CCMA Political greenBrief
Thursday, September 20, 2018
www.cannabismanufacturers.org
Brendan Kennedy, CEO Of Tilray, Which Has Seen Its Shares Soar Nearly 800 Per Cent Since It Debuted In Public Trading In July
“Someone who’s applying for an annual license, they have to have full local authorization before the state can issue an annual license to them, and the local jurisdictions are not ready to do that. It’s taking way longer than anyone anticipated.”Los Angeles Attorney Nicole Neubert On The Process Of Obtaining A Cultivation License In CA
“It’s a really big milestone for Tilray and also just for the whole industry. Researchers in the U.S. have really been limited to doing research using dried flower. We have been able to prove to the FDA that we can manufacture investigational study drugs containing cannabinoids that meet their standards.”Catherine Jacobson, Director Of Clinical Research For Tilray, On U.S. Cannabis Research
California Marijuana Notebook: Seeking Permanent Relief From Licensing Headaches (CA – Cannabusiness)
Marijuana Business Daily (September 20, 2018) Obtaining business licenses has been a top challenge for California cannabis companies this year. But now – in a situation that underscores the ongoing flux in the Golden State’s marijuana market – keeping those licenses has become a priority since much of California’s cannabis industry could come to a halt next spring without action from the governor. That’s because temporary licenses – which the industry has been operating under this year – are forbidden under state law from being extended after Dec. 31. The problem: There’s an enormous backlog of local applications that need to be processed before full annual licenses can be awarded up and down the supply chain.
California Scientists Bypass Ole Miss Marijuana Fields For Canadian Weed (CA – Cannabis Research)
Clarion Ledger (September 20, 2018) In a rare move, the U.S. government has approved the importation of marijuana extracts from Canada for a clinical trial, highlighting a new avenue for American researchers who have long had trouble obtaining the drug for medical studies. The University of California San Diego’s Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research announced Tuesday the Drug Enforcement Administration has OK’d its plans to import capsules containing two key cannabis compounds — CBD and THC — from British Columbia-based Tilray Inc . to study their effectiveness in treating tremors that afflict millions of people, especially those over 65.
California Cannabis Real Estate Fund Raises And Deploys Initial $25 Million (CA – Cannabis Investments)
New Cannabis Ventures (September 18, 2018) Pelorus Equity Group, a Newport Beach California Real Estate investment group has announced the launch of The Pelorus Fund, a $100M structured Commercial Real Estate Fund [AS1]for the Cannabis industry. The Pelorus Fund actively targets real estate-based financing opportunities with properly licensed and established cannabis businesses that have the required state and local operating licenses and permits. This fund comes on the heels of Pelorus closing a $25M round of initial funding of which 100% of the capital has been deployed into 13 Cannabis real estate projects throughout California.
Canadian Cannabis Firm Captor Pays $6M To Acquire A Fourth California Dispensary (CA – Cannabis Cultivation)
Marijuana Business Daily (September 19, 2018) Captor Capital, a vertically integrated Canadian marijuana company, acquired Chai Cannabis, a medical and recreational cannabis store in Santa Cruz, California, for roughly $6 million. The acquisition adds a fourth California retail shop to Captor’s investment portfolio, which includes two MedMen-branded dispensaries, according to a news release. Chai also possesses a license permitting cannabis delivery in the greater Santa Cruz area on the central California coast. Chai opened as a medical dispensary in 2014 and posted unaudited revenues of $8.4 million in 2017. Captor said the acquisition “is expected to materially increase” its total revenue from retail cannabis investments.
Now That Recreational Marijuana Is Legal, What Should Advertising Look Like? (CA – Cannabis Advertising)
KCRW (September 18, 2018) Just east of West Hollywood, right before the iconic Sunset Strip, a MedMen billboard looms over pedestrians and al fresco diners eating burgers at nearby cafe. The billboard features a man, likely in his late 20s or early 30s (it’s hard to tell, because you just see his body, not his head) holding one of MedMen’s red shopping bags in his tattoo-covered arm. Behind him, the Roxy Theatre’s pink neon sign glows in the background. Overlaying the image is the word “cannabis” in big, bold, white letters. It’s not hard to find cannabis billboards around L.A.. They’re in some of the city’s mostly in heavily trafficked areas: near the airport, along Santa Monica and Sunset boulevards and near Venice Beach. However, cannabis companies don’t have free rein to advertise wherever and however they want.
https://curious.kcrw.com/2018/
Congressman Wants Feds To ‘Buy American’ Marijuana Instead Of Importing From Canada (USA – Cannabis Policy)
Marijuana Moment (September 19, 2018) The U.S. federal government surprised many observers of marijuana policy earlier this week when it approved a deal to import cannabis products from Canadian company Tilray Inc. for use in a research study. While the move sent Tilray’s stock soaring, at least one congressman is questioning the move. “Unbelievable,” Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) tweeted on Wednesday. “DEA gives approval to import cannabis compounds from Canada, while AG Sessions is sitting on 2 dozen+ applications from domestic manufacturers.” The congressman, a key ally of President Trump, was referring to the fact that the Department of Justice has refused to act on more than two dozen pending license applications to grow marijuana in the U.S. to be used in scientific studies.
Marijuana Merchants, Growers Squirm As State Gets Into Seed-To-Sale Tracking System (CA – Cannabis Market)
Orange County Register (September 19, 2018) California soon will have one of the world’s most tightly-regulated marijuana markets, with a digital tracking system that will follow every plant legally grown and sold in the state. Many licensed marijuana business owners are applauding the so-called “seed-to-sale” tracking system, slated to go online in a few weeks, as a way to cut down on competition from the state’s still-massive black market. But many also say a lack of information about how the new system will work — and the abrupt shift from what has been a fairly lax attitude about tracking product — is causing chaos in a fledgling industry that’s reeling from hefty new taxes and regulations.
Aurora Cannabis Planning US Stock Listing Next Month (USA – Cannabis Investments)
CNBC (September 20, 2018) The frenzy for pot stocks may expand in October as another Canadian company plans to be dual-listed. Aurora Cannabis said it is planning to list its shares on a major U.S. stock exchange next month. “Aurora is targeting the month of October to establish a U.S. listing,” a company spokesperson said in an email to CNBC Thursday. The news was first reported by the Financial Post on Tuesday. Aurora’s chief corporate officer Cam Battley told the media outlet a new listing will expand the potential investor base for the company to include U.S. institutional investors. Aurora is currently listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange. A U.S. dual listing for Aurora would follow Canadian marijuana company Tilray’s successful July IPO on the Nasdaq.
Nanaimo Pot Producer’s Stock Skyrockets After CEO’s Interview With Bloomberg (Canada – Cannabis Investments)
Straight (September 18, 2018) Every day, it seems things are going haywire with Canadian cannabis stocks. Yesterday, the big winner was Aurora Cannabis, which jumped 16.86 percent on news it was in discussions with Coca-Cola about CBD-infused beverages. Today, it was Tilray’s turn. The Nanaimo-based licensed producer is up nearly 30 percent after CEO Brendan Kennedy told Bloomberg that he’s hoping to lead a $100-billion company. The company also benefited from a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration decision. Tilray has become the first Canadian company to receive permission to ship its medicinal cannabis to the United States to be used in a clinical trial.
Tilray, The World’s Most Valuable Pot Company, Envisions $100 Billion Future (Canada – Cannabis Investments)
Financial Post (September 18, 2018) Tilray Inc., the cannabis company that has seen its valuation double since the beginning of the month, could become a US$100 billion company, according to its chief executive officer, as the regulations surrounding marijuana continue to ease across the globe. Tilray is interested in the burgeoning market for consumer products that use ingredients from marijuana, CEO Brendan Kennedy said in an interview in New York Tuesday. “We’ve had lots of conversations with lots of companies,” he said, though he declined to provide specific details about any potential partnerships.
Canopy Venture Gyrates In Trading Debut As Cannabis Shares Churn (Canada – Cannabis Investments)
Bloomberg (September 19, 2018) The venture capital arm of one of the world’s largest marijuana companies swung wildly in its trading debut as the investor frenzy over the nascent sector continued unabated. Canopy Rivers Corp. traded around C$9 a share at 11:13 in Toronto, down about 16 percent from its C$10.75 opening price in Toronto Thursday, and giving it a market value of C$1.54 billion ($1.2 billion). The company was spun out from Canopy Growth Corp. and completed a C$104 million private placement offering in July. Its shares began trading on Canada’s TSX Venture Exchange through a reverse takeover under the symbol RIV. Its shares rose to as much as C$11.82 a piece and fell to as low as C$7.50.
Too Much Marijuana: Oregon Growers Want To Sell Excess Pot To Other States (OR – Cannabis Cultivation)
Merry Jane (September 19, 2018) Oregon’s recreational cannabis industry has proved to be too much of a good thing for local pot farmers, who have grown a supply of legal weed that vastly exceeds the state’s demand. The Oregon Liquor Control Commission (OLCC), which tracks every cannabis plant grown in the state from seed to sale, has reported that the amount of marijuana that local farmers have produced so far this year is already triple the amount consumed last year. That problem is soon to get worse, as cultivators harvest their next crop of weed next month, which could double the existing inventory.
https://merryjane.com/news/too
Marijuana Museum Opens In Las Vegas To Celebrate All Things Cannabis (NV – Cannabis Activities)
TIME (September 20, 2018) A glass bong taller than a giraffe. Huggable faux marijuana buds. A pool full of foam weed nuggets. Las Vegas’ newest attraction — and Instagram backdrop — is a museum celebrating all things cannabis. Nobody will be allowed to light up at Cannabition when it opens Thursday because of a Nevada ban on public consumption of marijuana, but visitors can learn about the drug as they snap photos. It’s a made-for-social-media museum where every exhibit has lights meant to ensure people take selfies worthy of the no-filter hashtag. The facility — whose founder says has a goal of destigmatizing marijuana use — will likely land among the talking points officials and others use to try to draw gambling-resistant millennials to Sin City.
http://time.com/5401565/las-ve
What Massachusetts Should Learn From California’s Marijuana Policy Struggles (MA – State Legalization)
Mass Live (September 18, 2018) On August 23, Massachusetts finally approved the licenses for two marijuana testing labs after two additional months of waiting, inching the recreational sale of marijuana in the Bay State closer to a reality. As legal marijuana retail nears in Massachusetts, lawmakers would do well to look at early studies from California, where the sale of marijuana has been legal since 2016. Despite the trade’s legalization, there has been a marked decline in marijuana use among teenagers. However, high excise tax rates and tight licensing regulations in California have produced a persistent black market in the state. In order to put a precursory halt to any black market activity in its own burgeoning market, Massachusetts must avoid over-taxing and over-regulating marijuana businesses.
https://www.masslive.com/opini
