space is evolving quickly. No decisions have been made at this time.”Coca-Cola Spokesman Kent Landers On Reaching Out To The Cannabis Market
California Pot Home Delivery: Police Chief Says ‘Robberies Are Tip Of The Iceberg’ As Marijuana Delivery Permits Expand (CA – Cannabis Accessibility)
Newsweek (September 17, 2018) Police in California fear that delivery vans transporting marijuana to homes will be a target for robbers and will lead to a spike in crime. The state is considering a proposal to allow the delivery of the drug in areas where marijuana retail stores are forbidden. It has been legal to buy cannabis in California since January 1. However, police are concerned that the vehicles and their contents would be prime targets for criminals. David Swing, president of the California Police Chiefs Association, told the Los Angeles Times, “This will make it easier and more lucrative to rob a delivery person than a liquor store.
Coca-Cola Is Eyeing The Cannabis Market (USA – Cannabis Investments)
Bloomberg (September 17, 2018) Aurora Cannabis Inc. led pot stocks higher after Coca-Cola Co. said it’s eyeing the cannabis drinks market, becoming the latest beverage company to tap into surging demand for marijuana products as traditional sales slow. Coca-Cola says it’s monitoring the nascent industry and is interested in drinks infused with CBD — the non-psychoactive ingredient in marijuana that treats pain but doesn’t get you high. The Atlanta-based soft drinks maker is in talks with Canadian marijuana producer Aurora Cannabis to develop the beverages, according to a report from BNN Bloomberg Television.
Lawmaker Presses Trump Official On Banning Canadians From US For Marijuana (USA – Cannabis Policy)
Marijuana Moment (September 16, 2018) In the wake of reports that the U.S. federal government plans to apply lifetime visitation bans on Canadians who use marijuana as well as those who work for or even just invest in cannabis businesses, a member of Congress is pressing the Trump administration for details on how it plans to enforce that policy. “We are concerned DHS is unnecessarily and disproportionally penalizing noncitizens who are engaged in lawful business activities,” reads a draft letter obtained by Marijuana Moment that Rep. Lou Correa (D-CA) will send to Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen on Monday. The congressman’s letter comes just days after a senior U.S. Customs and Border Protection told Politico that “facilitating the proliferation of the legal marijuana industry in U.S. states where it is deemed legal or Canada may affect an individual’s admissibility to the U.S.”
Washington DC’s Budding Market For Legal Pot Is Rife With Potential Pitfalls — Here’s What You Need To Know (USA – Cannabis Market)
CNBC (September 15, 2018) It’s been nearly four years since Washington, D.C., citizens overwhelmingly passed Initiative 71, granting all citizens over the age of 21 permission to possess up to two ounces of marijuana. The law allows district residents to use and grow pot on private property, and to exchange weed as long as no money, goods or services are exchanged. The nation’s capital now has a market full of “ganjapreneurs,” who navigate a unique ecosystem that’s unlike any other legal weed market. DC’s pot laws don’t allow users to purchase marijuana in a traditional buyer-seller interaction. Instead, they allow someone to buy another item, good or service — and then receive a free marijuana product that’s “gifted” or donated by the vendor, instead of being sold. Some gifting interactions have featured things like stickers, single ticket raffles, shirts, cups, music and even motivational speeches.
https://www.cnbc.com/2018/09/1
The Federal Government Must Stop Stifling Medical Marijuana Research (USA – Cannabis Research)
The Hill (September 14, 2018) In June, for the first time, The Food and Drug Administration approved a plant-derived medicine from marijuana. The prescription drug, known as Epidiolex, contains a proprietary formulation of cannabis’ organic compounds — primarily cannabidiol (CBD) —for the treatment of severe seizure disorders. The British pharmaceutical company — the manufacturer of the drug — a has long been licensed by the U.K. government to privately grow strains of cannabis for the purpose of drug development. But no such avenue currently exists for marijuana-based drug development in the United States. That is because, unlike in Great Britain (and in various other countries, like Canada and Israel), neither privately grown cannabis nor products derived from privately grown cannabis may be administered to subjects in the course of an FDA-approved clinical trial. This also includes those manufactured by state-licensed and compliant manufacturers
House Judiciary Committee Orders Jeff Sessions To Stop Obstructing Marijuana Research (USA – Cannabis Research)
Civilized (September 14, 2018) Two years after the Drug Enforcement Agency announced its plans to expand the number of licenses they give out to grow marijuana for research purposes, Congress is now demanding Attorney General Jeff Sessions stop obstructing the process. The House Judiciary Committee passed the Medical Cannabis Research Act, a bill that requires the DEA to expand the number of marijuana producers for research purposes from one to three. The bill would also demand Sessions and the DEA choose the new producers in one year. Sessions has interfered with the process of choosing new marijuana producers for the DEA, preventing the agency from actually giving out any new licenses. He’s repeatedly said he would complete the process in the future, but has failed to do so.
https://www.civilized.life/art
Hemp CBD v. Medical Marijuana (USA – Cannabis Industry)
Daytona Beach News-Journal (September 17, 2018) At just 6 years old, Zoe Adams’ body rocks with seizures, sleep problems and hyperactivity thanks to a diagnosis of Sanfilippo syndrome. Even though it’s incurable, her parents found an over the counter supplement that helps to alleviate their daughter’s symptoms – including the seizures. Hemp cannabidiol oil, commonly referred to as CBD. “The first time we put her on it, she slept all night,” said mother Kim Adams. Zoe’s movements become less hyperactive because she was able to get much needed sleep. “Her heart and brain were resting because of the CBD oil.” What tends to trip many consumers up is how hemp CBD oil is different than medical marijuana. The main difference between the two is hemp CBD oil contains trace amounts or no THC – the part of the marijuana plant that causes the high feeling – while medical marijuana has notable amounts of THC.
http://www.news-journalonline.
U.S. Buyers Could Push Canadian Cannabis Stocks Even Higher (USA – Cannabis Investments)
Smallcap Power (September 17, 2018) If recent inflows into a U.S.-listed ETF that tracks Canadian marijuana stocks is any indication, Canada’s pot-stock rally could accelerate further. According to Bloomberg, the ETFMG Alternative Harvest ETF, with the ticker MJ, has taken in about $22 million in August, putting it on track for the largest monthly inflow since February. And, MJ has attracted $56 million in new net investment money in a recent two-week period, bringing the ETF’s assets under management to just less than $500 million, with much of that money being invested into Canadian cannabis stocks.
https://smallcappower.com/expe
Most Canadians Confused Where To Obtain Cannabis, Post-Legalization (Canada – Cannabis Accessibility)
Ottawa Matters (September 17, 2018) With exactly one month until recreational marijuana will become legal in Canada, a new survey shows the majority of Canadians don’t know how to buy cannabis, despite being more likely to use it. The cannabis data and education company Lift & Co. surveyed more than 1,500 Canadians, and found 58 per cent of respondents did not know where to buy cannabis legally on October 17. The survey found Ontario and Manitoba respondents were the least aware of where to buy, at 60 per cent and 73 per cent respectively.
Cash Runs To Quality In This Growing $1.5 Billion Cannabis Niche (Canada – Cannabis Market)
Money Morning (September 17, 2018) Every investor should understand how the market for cannabis is developing – now and over the coming weeks, months, and years. Choosing the companies best positioned to profit in the emerging market helps you gain an edge over those who simply “throw darts at a list of stocks” and pick cannabis companies without regard to industry realities. But as legalization becomes more widespread throughout the United States and across the whole of Canada investors still face questions about what the realities of a mature cannabis market might be.
https://moneymorning.com/2018/
Cannabis Sales Booming In A State That ‘Knows How To Regulate Vice’ (NV – Cannabis Sales)
Forbes (September 17, 2018) Nevada cannabis sales have been booming. “Every month we are setting some kind of new record whether its number of visitors, product sales, or something else,” said Brandon Wiegand, Director of Operations at The+Source which operates two dispensaries in Nevada. Nevada announced recently that its dispensaries sold nearly $425 million worth of recreational marijuana and contributed $70 million in tax revenue in its first full year of recreational sales. This exceeded the state’s revenue expectations of $265 million. The roll-out has been smooth because “Nevada knows how to regulate vice,” Wiegland said. “The government is good at providing the security and rules the public desires while still allowing business to thrive.” The Nevada state government has already created systems for gambling, liquor and prostitution he said, so adding cannabis wasn’t a problem.
