Latest News

Week in Review: Congress delays marijuana vote, more record cannabis sales, Brazil nears legalization & more

September 19th, 2020Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives decided this week to hold off on a floor vote for the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act until after the November election, essentially caving to Republican political pressure. MJBizDaily takeaway: The floor vote, which would have been historic as the first time Congress paid heed to […]

Iowa awards two additional medical cannabis dispensary licenses

September 18th, 2020Iowa regulators awarded medical marijuana dispensary licenses to operators in Iowa City and Council Bluffs to replace two outlets that closed in March. The licenses will bring the state back up to five dispensaries, according to The (Cedar Rapids) Gazette. The dispensary licenses were awarded to: Iowa Cannabis Company East in Iowa City. Cannabis Patient […]

New Canadian cannabis flower now available in German pharmacies

September 18th, 2020Germany-based Four 20 Pharma and Northern Green Canada announced their first shipment of non-irradiated medical cannabis flower has reached German pharmacies. The export “from Toronto, Canada to Paderborn, Germany is the part of a larger supply agreement between Four 20 and NGC that will extend into 2021.” Marijuana Business Daily confirmed with a German pharmacy that two […]

Canada’s recreational marijuana sales grow to record CA$231 million

September 18th, 2020Retail sales of adult-use cannabis in Canada grew yet again in July, increasing by 15.2% over June’s record to another high of 231.6 million Canadian dollars ($175.6 million). The July sales imply an annual Canadian marijuana market worth nearly CA$2.8 billion. Monthly sales of regulated recreational cannabis increased across all Canadian provinces, Statistics Canada reported […]

France urged to act on medical cannabis after falling ‘alarmingly behind’

September 18th, 2020A French parliamentary committee is urging the government to publish a decree needed to initiate a delayed medical cannabis experiment as industry and patient advocates say the country is falling behind in implementation. The appeal was made in a document that was unanimously supported by the parliamentary committee. The document emphasizes the need to establish […]

Cannabis companies with specific plans for new funding find success at raising capital

September 18th, 2020Capital markets remain very tight, but they started to open up again for marijuana companies in the third quarter of 2020, as shown in Viridian Capital Advisors’ deal tracker. Yet demand remains much greater than the supply of available funding, driven by the capital intensity of the industry and the limited participation by most institutional […]

Custom Cones USA debuts fully automated pre-roll machine

September 17th, 2020Custom Cones USA announced the latest innovation in the pre-roll manufacturing space with their fully automated pre-roll machine. Capable of producing up to 1,500 pre-rolls per hour, this automated machine has taken what used to take a team of 10 people all day a matter of hours to complete. Additionally, customers can qualify for 100,000 […]

Colorado, Illinois, Ohio set records for monthly marijuana sales

September 17th, 2020States continue to post record cannabis sales in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuing economic downturn, further evidence the marijuana industry is capable of weathering the recession. Here are three recent reports: Colorado set a record in July, for the first time exceeding $200 million in one month. The Denver Post reported […]

Cannabis operator MedMen inks financing commitments of about $20M

September 17th, 2020Multistate marijuana operator MedMen Enterprises has raised roughly $20 million of financing, with $11.7 million committed now, in a series of complex transactions with existing lenders and institutional investors. The Los Angeles-based company said in a news release that the financing package is a “reflection of the commitment the company has made to strengthen the […]

US House said to delay marijuana legalization vote until after election

September 17th, 2020(This story has been updated with a quote from House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer.) A bill to remove marijuana from the Controlled Substances Act and thereby legalize the plant federally won’t be voted on by the U.S. House next week or before the Nov. 3 election. “House Dems have punted a vote on a marijuana […]

Israel to increase import requirements, limiting cannabis export opportunities

September 17th, 2020The Israeli Ministry of Health informed domestic licensed producers that it is strengthening the quality requirements for medical cannabis imports. In an email addressed to “importers,” Tal Lavy of the pharmaceutical division of the Ministry of Health – the competent national authority under the international drug control treaties – said Israeli authorities will start reviewing […]

Memo alleges obstruction in Missouri medical marijuana licensing probe

September 16th, 2020The counsel for the Democratic legislative caucus in Missouri alleges that state medical marijuana regulators obstructed an investigation into the MMJ program by withholding critical information during hearings earlier this year. Casey Millburg, caucus counsel, wrote in a memo that, until recently, regulators withheld documents that revealed knowledge about potential conflicts of interest involving the […]