Latest News

Canada classifies medical cannabis ‘essential’ amid COVID-19 pandemic

April 2nd, 2020Canada’s federal government has deemed medical cannabis production “essential” to the country’s critical health-care infrastructure during the COVID-19 pandemic. The designation is intended to assist provinces, municipalities and businesses in their decisionmaking around the types of employees considered essential for the health, safety, security and economic well-being of the country. Even though the designation is […]

Denver man sues cannabis firm for alleged spamming

April 2nd, 2020A Denver man has filed a lawsuit alleging that the operator of marijuana stores in Colorado, Nevada and Massachusetts violated the federal telemarketing law by sending him promotional text messages without his permission. In a proposed class-action suit, Bryce Abbink sued Denver-based Good Chemistry for the alleged spam promotions. The 13-page lawsuit states the “alleged […]

NYSE aims to boot CannTrust after concluding cannabis producer ‘no longer suitable for listing’

March 31st, 2020The New York Stock Exchange’s regulatory enforcement arm has initiated the delisting process for CannTrust after concluding the Canadian cannabis producer “is no longer suitable for listing.” NYSE Regulation said Tuesday it reached its decision after the Ontario-based company obtained a creditor protection order from the Ontario Superior Court of Justice. “The Company has a right to a review […]

L.A. cannabis licensing audit finds flawed process, no corruption

March 31st, 2020The marijuana business licensing round in Los Angeles last September was “confusing and prone to human error,” but city regulators did not bungle the process to the point that applicants were disenfranchised, according to an independent audit. City officials requested the audit last year after an outcry from stakeholders over a flawed rollout. The launch involved a […]

New York adult-use marijuana legalization appears stalled

March 31st, 2020Recreational cannabis legalization in New York likely will be shelved for now because of the coronavirus crisis, but experts expect the legislation to be back in play later this year. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Tuesday the state isn’t likely to legalize rec cannabis as part of its budget bill because it’s “too much, […]

Two Iowa medical cannabis dispensaries close

March 31st, 2020Two medical marijuana dispensaries in Iowa permanently closed their doors. Two Iowa medical cannabis dispensaries close is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Recreational cannabis sales in three key markets still falling after initial coronavirus-related spike

March 31st, 2020Despite a couple of temporary sales spikes in recent weeks, adult-use cannabis sales in California, Colorado and Washington state are all suffering from the economic fallout surrounding the coronavirus pandemic. According to point-of-sale data provided by Seattle-based Headset, adult-use cannabis sales were less than those for the same day in 2019 for six consecutive days […]

Create a winning plan to market and brand your cannabis business

March 29th, 2020(This is an abridged version of a story that appears in the March issue of Marijuana Business Magazine.) Branding is a key component to any winning business strategy. Of course, it also might be one of the most difficult strategies to get right – and if implemented the wrong way, branding can prove to be a costly […]

Week in Review: Recreational marijuana sales tumble, cannabis stores open during pandemic, Harvest-Verano deal dead & more

March 28th, 2020COVID-19 causes cannabis sales to ebb, flow Only a few days after adult-use marijuana sales soared amid the coronavirus scare, they took a nosedive. MJBizDaily takeaway: The roller-coaster ride in marijuana sales was to be expected. Initially, consumers, panicked by the pandemic, stockpiled products. The sudden drop might mark a natural decline after consumers stocked up before […]

Marijuana packaging firm KushCo lays off 49, blames COVID-19

March 26th, 2020KushCo Holdings, a cannabis company specializing in ancillary products such as packaging, on Thursday said it laid off 49 employees this month as the California company’s CEO noted that “the COVID-19 pandemic creates ever-increasing uncertainty in the cannabis industry.” The layoffs will save the company about $4 million, according to a company news release. Since last […]

Canada asks regulated cannabis labs for help in COVID-19 testing

March 26th, 2020Health Canada is working to identify lab capacity across the country to assist with COVID-19 testing, and the agency has reached out to certain federal cannabis license holders for help, Marijuana Business Daily has learned. Canada is currently experiencing a COVID-19 testing backlog. In Ontario alone, 10,965 people have coronavirus test results pending. In a […]

New Zealand cannabis scheme on schedule for April launch despite COVID-19 pandemic

March 26th, 2020The coronavirus pandemic sweeping the globe is not expected to affect the initial launch of New Zealand’s medical cannabis scheme, which is set to take effect April 1, a government official told Marijuana Business Daily. Other jurisdictions – notably Mexico – have pending cannabis industry legislation that faces near-certain delay because of measures taken to combat COVID-19. […]