Molson Coors Bets on Pot With Cannabis-Drink Joint Venture

Molson Coors Brewing Co. is betting on pot by starting a joint venture with Hydropothecary Corp. to develop non-alcoholic, cannabis-infused beverages for the Canadian market.

The partnership between Molson Coors Canada and Quebec-based cannabis producer Hydropothecary will be structured as a standalone company with its own board and management team.  A chief executive officer will be named in the coming weeks.

“We decided entering the cannabis space would provide us with a real growth opportunity,” Frederic Landtmeters, CEO of Molson Coors Canada, said in a phone interview.  After talking with several potential partners, Molson Coors chose Hydropothecary because of its research and development capabilities, its loyal customer base and its strong brand, he said.

The partnership is a first for a major brewer with operations in Canada, where recreational marijuana will become legal on Oct. 17.  Though cannabis-infused edibles and beverages won’t initially fall under the provisions of the law, Molson and Hydropothecary expect those products will become legal sometime in 2019.

‘Trend-Setting’

 

“We view this as a historic milestone as the Canadian cannabis industry looks for innovative ways to enter the beverage industry,” Beacon Securities analyst Douglas Cooper said in a note.  “We expect today’s Hexo/Molson Coors Canada JV to be nothing short of trend-setting for the cannabis industry as a whole.”

Hydropothecary CEO Sebastien St. Louis said the potential market size for cannabis beverages is “staggering.”  He said the deal with Molson Coors will give his company, which is renaming itself HEXO Corp., the opportunity to be a first mover.

“They’re bringing capability as a Fortune 300 company that quite frankly no cannabis company even comes close to replicating,” St. Louis said.

Hydropothecary jumped 15 percent to C$4.89 at 2:02 p.m. in Toronto, while Molson Coors Canada stock rose 5 percent.

Mainstream Interest

Molson Coors will have a 57.5 percent stake in the company and three board seats, while Hydropothecary will hold the remaining stake and two board seats.  The transaction is expected to close before the end of September.  As part of the deal, Hydropothecary will issue warrants that give Molson the right to purchase 11.5 million shares of the cannabis company at a strike price of C$6 ($4.62) a share.

The deal comes as more mainstream companies are showing interest in the cannabis space. Alcohol giant Constellation Brands Inc., the maker of Corona beer, bought a stake in Canadian pot producer Canopy Growth Corp. last year, and cigarette maker Imperial Brands Plc last month took an equity stake in closely held Oxford Cannabinoid Technologies.

The beer makers might be hedging their bets. Sales of alcoholic beverages declined significantly in states that legalized medical marijuana, according to research by the University of Connecticut and Georgia State University.

Molson Coors Brewing CEO Mark Hunter said the Canadian partnership is an opportunity “to incubate and test” products for other markets, including the U.S.

“We believe potentially it’s got really significant potential and we’re going to learn a lot,” Hunter said on the company’s second-quarter earnings call Wednesday.  “If other markets start to open up in due course and this becomes federally legal, then we’ll be in a good place at that point in time.”

Canadian Military Will Be Allowed to Smoke Marijuana

Imagine, if you will, Canadian soldiers during the Second Battle of Ypres in 1915 smoking marijuana in the doomsday trenches of World War I rather than gasping for air through the urine-soaked handkerchiefs they used protect their lungs against the German’s poison gas attacks.

Well, we don’t have to tell you that the 1st Canadian Division, rather than “holding the line” against the Germans during this crucial battle, would have suffered a savage blow before the British arrived. Cannabis is a lot of things to many people, but a protective agent against the sidewinding whipping post that is chemical weapons — let’s just say we have not seen any research that leads us to trust its effectiveness.

But this doesn’t mean that Canadian soldiers wouldn’t have been grateful for the freedom to smoke weed to calm their nerves during this tumultuous time. The good new is that if ever another uprising of terror threatens our planetary sanctity and Canadian troops are called into action to support the nation’s allies, they may be well within their rights to fight with a little more THC coursing through their veins than most.

It seems that Canada’s Armed Forces will not have the power to impose a full-blown ban on the recreational use of marijuana once the northern nation takes the leap to legalize later this summer.

A recent report from CBC News indicates that soldiers will likely be held to similar guidelines already in place with respect to alcohol. Only the rules for pot consumption could be more far-reaching, according to Lieutenant General Chuck Lamarre, chief of military personnel.

We will “respect the law,” he told the news source. “But at the same time, I think Canadians are expecting our operational readiness and our ability to do our business must never be compromised.”

Although cannabis will no longer be considered criminal, the Canadian military will still need to keep its soldiers in line. To do this, the new policy will impose certain restrictions on cannabis consumption, the same as it does for alcohol. The current policy on alcohol consumption allows troops and civilian employees with National Defense to drink on their own time. But even booze is even subject to zero-tolerance policies in certain situations. For example: Getting trashed before special operations is not allowed.

Cannabis will be no different, Lamarre says. He admits it would be impossible for the military to ban the herb completely.

“There’s no total ban at this point,” he said. “We can’t do that. If the law says it’s no longer criminal to have it in your possession, it’s not a criminal act. You just can’t ban it outright.”

But not everyone is happy with the idea of Canada’s military forces walking around with THC in their systems. Although he refused to divulge any particulars of this controversy, Lamarre says there has been some discussion about holding certain positions within the military, like pilots and Special Forces, to a total ban. Branch commanders for the Army, Navy, Air Force and Special Forces have been asked to identify specific jobs for which restrictions should apply. It will be a situation where they say, “I need to restrict the following occupations for these periods of time, under these circumstances,” Lamarre explained.

Canada is set to become the second country in the world to legalize marijuana for recreational use. Lawmakers are still hashing out the details of the bill, but legal pot sales could begin around August, according to the latest reports. When this happens, adults, including military service members, will be allowed to purchase cannabis (and eventually edible pot products) from retail dispensaries in a manner similar to beer. The market is expected to become a huge business, raking in $22 billion once it is all set into motion.

But even in a legal climate, Lammarre does not foresee a newfound enthusiasm for getting stoned among military service members. “I don’t anticipate a whole whack of sparking up,” he said.

Until cannabis is officially legal nationwide, the Canadian military will maintain a zero-tolerance policy on the use of marijuana. But even this policy does not stop soldiers from getting high from time to time. The results of random drug screens conducted by National Defense since 2007 indicates that pot is still the military’s favorite illegal drug.

Why We Must Legalize Cannabis Now for the Sake of Public Health

Next week Canada will become the first G7 country to vote to legalize and regulate cannabis.

It joins Uruguay and nine US states, and will probably be followed by New Zealand, which is set to hold a referendum on legalising cannabis in the next three years.

Politicians around the world are waking up to the benefits of regulated cannabis markets to protect their citizens and improve public health.

So, too, are many voices here in the UK. The British Medical Association, the British Medical Journal, the Royal Society of Public Health and the Royal College of Physicians have all made the public health case for reforming our drug laws.

Yet the government lags woefully behind, clinging to a failed model focused on criminalisation, which puts people’s health at risk. It’s time politicians from the major parties stepped up to this public health challenge, as they have done with alcohol and tobacco.

The evidence is clear: prohibition does not work. Last year, 2.1 million people aged 16-59 in England and Wales used cannabis. In an unregulated market, they have little idea of its contents or strength.

Successive studies this year, from drug policy thinktank Volte Face and from Dr Marta di Forti at King’s College London, show that an illicit market left in the hands of criminal gangs is driving up potency and toxicity.

The only way to get a grip on this problem and protect young people is to explore ideas for a regulated market. Only then can we restrict who can buy it and what they can buy, and provide genuine public health information on the risks associated with cannabis.

As it stands, the only people benefitting from a zero-tolerance approach to cannabis are violent gangs and international drug cartels.

A regulated cannabis market would also raise vital funds for the NHS: £1bn annually at a conservative estimate, and possibly much more.

Health Poverty Action’s new report highlights cannabis as an untapped revenue stream for the NHS, calculating that this would pay for every midwife in England, with money left over to fund drug education, harm reduction and mental health services.

Earlier this year, I visited Washington state, where I saw first-hand how tight regulation can work. The Liquor and Cannabis Board, the state regulator, combines strict age limits and health warnings on all packaging with public health awareness campaigns in schools, on social media, and on billboards across the state.

Since legalising the drug in 2014, Washington state has taken $1bn in tax revenues, almost 80% of which is pledged to their health and judicial systems. Opioid dependency is down across the state, child use of cannabis has flat-lined, and Washington state police can now focus on eliminating the remnants of the black market.

The first step for the UK would be to move responsibility for drug policy to the Department of Health and Social Care. We could establish a panel of experts to develop the most effective model for a regulated market and design a cannabis regulatory authority to implement it.

It’s not only the right thing to do, it’s increasingly politically popular too – 53% of people support decriminalisation or legal regulation, with larger majorities among young voters. Politicians of all stripes can afford to be brave on this issue, backed by the evidence.

While governments continue to ignore the wealth of evidence from medical professionals, health experts, drug experts, law enforcement officials and development organisations in order to pursue a failed policy, criminal gangs have exploited the cannabis trade for far too long. It’s time to take back control.

 

Courtesy of The Guardian

VA Allows 1st Veteran to Use Cannabis for Seizures While a Resident in Federal Program

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NEW JERSEY – Robert Zak, a disabled Navy veteran currently residing at a VA residential program funded by federal dollars recently obtained his NJ medical marijuana card for seizure disorder under the New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act.

Community Hope, Inc. continues to fulfill their mission to all veterans by fostering the future of wellness in this case, and truly represents the name of their organization Hope 4 Veterans.  By allowing a veteran with a medical card to reside at their program on federal property while being paid by federal funds, and medically accepting his use is an absolute breakthrough.

Epilepsy and seizures were one of the first debilitating conditions that the state of New Jersey decided to make cannabis available for back in 2010.

In 2016, one of the veterans at the same VA medical center in Lyons was allowed to consume cannabis during a 6-week inpatient stay at a PTSD unit.

The acceptance of medical cannabis for its medical use at the federal level in the treatment of this veteran to honorably help rebuild his life is a game changer for the medical community at large and the cannabis movement overall.

This progression for the medical community supercedes what happened here in Florida, and sets a precedent for future federal/state conflicts when it comes to cannabis as it relates to a person’s health in this country, whether they are a veteran or not.

No human should be denied the medical care they rightfully choose, and under equal protection of the law all citizens should and will be guaranteed that right from now on.

Zimbabwe Just Became the 2nd Country in Africa to Legalize Cannabis Cultivation

The Zimbabwean government this week published a licensing regime that will allow the legal cultivation of cannabis, state-owned newspaper The Herald reported on Saturday.

Growing mbanje, as dagga is commonly known in Zim, will be legal for research and medical use under the new regulations, Statutory Instrument 62 of 2018, “Dangerous Drugs – Production of Cannabis for Medicinal and Scientific Use Regulations.”

Zimbabwe has been considering such partial legalization for the last eight months.

Five-year licences will also clear growers to possess, transport and sell fresh cannabis, cannabis oil, and dried product.

The regulations impose an obligation on the government to consider the risk that dagga could be diverted to illicit use, complaints from police, or objections by local authorities.

Lesotho granted its first licences for marijuana production in September last year, believed to be the first African country to do so.

A South African court ruling in March 2017 provides what is thought to be a viable defense against prosecution for private cultivation and use of dagga.

 

Courtesy of:  Business Insider South Africa 

DOJ Seizes More Than 100 Sacramento-Area Homes Being Used to Grow Weed for Chinese Organized Crime

More than 100 houses in Northern California being used by Chinese drug traffickers to grow marijuana were seized by U.S. federal authorities in a two-day operation that concluded Wednesday, officials announced.

An investigation that began in 2014 resulted in one of the largest residential forfeiture efforts in American history, Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in a news release.

Another 61,050 marijuana plants, about 440 pounds of processed pot and 15 firearms were seized from the grow homes, which were being run by a multimillion-dollar criminal enterprise based in China, officials said.

“Transnational criminal organizations are a blight on our communities, bringing dangerous drugs to our streets and trying to impose a false sovereignty over our neighborhoods,” Sessions said. “The day I was sworn in as Attorney General, President Trump ordered me to make dismantling these organizations a priority, and we are carrying out that order with vigor.”

Hundreds of agents from federal and local law enforcement agencies descended upon the homes Tuesday and Wednesday after probing their activity for years.

Search warrants were served at 74 homes and two business offices suspected of being involved in the massive weed growing operation, and civil forfeiture actions were filed against more than 100 other homes across Sacramento, Calaveras, Placer, San Joaquin, El Dorado, Yuba, and Amador counties. Some of the homes that were searched will also be seized, the DOJ said.

The seized homes were being used to grow marijuana indoors and were not in compliance with state regulations, according to McGregor Scott, the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of California. The weed was then being distributed within the U.S., mostly on the East Coast.

“The scope of this enforcement operation sends a clear message to international organized crime: get out of our neighborhoods,” Scott said. “If you don’t, we will pursue you with all of the resources available to the federal government, seize your assets, search your properties, and target you for criminal prosecution.”

Investigators were originally tipped off to the large-scale criminal activity by similar red flags that popped up across the locations they had already identified as marijuana grows. The houses’ down payments were all paid through wires mostly from China’s Fujian Province, and they used the same local relators, hard-money lenders rather than banks, and straw buyers, authorities said.

The homes were then filled with hundreds or thousands of weed plants, with the growing operation often taking up most of the house. Pot may be grown at home in California but only in small amounts, and business operations are required to obtain local and state permits.

As a result of their massive grows, the residences used an “extraordinary” amount of electricity to run the lighting, fans and other equipment involved, which also created fire and environmental hazards, according to the DOJ release. They were often rendered damaged or uninhabitable as a result.

DEA Special Agent in Charge John J. Martin described it as a “sophisticated large-scale organized criminal network operating in our backyard” and said the enforcement was meant to send a message: “You are not welcome.”

The multi-year investigation was a collaborative effort between the DOJ, FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, IRS, California Highway Patrol, the Sacramento and Placer County sheriff’s offices and Elk Grove police.

Judge Rules Insurance Company Must Cover Medical Marijuana

Judge Ingrid L. French, a state administrative law judge from New Jersey, has ruled that an Egg Harbor man’s insurance company must cover the costs of medical marijuana. This could theoretically establish a very much-needed precedent for patients.

Judge French says Andrew Watson’s insurance company is obligated to cover the costs of his voter-approved medical marijuana. Watson’s case sought financial reimbursement for the medicinal cannabis he purchased at a local medical marijuana collective, after enrolling in the state’s medical cannabis program in 2014. Judge French ruled that Mr. Watson’s medical condition was consistent with New Jersey’s list of qualifying conditions.

After listening to the testimony provided by the Egg Harbor plaintiff and considering the testimony of a local neurologist/psychiatrist, the judge agreed that medical marijuana is indeed medicinal and should be covered by Watson’s insurance company.

“THE EVIDENCE PRESENTED IN THESE PROCEEDINGS SHOW THAT THE PETITIONER’S ‘TRIAL’ USE OF MEDICINAL MARIJUANA HAS BEEN SUCCESSFUL. WHILE THE COURT IS SENSITIVE TO THE CONTROVERSY SURROUNDING THE MEDICINAL USE OF MARIJUANA, WHETHER OR NOT IT SHOULD BE PRESCRIBED FOR A PATIENT IN A STATE WHERE IT IS LEGAL TO PRESCRIBE IT IS A MEDICAL DECISION THAT IS WITHIN THE BOUNDARIES OF THE LAWS IN THE STATE.”

The Judge believed that Watson’s chosen holistic approach to pain management was better than medicating with opiates. The Judge also called the plaintiff’s decision “cautious, mature, and… exceptionally conscientious.

This ruling could potentially set a future precedent for others to follow.

Watson’s attorney, Philip Faccenda, believes the judge’s ruling is a “less expensive treatment modality” for patients seeking assistance from New Jersey’s Workers Compensation industry. A ruling like this makes insurance support the decision to choose medical marijuana over addictive opiates for managing paint which is a win-win situation for both patients and insurance companies alike.

 

NJ Cannabis Legalization: Weed going mainstream, but faces legal, money hurdles

Cannabis is quickly going mainstream in New Jersey.

Newly elected Gov. Phil Murphy’s support of legalizing marijuana has prompted the private sector – business consultants, lawyers, developers, investors and banks – to figure out the ground rules of a potential multimillion dollar industry.

And entrepreneurs looking to get their foot in the door of the fledgling cannabis industry planned on getting a head start last Thursday at the New Jersey Cannabis Symposium, a seminar and networking event at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark.

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“This is a real business,” said Scott Rudder, executive director of the New Jersey Cannabusiness Association, a sponsor of the symposium. “You’re going to need to have investors. You need to buy inventory. … You need to develop a business strategy and have the right team in place. We’re not talking rocket science, but we are talking real business.”

More: FEEDBACK: Marijuana going mainstream in N.J.

RELATED: When will weed be legalized?

MORE: How much will it cost?

The event is expected to shed light on the opportunities and hurdles of legal marijuana, an industry that comes with an unusual problem. It could be made legal in the state, but remains illegal under federal law, creating all sorts of headaches. Learn more about the problems facing New Jersey’s cannabis industry in the video at the top of the page.

Among them: Banks won’t open accounts for cannabis industrialists, and even if they would, municipalities are banning its sale left and right – years before the first shop would even open.

Nonetheless, the interest is intense.

Pipe dream to probable

Rudder’s group was founded as a trade association in late 2016 for businesses looking to get involved in the cannabis industry – still a pipe dream at that point, he said. At the time, the choice of the next governor – and their opinions on legal marijuana – were still unknown.

Just over a year later, membership rolls have skyrocketed, with the group hosting educational seminars for entrepreneurs and government officials alike and keeping its members updated on the latest with the actual fight to legalize the drug.

And in the months since the symposium was announced, growing attendance has thrice forced organizers to book bigger meeting space at NJPAC.

It’s now sold out, with 500 registrants.

Rudder’s advice? Entrepreneurs should do their homework, looking at similar businesses in one of the eight states with legal weed and getting to know officials in the town where they’re looking to sell marijuana.

“This is going to be a very quick, rapid expansion, so it’s all about developing your network and in-house relationships with the current cannabis industry,” said Rudder, a former assemblyman and mayor of Medford.

But how does a business owner get financing – or even open a bank account – for a retail store or cultivation facility when marijuana remains a Schedule 1 drug?

It’d be far easier to open a Jersey Mike’s franchise.

The Obama administration gave the fledgling cannabis industry a break and told federal prosecutors to relax enforcement of recreational marijuana use, instead focusing on preventing its distribution to minors and revenue from pot sales funneling to criminal enterprises.

MORE: Justice Department cracks down on marijuana

Even then, only a few banks were interested in doing business with cannabis enterprises. “Now, it will be little to none,” said Travis Nelson, an attorney at Reed Smith in Princeton.

Last month, Attorney General Jeff Sessions rescinded that memo, leaving it for individual U.S. attorneys to decide. Earlier this month, Sessions picked Craig Carpenito for the New Jersey post.

Finding the money

The biggest obstacle is money. Federally chartered banks can’t have customers who violate the federal law, in this case, the Federal Controlled Substances Act. It means dispensaries can’t take credit cards or deposit money from marijuana sales in banks.

Entrepreneurs also couldn’t raise money from banks, leaving them to search for capital mainly from friends and family, they said.

“You end up having to get it financed through nontraditional sources, like private money,” said Daniel Barkin, an attorney with Mandelbaum Salsburg in Roseland.

For bankers, the issue creates all sorts of headaches. The direct sale of marijuana isn’t the only issue: What if a commercial real estate customer decides to rent space to a dispensary? What if a manufacturer decides to produce equipment needed to grow marijuana? What if a farmer adds marijuana to his or her crops?

Federal banking regulators have yet to provide guidance, said John McWeeney, president and chief executive officer of the New Jersey Bankers Association, which is hosting its own seminar at Forsgate Country Club in Monroe on Jan. 31.

“Most banks are very adverse to doing it because they fear they are breaking the law, and their banks or individuals could be subject to prosecution,” McWeeney said.

CARINO’S CORNER: Dangerous attitudes about stoned driving

One of the biggest capital outlays for someone getting involved in the cannabis industry is real estate. But how can you purchase warehouse space when it could be rendered useless by a federal decree? And why would someone sign a lease for a retail store when the landlord might change his or her mind next year?

“What we’ve got a lot of right now is scrambling,” said Marianne Bays, a cannabis industry analyst with Kalyx Properties. “It’s a lot of ‘thinking about it.’”

In other states, real estate investment trusts have been a powerful ally of cannabis business owners. REITs have the funds to build or retrofit commercial space and they’re usually catered to a specific industry.

Kalyx Properties has been involved in such projects in Colorado, Washington and Oregon. Often, the company works the cost of construction into tenants’ rental rates, analyst Marianne Bays said.

“Kalyx provides the ability for these businesses to have that capital output at the very beginning of their operation. Instead, they have a landlord who understand what they’re doing and will work with them,” Bays said.

“Large capital outlay can be a killer to a business – and we want our businesses to succeed so they can pay the rent,” she said.

Shedding the stigma

But that’s only part of the real estate problem: Picking a location for a marijuana business is purely speculative.

Elected officials in some cities, such as Asbury Park and Jersey City, have publicly said they’d welcome such businesses. But an increasing number of towns – including Point Pleasant Beach, Toms River and Old Bridge – have gone the opposite route, discussing or passing ordinances banning marijuana sales.

“People are looking for solutions now but it’s all very speculative until the cities stake their claim,” Bays said. “It could be legal today, illegal tomorrow. This is really a very fundamental part of what we need to do to create a solid industry here in New Jersey – to have these decisions made with the town really understanding what the stakes are.”

There are other pitfalls that marijuana dispensaries face. Among them, Nelson from Reed Smith said, is the perception that marijuana is a danger that also could lead people to graduate to more addictive, more harmful drugs.

Employers, for example, don’t appear ready to take marijuana use off the table. Nearly 70 percent said job applicants and current employees should still be screened for marijuana use, even if they are in a state where it is legal, according to a survey released this week by Employment Background Investigations Inc., a background screening company based in Owings Mills, Maryland.

Their top concerns: Employee safety; liability and insurance issues; and employee job performance.

Until marijuana is formally legalized – and perhaps in order for it to become so – fighting against that stigma will continue to be a main goal for the cannabis industry and its biggest cheerleaders.

“For our entire lives, we’ve been told cannabis is a dangerous drug,” said Rudder of the New Jersey Cannabusiness Association. “And the reality is it’s an extraordinarily helpful medicine. And when it comes to people using it for recreational purposes or medicating purposes?

“You’re looking at something significantly safer than alcohol, tobacco or opioids,” he said.

Courtesy of Asbury Park Press

Skipta and The Fresh Toast Partner to Bring Information and Advances in Cannabinoid Medicine to Healthcare Professionals

LANCASTER, Penn. & SEATTLE – Skipta, the leading social network of specialized online medical communities for verified healthcare professionals, including Oncology Nation, Psychiatrist Connect and Doctor Unite, recently announced its partnership with new media company, The Fresh Toast, to provide trusted, reliable information on cannabinoid medicine. In a first for the cannabis industry, this partnership will provide guidelines and research information for the potential medicinal uses of cannabis to alleviate symptoms from identified diseases and illness. The Fresh Toast will serve as an exclusive media partner for news and information on cannabinoid medicine as authored by Skipta or its members.

The Fresh Toast, a daily lifestyle and entertainment site with a side of cannabis, launched in October 2016 and is the first cannabis site to have mainstream appeal. The number of visitors to TheFreshToast.com has quickly grown, outpacing most competitors, with 25 percent of readers returning for multiple visits per day. Unlike other cannabis sites, The Fresh Toast has a large number of female readers with a 43/57 female/male mix. The Fresh Toast is expanding its North American syndication newspaper and magazine relationships, including the NY Daily News, Men’s Health and Salon.

Currently 29 states, including Florida, North Dakota, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Arkansas, Arizona and the District of Columbia, allow medical cannabis. In 2016, cannabis was a $7.1 billion-dollar industry with over 100,000 people employed in the United States. Studies show an estimated 42,000,000 annual U.S. consumers. According to the New England Journal of Medicine, 76% of doctors are in favor of the use of cannabis for medicinal purposes.

“As we see growing acceptance of cannabis in the U.S., especially for medical use, it is important for reliable health organizations and reputable media to take leadership in providing the public with scientifically sound information,” stated Regina Benjamin, former United States surgeon general.

A key section of The Fresh Toast is the Rx overseen by Tom Green, MD. As the first site with a continuum of care, the site’s goal is providing knowledge in an understandable and familiar format allowing patients and caregivers to learn about the diseases that could benefit from the use of cannabinoid medicine and their potential treatment options. The site is investing in expanding health coverage and sharing patient stories to give a full picture of the pluses and minuses.

“There’s certainly demand for high-quality and trustworthy cannabis information. People want to get it from a publisher they trust,” said Christian Hendricks, a board member of The Fresh Toast and well-known media executive.

“The partnership between The Fresh Toast and Skipta can be a transformational step forward for medical cannabis. The Fresh Toast is one of the leading voices on all things cannabis and, by forging a relationship with a massive network of healthcare professionals, it will increase information, knowledge, and access to knowledge for those at the forefront of the medical cannabis conversation. Relationships like this one help fill a government-driven, gaping void in our understanding of medical cannabis and the realities of its practice in American society,” said John Hudak, Ph.D., senior fellow in governance studies at the Brookings Institution and author of Marijuana: A Short History.

“We are proud to work with the Skipta team of medical professionals,” said JJ McKay, founder/publisher of The Fresh Toast. “With 40 percent of our readership coming from red states, I believe we offer a vehicle to reach the general public. With proper use, cannabinoid medicine can help tens of millions of people. With national leaders like Sanjay Gupta and Senator Orrin Hatch endorsing medical cannabis, we are honored to work with Skipta to help improve people’s lives.”

Skipta Founder and CEO, Dr. Theodore Search, Pharm.D., stated, “This exciting partnership with The Fresh Toast offers us a unique vehicle to distribute reliable, trusted information on a potential treatment option likely to become revolutionary in improving patient outcomes across a variety of therapeutic areas. With clinicaltrials.gov currently citing more than 700 studies regarding the use of cannabinoid medicine across various phases of the clinical process, there is much information out there for the public to stay apprised of; we are proud to lighten that burden by bringing the latest news and information to the public from a trusted source.”

 

Courtesy of The Cannabis Story Lab 

Los Angeles Issues First Licenses For Cannabis Sales

 

A medical marijuana dispensary and recreational retail store in Los Angeles have received temporary licenses from the city to sell cannabis.

Mother Nature’s Remedy Caregivers in Woodland Hills and WHTC in Studio City received L.A.s’ first MMJ and adult-use permits, LA Weekly reported.

The two facilities now need approval only from state regulators to begin sales.

California began handing out temporary licenses in mid-December in advance of the Jan. 1 launch of the state’s newly regulated cannabis market.

But, Los Angeles was among the municipalities statewide that did not allow sales to begin on New Year’s Day.

L.A. regulators, who said the licensing process isn’t “going to happen overnight,” didn’t begin accepting applications until Jan. 3.

 

Courtesy of Marijuana Business Daily