ScottsMiracle-Gro Co. has created a new subsidiary—the Hawthorne Collective—to invest in the legal cannabis industry and announced a $150 million loan to Toronto, Canada-based RIV Capital, a cannabis investment and acquisition firm listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
The loan is a six-year convertible note which accrues 2.03% interest annually for the first two years and includes follow-on investment rights. Upon conversion, ScottsMiracle-Gro would own about 42% of the RIV.
Jim Hagedorn, chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) for ScottsMiracle-Gro, said the addition of Hawthorne Collective allows the company “to explore and pursue new opportunities in an industry that is poised for significant growth in the years ahead.”
“By making a minority, non-equity investment in RIV Capital, this initial transaction will have little near-term impact on our financial performance. While this approach means we will employ capital that won’t be available for near-term investments with a more immediate return, we are confident our partners at RIV Capital and our long-term approach ultimately will drive meaningful value for our shareholders.”— Hagedorn in a press release
With the investment, RIV said it now has about $319 million in available capital, at current exchange rates. Narbé Alexandrian, president and CEO for RIV, said the investment “opens opportunities for considerable value creation and growth” for the firm.
“With ScottsMiracle-Gro’s strong track record, reputation, and brand awareness, we can build upon lessons learned in both the Canadian and U.S. cannabis markets, and leverage their insights to optimize our acquisition and investment strategy,” he said in a statement.
The Hawthrone Collective will also have the right to nominate up to three members to RIV’s board of directors, which will be increased to seven. Neither the Hawthorne Collective nor ScottsMiracle-Gro will have an active day-to-day role in RIV nor the companies in which it invests.
The Wyoming secretary of state has certified the sponsor signatures for a medical cannabis initiative, allowing the campaign to begin the process of getting the issue on 2022 ballots, Fox13 reports. Supporters needed just 100 sponsor signatures but provided 250.
The initiative is backed by the state’s Libertarian Party which can now begin the process of gathering signatures from the state’s registered voters. In all, the campaign needs 41,776 signatures to put the issue to voters. The initiative would legalize medical cannabis, and another being circulated by advocates would decriminalize cannabis for personal use in Wyoming.
The medical cannabis initiative also allows for home-growing by patients.
The Libertarian Party is being joined on the campaign by the cannabis legalization advocacy organization Together for Responsible Use and Cannabis Education (TRUCE) whose President and founder Christine Stenquist said is “excited to begin the signature-gathering process to let everyone in Wyoming have a voice.”
“The Wyoming advocates behind this effort have worked very hard to draft initiatives that will work for the people of Wyoming.”— Stenquist, in a statement, via Fox13
The ballot initiative campaign comes as state lawmakers have so far failed to pass a medical cannabis bill. Stenquist said she is “not going to leave it up to legislators” as the group did in her home state of Utah. She added that the fight in Wyoming wouldn’t be the “same fight” as in Utah, noting the staunch opposition to the reforms by the Latter day Saints Church.
A 2016 ballot initiative in Wyoming was opposed by law enforcement groups and the Wyoming Medical Association.
Included in the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill passed by the Senate on Tuesday are provisions that would allow researchers to study the actual cannabis being purchased at state-approved dispensaries instead of having to use the low-grade cannabis grown at government facilities, Marijuana Moment reports.
The bill included in the spending package also directs the secretary of transportation to work with the attorney general and Department of Health and Human Services to publish a report within two years on how to advance scientific research into cannabis impairment while driving, even if the researchers are in states where cannabis remains prohibited. That report must also advise lawmakers on how to set up “a national clearinghouse to collect and distribute samples and strains of marijuana for scientific research that includes marijuana and products containing marijuana lawfully available to patients or consumers in a state on a retail basis.”
The infrastructure bill still needs to be approved by the House where it could face hurdles in the form of progressive Democrats who have said they wouldn’t support the proposal until the Senate passes a separate $3.5 trillion bill that focuses on poverty, climate change, and health care policy, CNBC reports.
The cannabis language is included in a House-passed infrastructure measure, so it is likely, were the chambers to have to reconcile the two proposals, the cannabis provisions would remain in the final version.
A cannabis legalization bill has been introduced in Wisconsin for the fifth consecutive legislative session despite previous versions of the bill never receiving a hearing by either the House or Senate, the Wisconsin Examiner reports. Democratic state Sen. Melissa Agard announced the bill in front of a dispensary in South Beloit, Illinois, which is right across the Wisconsin border.
“We know that Wisconsin is ready for legalization—past ready for legalization—it is time for Wisconsin to do what we need to do—to realize that prohibition has failed our state and it is past time to get this done for our community. Legalizing and taxing cannabis in Wisconsin, just like we already do with alcohol, ensures the controlled safe market for our community. Legalizing cannabis ensures there are safe products available to our friends, family, and neighbors.”— Agard during a press conference
Democratic Gov. Tony Evers had included the reforms in his 2021 executive budget; however, they were not included in the budget passed by lawmakers as Republican leaders who called legalization part of “a liberal wish list.”
The proposal would allow cannabis sales to adults 21-and-older, allow possession of up to 2 ounces by adults, and legalize the cultivation of up to six plants. Half of the tax revenues derived from the cannabis market would be earmarked for “underserved communities and communities wronged by” prohibition, Agard said during the press conference.
Agard also noted that Wisconsin—which is bordered by Illinois and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula—is “losing out on millions of dollars and family-sustaining jobs to our neighboring states.” Evers last year admitted he was “tired” of Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) thanking him for the Wisconsin residents who cross the border to buy cannabis which leads to additional tax dollars for the state.
“We are losing money that we could be reinvesting to help support our friends and neighbors and make our state a place where people want to live, work, play, raise a family and plant their roots,” Agard said during her remarks.
The Wisconsin Senate’s top Republican, Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu, said in April that he would not support any cannabis reforms in the state without federal action. He added that there is not enough support among the state’s Republican caucus for the legalization of either medical or recreational cannabis.
Cannabis sales in Maine set yet another record last month and more than doubled the growth pace, MaineBiz reports. Adult-use cannabis sales in July reached $9.43 million on 124,000 purchases—a 45% increase from June’s previous $6.47 million record.
The sales equate to $943,480 in taxes for state coffers. So far this year, more than $38.6 million of adult-use cannabis has been sold in the state which has led to $3.8 million in tax revenues.
Maine Office of Marijuana Policy (OMP) Spokesman David Heidrich told Mainebiz that “the Independence Day holiday and summer tourism have all contributed to the robust sales growth witnessed in July.”
“These numbers demonstrate that, as access improves, more consumers are choosing the tested, tracked, and well-regulated market over a longstanding illicit market.” — Heidrich to MaineBiz
This is the first year of adult-use cannabis sales in the state, despite voters approving the reforms in 2016. The launch of the market was delayed first by governor vetoes of the implementation bill and then the coronavirus pandemic.
Maine’s first month of sales in October 2020 was about $1.4 million with only six active licensees, according to OMP data outlined by MaineBiz. June’s record sales of $5.36 million were up about 21% from May, while May sales were up 23% from the previous month, the report says.
Currently, there are 43 licensed facilities actively cultivating cannabis and another 183 facilities in-process. There are 23 active manufacturing licenses, with 76 in-process.
Editor’s note: A previous headline for this article incorrectly stated that Maine cannabis sales had doubled to set the July record but it was cannabis sales growth in the state, not the sales themselves, that doubled.
The Paiute Tribe of Utah is considering a move into the medical cannabis business, Salt Lake City Fox 13 reports. The tribe expressed interest in the venture in a private meeting with Republican Gov. Spencer Cox to discuss how the state and tribes could work together.
In the Fox 13 interview, Tribal Chair Corrina Bow said the effort could help tribal members who need medical cannabis for health issues and act as an economic boost to the largely rural tribe.
“I think it would be good because we also have some of our elders that actually have been having to go out of state to get this. It would be a great opportunity for a lot of them. A lot of them are in rural areas which need it.”— Bow to Fox 13
Tribal Leader Tamra Borchardt-Slayton said the effort may range from “growing, to cultivation sites, to possibly having stores.” She points to the Nevada Las Vegas Paiute Tribe which operates a 16,000 square foot dispensary in southern Nevada, despite cannabis remaining illegal on the federal level.
“That relationship is working,” she said. “Their tribe is flourishing based on the economic revenue that is coming in. Because of that, [the tribe is] able to offer more programs.”
The Governor’s Office did not comment further on the tribe’s interest and Bow told Fox 13 she was “not really sure” how the governor responded.
Cannabis extracts lovers often gear towards solventless extraction methods because these products get straight to the flavor with it. Solventless is the closest extract to the plant — it offers the freshest and purest profile possible.
Let’s talk about solventless extraction and the types of cannabis products that came from it.
What is solventless extraction?
Cannabis concentrates and/or extracts both describe the oil form of the plant — it’s like ‘tomato, tomahto’ but for highly potent cannabis products. To get an extract, you have to go through an extraction process that separates the cannabis crystals from the plant. Those crystals are called trichomes and they house the majority of the cannabinoids, terpenes, flavonoids, and everything else that matters when we experience the effects of cannabis. The anxiety benefits, the insomnia benefits, the anti-inflammatory benefits are primarily housed inside those milky little trichomes.
But many of the extracts on the market use solvents like butane, propane, and carbon dioxide to extract these trichomes from the plant and create the oil that comes from them. These products ultimately have their solvents removed and are safe for consumption but in that extraction, a little bit of taste may be lost/distorted. Also, it’s never a full guarantee that all the solvent has been removed from such a product. But in solventless extraction, manufacturers only use natural substances — i.e air, heat, water, and ice — to separate the trichomes from their plant. They are considered to be superior to solvent-based products by many cannabis consumers, though cannabis is of course all about personal preference.
What do solventless products look like?
The three most common forms of solventless concentrates include cannabis rosin, dry sift (or kief), and ice water hash.
Dry sift/kief
Kief — also called dry sift because it can be sifted from dry herbs — is as pure as cannabis trichomes can come. The dust at the bottom of your grinder is literally just weed dust ready to be sprinkled into a bowl to give your flower some extra umph (or to be pressed up into some rosin). To make a dry sift in an industrial setting, buds are run across a mesh screen or a kief box to separate the trichomes from plant matter. This allows you to rack up kief in a matter of minutes. A quick tip, if you’d like to get more kief fall-off into your grinder’s kief chamber, add a coin inside the flower chamber. After grinding your buds, shake the coin with the flower and the agitation will leave you with bundles of golden weed dust that can increase the potency of any cannabis product.
Ice water hash
Ice water hash is a hash that only uses ice and water to separate trichomes from them. The trichomes are broken away from the buds by shaking them in the ice water then pouring the mixture through microscreens, after which they are separated into hash bags. Ice water hash is also commonly referred to as bubble hash because it tends to bubbles when you put heat to it.
Rosin
Rosin is made through the combined application of heat and pressure. Rosin is a gooey type of wax that can be made by using a specialized rosin press or even a hair straightener. Essentially, it’s a bunch of trichomes exploding at once. You can make rosin from both kief and flower. With a rosin press, the flower goes between parchment paper and the press’s plates heat and squeeze the product until the trichomes explode and oil oozes out. Then, you scrape it all together, and bam — you’ve got some solventless dabs.
Note that while the above solventless options are the most frequently encountered by cannabis consumers, some specialist operators have combined the processes to create a product called live rosin — which is when high-quality cannabis is fresh-frozen, turned into an ice water hash (or dry sift), and then processed through a rosin press. This preserves the most amount of flavor and terpenes which, for many aficionados, make live rosin dabs the absolute pinnacle of cannabis concentrates.
Why are solventless options so popular?
People buy solventless extracts for three main reasons: purity, flavor, and experience.
Purity
Some people are just super big about their weed being as completely untouched by chemicals as possible. They want their weed to be pesticide-free and they want their weed to be solvent-free, too. Even with solvent-based extracts having all of the carbon dioxide or butane removed, the real heads that pursue the most natural experience lean towards solventless extracts. It isn’t without a cost though. Solventless dabs and vape pens are typically the priciest of oils.
Flavor
Cannabis trichomes house nearly all of the terpenes and flavonoids found in cannabis. So if you want the most natural flavor, you’d gear towards the purest, most-untouched trichomes possible. That’s why the flavor chasers in weed run right to solventless extracts. Even the ice water hash just makes the buds so cold that trichomes fall right off like little ice balls of skunky goodness.
Experience
Lastly, the experience is why people love solventless extracts. That purity in cannabinoids and terpenes leads to a highly potent, high-quality experience. Between the safety in consumption, the flavor you get in the oil, and the fact that you know you’re getting a potent high, it’s easy to see why consumers seek out solventless extracts over the alternative.
Cannabis technology company Leafly Holdings Inc. announced on Monday plans to go public via a reverse takeover with Merida Merger Corp. Once finalized Leafly will trade on the NASDAQ under the “LFLY” symbol.
The transaction values the combined company at a fully diluted enterprise value of about $385 million and equity value of approximately $532 million, subject to any redemptions by Merida stockholders, the companies said in a press release.
Leafly CEO Yoko Miyashita said the transaction moves the company into its “next phase … creating more personalized consumer experiences, driving more value to [its] retail partners, amplifying brands on [the] platform, and further scaling [its] presence in local markets as legalization continues.
“For the past decade, we have focused on building a unique, legally compliant marketplace with an equal emphasis on educating consumers and enabling them to reserve cannabis products from legal, reputable providers. … Our consumers recognize Leafly as one of the most trusted brands in cannabis, and we do not take that trust for granted. We are excited to partner with Merida’s deeply experienced team to create even more value for our consumers, partners and shareholders.”— Miyashita in a statement
Leafly said that about 55% of North American retail cannabis licensees are currently subscribed to its marketplace and advertising services and boasts an audience of 10 million monthly unique visitors.
The company says it expects projected revenue of approximately $43 million in 2021E and $65 million in 2022E, representing about 52% annual growth with gross margins of about 88% as it further penetrates current markets and capitalizes on its position in newly legalized states on the East Coast, such as Connecticut and New York.
Adult-use cannabis sales in Illinois set another new monthly record last month, driven, in part, by the Lollapalooza music festival, the Chicago Tribune reports. Sales in July reached $127.8 million—10% higher than the previous record set in May.
It was the first time cannabis was legal during the festival’s 30-year history; although public cannabis consumption is not legal in Illinois.
Sales at retail dispensaries in the River North and West Loop neighborhoods around the festival were up by as much as 50%, shop owners and operators told the Tribune. Jason Erkes, spokesman for Cresco Labs, whose Sunnyside Dispensary in River North was the closest to Lollapalooza, indicated the retailer had its “biggest weekend to date.”
According to state data outlined by the Tribune, sales to out-of-state customers rose 16% from June to $42 million in July; in-state residents spent about $85 million over the course of the month.
“Summer tourism and the Lollapalooza attendees were strong contributors to July’s out-of-state sales.” — Erkes to the Tribune
Jane, the e-commerce cannabis platform also reported a sales increase during Lollapalooza, with sales at 18 Chicago stores up about 6%, compared with the previous four weekends. Despite a ban on smoking at Grant Park, Jane reported a 27.5% increase in pre-rolls sales, the highest increase of any product category.
Todd Maisch, president and CEO of the Illinois Chamber of Commerce, told Marijuana Moment in May that he believed the state would “blow past” a billion dollars in cannabis sales this year—a feat the state accomplished with combined medical and recreational sales last year.
According to an American Marijuana study, 15% of remote employees worked from home under the influence of cannabis and the majority of those employees reported decreased stress (52.9%) and increased creativity (51.1%). Another 42.6% reported increased productivity while working under the influence of cannabis.
The survey included 1,001 full-time remote employees, including some who worked remotely both before and during the coronavirus pandemic.
“Surprisingly, or unsurprisingly, of the 40.6% of respondents who have worked from home while under the influence of marijuana, most did not continue this practice during the pandemic. More than 63% of respondents answered ‘no,’ and 36.8% answered ‘yes’ to the question of whether they got high at work from home during the pandemic.”— American Marijuana, “High at Work from Home”
Gen Z—those aged 20 to 29—were the most likely to use cannabis while working from home, with 41.3% of those respondents saying they consumed it while on the clock. Individuals 30 to 39 and 40-49 used cannabis while working remotely at similar rates, 36.6% and 35.1%, respectively; while 29.8% of those 50-and-older said they used cannabis while working remotely, the study found. Women and men used cannabis while working at similar rates, 37.9% to 36.6%.
White-collar employees used cannabis during remote work at much higher rates than their blue-collar counterparts, 44.9% to 21.6%, American Marijuana found. More employees used cannabis than managers, 37.6% to 34.7%.
The study also found that the majority—53.6%—of remote employees’ companies didn’t drug test at all, while 23% performed drug tests regularly and 23.4% did so occasionally. The vast majority, 72.1%, of respondents indicated they didn’t think any change was required to their employer’s cannabis policy, with 16,8% saying it should be less strict and 11.1% saying it should be stricter.
What many early cannabis dispensaries lacked in presentation, they made up for by normalizing the act of retailing cannabis. But like in any other retail industry, the cannabis shopping experience truly benefits from high-quality interior design and experts like the team behind SevenPoint Interiors are starting to set new expectations for the cannabis space.
We recently interviewed Danielle Marzarella about SevenPoint’s design process for cannabis retail environments and what inspired the firm’s 2017 founding. This interview also covers the unique design and regulatory challenges related to cannabis retail, different requirements for different locations and legal markets throughout North America, the company’s design process and strategies, how they collaborate with clients to create engaging and experiential retail environments, precautions the company has taken in regards to COVID-19 requirements, and more!
Scroll down to read the full interview.
Ganjapreneur: How long have you been in interior design?
Danielle Marzarella: Our founders Robert Turk and John Simmen met back in 1989 and have been in the business ever since. They founded Visual Elements in 2010 which has been recognized as a global leader in retail environments manufacturing since its inception. Recognizing the need for design solutions in the cannabis industry, SevenPoint Interiors was created in 2017, offering full turnkey interior design and build solutions.
What inspired your entry into cannabis retail design?
We purchased an exhibit booth at Retail Trade Show, Global Shop, and created a small cannabis dispensary display pop up. With such a positive response, the team realized the need and demand for elevated cannabis retail design spaces by business owners. With the increasing legalization of cannabis around the globe, SevenPoint seeks to elevate the cannabis experience for the customer through retail and to elevate the process entirely for brands and dispensary owners in creating and executing their company identity/vision and offering turnkey solutions.
What design and/or regulatory challenges has your team faced that are unique to cannabis retail?
Current regulatory challenges in the Toronto market include prohibiting site lines into the dispensary from the street. However, we’ve used these challenges to our creative advantage. For one of our clients, Scarlet Fire, we used this as an opportunity to create a mystique at its storefront by designing a “transportation tunnel”. By strategically placing partition walls with circular cutouts and LED lighting — from the glass line through the back of the store ending at a circular LED screen playing psychedelic video graphics — the end result was a kaleidoscope effect as passersby peek in from the street.
Inside Scarlet Fire Cannabis Co., a Grateful Dead-inspired cannabis dispensary that was designed by SevenPoint Interiors. Photo credit: Erin Leydon
SevenPoint has designed cannabis retail spaces in Toronto and in various states in the US, do the themes and focus differ between the two countries? What about between different states?
Themes tie back to brand and identity and whether it be Toronto, Michigan, or Massachusetts, each of our clients bring a different brand idea to the table. We service each individual client differently to help create and define a vision and theme unique to the brand. Compliance can differ by country and state and sometimes compliance regulations can have an impact on design as reflected in our transportation tunnel for Scarlet Fire. Even though it is a regulation, we used it as an opportunity to create a unique design solution to what might be viewed as a design problem. There has also been a surge in building smaller footprint dispensaries, especially in denser areas such as Toronto. These smaller boutique type dispensaries generally range from 700 sq/ft – 2000 sq/ft.
We’re seeing the growth of educated consumers looking to create a more sustainable lifestyle, which includes cannabis as a natural alternative to traditional medicine. In what ways do you look to incorporate LEED ID+C into your design or are there any other sustainable/green practices considered in your process?
While we will always look for opportunities to lower our carbon footprint, we have specific measures that we’ve implemented in our manufacturing facility and within our design and manufacturing process to capitalize on sustainability. We introduce and specify materials to clients such as our proprietary recycled powder coat finish that offers a unique design aesthetic for fixture and surface finishes.
What is your design process? Does the client set the vision of the space they would enjoy, is it collaborative or do you guide them toward the direction you think they should go? Is this unique to the cannabis industry?
Upon engaging with a client, we will identify their scope of work unique to their needs then provide them with a proposal for the design. We will then go through a series of steps starting with gathering requirements and objectives for their design, providing inspirational sketches and images to identify the look and feel that best represents their brand. Through this well-organized process and with client feedback, we will develop floor plans, elevations, fixture design and 3D images turning it into a final concept design package inclusive of colored renderings, material boards, floor plan, ceiling plan, lighting plan and elevations. We provide our client with a proposal for the fabrication of the fixtures and displays which is a seamless process to immediately move into the engineering and production phase wasting no time. Upon completion, we will ship and provide installation services and visual merchandising support when needed.
Inside Scarlet Fire Cannabis Co., a Grateful Dead-inspired cannabis dispensary that was designed by SevenPoint Interiors. Photo credit: Erin Leydon
Lighting is essential to pick up some of the intricacies of the merchandise. How do you go about creating an optimal lighting plan for a dispensary?
Lighting is one of the most important considerations impacting the overall consumer experience. It sets the tone and mood for the consumer from the moment they step into the dispensary. General and decorative lighting play a part of this process; however, it is all about the product. Product lighting can really enhance the sell through of the product and can be achieved in multiple ways. Whether it be strategically placed overhead lighting to highlight wall displays or tabletops, we can also provide integral lighting options within the wall systems and table tops creating an aura of light for your product and that extra pop you need to elevate the product merchandising.
Where is there space in retail cannabis to innovate the design approach?
COVID fears accelerated cannabis consumption. As we exit the pandemic, there is a return to experiential retail sweeping across the cannabis industry. There is a lot of retail/commercial space open in cities, and owners are looking to capitalize on the opportunity. The customer is ready to get back into stores. They are bored of being trapped at home and want to return to live events and experiences. Creating engaging and experiential shopping experiences with a purpose are still on the rise. We continue our efforts to strive and offer innovation in our design concepts down to the specific product display such as our proprietary Flower Globe and Capsule to help create that memorable experience and drive loyalty.
Is there anything specific about the cannabis industry that drove the demand for the creation of the module system?
When we entered the cannabis space, we recognized very quickly the need for a systematic approach to supporting a category of dispensary owners requiring an easy and cost-effective design and fixture/display solution that worked with their individual budget needs and drove speed to market. The Module Collection is a pre-engineered fixture and display system that we can customize based on individual client needs. The fact that it is pre-engineered using standardized dimensions means we can offer a branded flexible and adaptable solution with a faster turnaround than going the fully custom route that takes more time and money. The collection is available in standard and custom colors, a wide range of finishes, and infinite configurations.
Inside Scarlet Fire Cannabis Co., a Grateful Dead-inspired cannabis dispensary that was designed by SevenPoint Interiors. Photo credit: Erin Leydon
Beautiful accessories can enhance the cannabis experience. Can you speak more about your modular system line, how it developed and where you see it going?
Our Visual Merchandising System works hand in hand with our Module Collection. The components are intended for use with the system or independently. It’s simple, flexible and clean design offers a multitude of display and product storage options for under glass counters, on tabletops and shelving. Opportunities for product information placement as well as custom branding options exist to help educate the consumer during their experience. As with our Module Fixture System, we will continue to develop new elements to complement the existing collection offering fresh new ideas for fixture and visual merchandising displays.
How have COVID-19 safety precautions affected the retail shopping experience from a design perspective?
To follow COVID-19 regulations, we have had to be strategic in space planning to accommodate for social distancing. We also have to be creative when designing the modular fixtures because of this. Partition screens at the POS cash desks have become standard during this time. In the front of the store, we’ve had to integrate dedicated areas for curbside pickup to accommodate for increased online ordering. COVID-19 has taken away the sensory experience of cannabis retail. We aren’t allowed to touch or interact with the flower so that has been an obstacle that we’ve had to work around.
Thanks, Danielle, for sharing your expertise in retail design for the cannabis space! To learn more, visit SevenPointInteriors.com.
Starting September 1, the THC limit in cannabis products in Alaska will be increased to 10 milligrams per serving, doubling the current product limits, the Anchorage Daily News reports. The new rules put the state’s limit in line with that adopted in most other states with adult-use cannabis programs.
The new rules also raise the allowable amount of THC per package to 100 milligrams.
The rules were first approved in June and, at that time, Marijuana Control Board Chair Nicholas Miller said he didn’t consider the change “substantial.”
Tasha Grossl, the owner of cannabis edibles company Lady Gray, told the Daily News in an email that the new limits are “a big win for both the legal industry and the consumers.”
“Depending on the sizes and flavor profiles, some items will be a good fit with minor reformulations while others will take more work to have the desired flavors matching the desired potencies.”— Grossl in an email to the Daily News
Grossl added that the change will reduce the price per THC milligram for edibles in Alaska’s legal marketplace.
Alaska voters approved cannabis legalization in the state in 2014. In fiscal year 2020, cannabis-derived taxes reached $24.2 million in Alaska, representing 2.15% of the state’s tax collections, according to state Department of Revenue data.
The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI) have approved an ordinance to legalize the production and sale of medical cannabis. It is the first location in the state to allow medical cannabis as North Carolina has not yet passed the reforms.
Patients must be aged 21-or-older to access the program, but the Tribe has not yet indicated what medical conditions will allow patients to get program cards.
Richard Sneed, the principal chief of the EBCI, that the reform represents “a testament to the changing attitudes toward legal marijuana and a recognition of the growing body of evidence that supports cannabis as medicine, particularly for those with debilitating conditions like cancer and chronic pain.”
“I applaud the Council for their thoughtful consideration, exhaustive research and consultation with experts to develop a system that balances compassionate care for patients with preserving safety and security in our community. Passing this ordinance is just the first step, but we are excited to begin building this program. I know that I reflect the sentiments of many patients in expressing my pride and gratitude for the leadership demonstrated by our Council on this issue.” — Sneed in a press release
The tribe will next create a Cannabis Control Board which will promulgate regulations, license workers, and issue patient identification cards for the program. The board will also be tasked with licensing cultivators, processors, and laboratories.
The ordinance limits patients to 1 ounce of medical cannabis per day, not to exceed six ounces per month, and caps THC in medical cannabis products per day to 2,500 milligrams, not to exceed 10,000 milligrams per month.
Cannabis advocates in Nebraska are planning two new initiatives in their latest attempt to legalize medical cannabis in the state after their 2020 proposal was struck down by the state Supreme Court which found that it violated the state’s single-issue rule for referendums, the Lincoln Journal Star reports.
The new strategy by Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana would put two questions to voters next year that state Sen. Anna Wishart (D) said would “work in unison” to legalize medical cannabis in the state.
Wishart co-sponsored legislation to enact the reforms in the state this session, but the bill was narrowly defeated, the Journal Star reports.
One question would require lawmakers to pass bills protecting physicians who recommend medical cannabis along, with their patients who possess or use the product, from criminal penalty. The second question would require the Legislature to enact measures protecting private companies that produce and supply cannabis for medical purposes.
“Our main goal is putting in place language that we feel absolutely confident in, that we have looked at every type of potential challenge that could come and feel we have addressed it.”— Wishart to the Journal Star
Gambling advocates in the state successfully used the multiple-initiative strategy in 2014 to ensure their initiative did not violate the single-issue rules. Ultimately, that campaign ended up using three individual petitions.
Wishart indicated the campaign will file the final language for the initiative before Labor Day.
The New Orleans City Council approved language to decriminalize low-level cannabis possession and pardon some 10,000 cannabis convictions and pending cases, WGNO reports. While the City Council does not have the authority to fully legalize cannabis, it effectively decriminalized possession by proactively and retroactively pardoning low-level cannabis cases, meaning that any future offenses will have already been pardoned.
“The time to end the criminalization of cannabis possession is now,” said Council President Helena Moreno, who authored the language.
The changes were passed unanimously by the City Council and represent an effort to rebuild community trust in law enforcement. It is also meant to free up police efforts to focus on more serious crimes, including recent spikes in violent crime.
“This policy will help NOPD build community trust, plus aim at saving manpower hours, so they can focus on the major problems, like shootings, murders and overall preventing violence in our city.” — Moreno, via WGNO
Cannabis use is still prohibited in public spaces but moving forward police can only ticket cannabis consumption as a conventional smoking violation, not as a drug-related issue. The council also removed penalties for the possession of cannabis-related paraphernalia.
The approximately 10,000 pardons of prior and current cannabis cases took effect immediately but police can still enforce current possession laws through September 15, meaning the City Council may need to return to issue pardons for anyone who is penalized in the meantime.
In June, Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards (D) signed legislation reducing penalties for possessing up to 14 grams of cannabis in the state to just a $100 fine.
Ohio Attorney General David Yost on Thursday rejected the summary of a cannabis legalization law, citing seven deficiencies in the proposal. The group behind the proposal, the Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol, had submitted the summary language late last month.
In the letter to the group’s attorney, John P. Galligan, Yost says the proposal fails to explain the extent of the Division of Cannabis Control’s (DCC) rule-making authority; fails to explain the purposes of the social equity and jobs program; fails to explain the DCC’s enforcement mechanisms; does not accurately explain that adults can only legally cultivate and possess six cannabis plants total; fails to identify all protections for individuals engaging in conduct legal under the proposal; fails to disclose that the DCC must provide specific information to financial institutions; fails to explain employer protections and employment policies under the proposal.
Taken together, Yost says the issues prevent the summary from being “fair and truthful,” which is required under Ohio’s ballot initiative law.
“In total, the summary does not properly advise a potential signer of a proposed measure’s character and limitations. For these reasons, I am unable to certify the summary as a fair and truthful statement of the proposed chapter. However, I must caution that this is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all defects in the submitted summary. Finally, I recommend that the Petitioners carefully review and scrutinize the remainder of the summary to ensure that it accurately captures the proposed chapter’s definitions, contents and purport before it is resubmitted to this Office.”— Yost in the letter
Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol Spokesman Tom Haren told the Cincinnati Enquirer that the group is reviewing the attorney general’s decision and plans to resubmit language in the near future.
Once a summary is approved, supporters would have to collect 132,887 signatures of registered voters to put the measure before the Ohio General Assembly, which would then have four months to pass, reject or pass an amended version of the law. If they don’t pass the bill, supporters could collect another 132,887 signatures to place it on a statewide ballot.
Illinois has awarded 55 conditional adult-use cannabis dispensary licenses for social equity applicants, WIFR reports. The successful candidates were chosen from 589 unique applicants who scored 85% or higher on their applications.
The social equity licenses were expected last year but were delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic. A lawsuit was filed last month over the licenses but was voluntarily dropped by the plaintiff days later.
Toi Hutchinson, senior advisor to the governor for cannabis policy, called “social equity and justice are the heart and soul of the adult-use cannabis program in Illinois.”
“Today’s results open the door to increasing the diversity of the industry and continue building on our successes in expunging convictions and investing in communities disproportionately harmed by the failed war on drugs.”— Hutchinson via WIFR
Successful applicants have 180 days to identify a physical location for their storefront and groups unable to find a location with the 180 days may receive an extension of another 180 days or transfer their license to another region specified by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR), the report says.
Later this month, the state will hold another lottery for 75 conditional licenses for applicants who had tied scores in the initial lottery. Under the rules, no individual principal officer or applicant can be awarded more than two conditional licenses in the lottery. IDFPR can also deny issuance of conditional licenses to any applicant with a principal officer, board member, or person having a financial or voting interest of 5% or greater who is delinquent in filing any required tax return or paying any amount owed to the state.
The Connecticut Social Equity Council on Thursday approved a list of 215 disproportionately impacted areas that will be prioritized for retail cannabis licenses and social equity programs, the CT Mirror reports. The state legalization law defines these areas as having either a historical conviction rate for drug-related offenses greater than one-tenth, or an unemployment rate greater than 10%, as determined by the Social Equity Council.
Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont said the state regulations were about giving people from these areas a chance to gain a foothold in the new industry, which is expected to launch next year. The data defining the areas shows two-thirds of drug convictions between 1982 and 2020 took place in the tracts, despite that they contained just 20% of the state’s population.
“A lot of folks from better neighborhoods, they always can start with a group called ‘friends and family.’ Well, not all communities have folks they can go to for capital from friends and family. Well, we’re your friends and family, right here. We’ve got a group of folks who have investment experience, management experience, understanding of the communities, and the importance of social justice.”— Lamont via the Mirror
Social equity business applicants in Connecticut must be at least 65% owned and controlled by people who had an average household income of less than 300% of the state’s median household income over the last three tax years, and either be a resident of one of the communities identified by the state for at least five of the last 10 years or have spent at least nine years living in one of the areas before they turned 18-years-old.
Corrie Betts, the criminal justice chair of the Connecticut State Conference of the NAACP and member of the council, told the Mirror that he found it “just a bit troubling to be voting on a disproportionate area on our first meeting without really having” discussions about the impact of the War on Drugs in-depth prior to the vote.
The state is expected to begin accepting applications for social equity applicants to participate in the cannabis business accelerator program by October 1.
The Senate Appropriations Committee voted on Wednesday in favor of an amendment that would let doctors with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) recommend cannabis treatments for veterans in states with medical cannabis programs, Marijuana Moment reports. The legislation would also prohibit VA officials from interfering with or otherwise punishing veterans who choose to access medical cannabis programs.
The amendment passed the key Senate Committee on a voice vote and is now attached to a bill to fund the VA through Fiscal Year 2022.
“We have now 36 states that have medical cannabis, and our veterans want to know from their VA doctor what their thoughts are on the pros and cons or appropriate role or challenges of this particular strategy for treating a variety of issues, including PTSD. I think it’s really important that we not force our veterans to be unable to discuss this issue with their doctors.” — Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR), who sponsored the amendment, via Marijuana Moment
A similar amendment was approved by the full Senate in 2018 but that language was ultimately dropped from the bill due to staunch Republican opposition in the House Appropriations Committee.
Earlier this year in March, two pro-medical cannabis bills passed through the House Veterans Affairs Committee. One of the bills would let VA doctors make medical cannabis recommendations in states where it has been legalized and the other would call for investigating the effectiveness of cannabis as a treatment for PTSD and other common afflictions faced by combat veterans—neither bill, however, has been fully approved.
Missouri’s medical cannabis dispensaries can now deliver to customers, KSHB reports. The new service, regulated by the state Department of Health and Human Services, allows businesses to offer same-day delivery.
Patients must upload their medical cannabis cards and payment method to a dispensary’s app to participate in the service.
BesaMe Wellness was the first in Missouri to offer delivery at the end of last month. BesaMe’s Director of Transportation Aaron Turvey said the “hardest part” of the new service “is all the different moving pieces that the state wants compliant-wise.”
Every item has its own code, must be secured during transport, delivered by a certified driver, and tracked via GPS, which is then relayed to the state. Customers must be home at the time of delivery and companies cannot deliver to a different location or to anyone else.
Zack Owens, regional manager of BesaMe, said that if patients can’t scan and upload the required documents, the company would send a team to the patient to help with the documentation aspect.
“That’s actually some of the biggest hang-up, people not knowing the access they have to it or having the transportation to do so. So, with us bringing it right to their door, we can now provide that for people that it was never an option before this moment.”— Owens to KSHB
Mary Ann Denzer, co-owner of Riverside Wellness which also launched its delivery service at the end of July, called the service “incredibly important for … disabled and homebound patients, as well as busy parents and those who work from home.”
Kentucky’s Victory Hemp Foods, a business-to-business food ingredient processing company, has raised about $4.5 million to expand its production capacity, Louisville Business First reports. The firm is using the funds to expand capacity at its Carrollton production facility and increase contracts with the farmers who supply its raw material needs.
Victory produces hemp seed oil, hemp protein, and roasted and shelled hemp seeds, which are used in plant-based protein products. The firm has also developed a concentrated hemp protein and clarified oil.
The company has received $230,000 in low-interest loans from the Governor’s Office of Agricultural Policy, two equity investments from the Kentucky Enterprise Fund, and has 45 angel investors, 10 of which are based in Kentucky.
Chad Rosen, founder and CEO of Victory, said the company has already sent samples of the concentrated hemp protein to “some of the major meat-analogue companies” after spending 30 months developing a scalable process for the product.
“I realized the future of the business was to supply these food brands that are changing the way we eat with a sustainable, scalable, good-tasting, highly-nutritious substrate for all their foods in the form of protein powder. … What we’re doing really relates to regenerative agriculture, building soil, the health and wellness of our customers, and so all those things and just the vast impact of what we’re trying to do—it’s going to be a long window for development.”— Rosen to Louisville Business First
Rosen indicated there is still about $700,000 left in the funding round and Victory is planning to launch a Series B fundraising round some time next month.
Editor’s note: A previous version of this article incorrectly said there was just $70,000—not $700,000—of Victory’s funding round left.
Chester Springs, Pennsylvania-based Affinity Bio Partners has launched a clinical study to test the potential efficacy of cannabis for diabetic nerve pain. The company said an estimated 47% of patients diagnosed with diabetes have some peripheral neuropathy.
The study is being conducted in partnership with the Serena Group.
“The future of medical cannabis and cannabinoids as medical treatments are dependent upon properly performed clinical studies. It is time for companies to invest their money into performing clinical studies that prove safety and efficacy regarding their products.”— Christina DiArcangelo, Affinity CEO, in a press release
A 2015 University of California, San Diego study published in the Journal of Pain found that inhaling cannabis could blunt diabetic neuropathic pain for several hours.
Dr. Mark Steven Wallace, chair of the Division of Pain Management at the UC, San Diego and lead author of the study, noted in an interview with EndocrineWeb that his research found “the more concentrated the dose, the more relief people got.”
“There is a lot of evidence on the positive effects of cannabis on the treatment of neuropathic pain,” Wallace said in the report. “However, there are few placebo-controlled studies and very few studies that have looked at different doses.”
The UC, San Diego study was the first of its kind to also look at the cognitive effects of cannabis in diabetic patients, which found the effects were minimal.
A federal judge on Monday permanently blocked a cannabis vape company from using a product logo featuring interlocking “OOs” after a legal challenge by Kool cigarette brand owner ITG Brands, Law360 reports. ITG claimed, successfully, that Capna Intellectual had violated its trademark by using interlocking OOs in the branding for its Bloom brand.
ITG called the Bloom logo a “blatant ripoff of [its] valuable trademarks.”
Similarity between the overlapping OO’s in Bloom and Kool
The order from U.S. District Court Judge Otis D. Wright permanently prohibits Capna from using the logo “or any other marking containing interlocking OOs and/or circles.” The decision follows a preliminary injunction in June that temporarily prevented Capna from using the Bloom logo. The order also requires Capna to notify all of its retail distributors about the decision by November 15 and give them the option to return any materials with the logo in exchange for new ones.
The decision also requires Capna to destroy any products and materials with the interlocking OOs by December 31 and “use its best efforts” to remove any materials that are later found to have the logo, the report says.
Kool has utilized the interlocking OOs logo for more than 88 years. When implementing the original injunction, Judge Wright said he expected ITG Brands’ claim would be successful because both products are smoking-related.
The Bloom Brands website is currently logo-less but features a banner stating: “Bloom is working on a new look! Stay tuned for a major announcement.”
The Montana Department of Revenue, which is tasked with overseeing both the adult-use and medical cannabis industry in the state, has proposed draft rules for industry advertising, including a ban on social media ads, KPAX reports. The rules are not final, and the agency will be taking public comments for the next several weeks.
In addition to the ban on advertising on social media, cannabis companies would not be allowed to advertise on TV, radio, or in newspapers. Companies would be allowed to have websites but would have to take “appropriate measures” to ensure people under 21-years-old could not access them.
Cannabis companies would also be prohibited from offering promotional items or sponsoring charitable events or sports, or advertising on billboards, or use banners or flags as outdoor signs, which would have to be attached to a building or permanent structure.
Businesses would be allowed just two outdoor signs—limited to 11 square feet or smaller—which would be required to include disclaimers about the risk of cannabis use.
J.J. Thomas, owner of the dispensary chain the Higher Standard, told KPAX that the state’s advertising rules for the industry—which is currently only medical—“already makes it really hard on businesses to succeed in general.”
“We’re already limited on things we can say, images that we can use, the way websites are accessed, signage on your buildings, and all this stuff. … It sounds like they’re basically taking it down another level to make it even harder than it already is—to the point where we don’t really know, is there anything you can do?”— Thomas to KPAX
If approved, the new Montana advertising rules won’t take effect until Jan. 1, 2022, which is the date that adult-use sales are expected to commence in the state after voters approved the reforms during the 2020 General Election.
