This week has been replete with regulatory issues, industry developments, new research, and interesting patents.
As always, things in the cannabis industry stay changing and our weekly review is here to help you feel informed and up to date on everything that’s going on – be it business related topics, medical discoveries, or industry news. Read on and we hope you enjoy!
PayPal beings lobbying for cannabis legalization
For years, PayPal has been shutting down accounts belonging to legitimate cannabis companies. But now, the online payment processor is now on board and has joined 20 other groups who are registered to lobby in favor of the SAFE Banking Act. SAFE would allow cannabis companies to to open accounts at federal banks, raise credit, and much more. What’s more, PayPal’s support of safe has drawn the attention of many other banks, unions, and cannabis advocacy groups. Click here for the full story.
Is there a connection between E-cigarettes and seizures?
Many people have turned to vaping E-cigarettes to help them quit smoking traditional ones, and as a result, most feel healthier and cleaner. However, new concerns have popped up regarding a possible link between E-cigarettes and seizures. According to the FDA, they received 35 reports from E-cigarette users, most of which were in their teens and early twenties, who experienced episodes of seizures and convulsion after vaping an E-cigarette. Click here for the full story.
California cannabis growers are at risk due to licensing issues
California cannabis farmers are at risk of losing thousands of dollars this season, all due to government oversight regarding their business licenses. When cannabis was legalized, the state issued temporary cultivation licenses which are now expiring day by day without being replaced by the promised annual permits. Now, California cultivators have reached a fork in the road: shut down shop and risk losing everything they’ve worked for this year, or continue operating without a license. Click here for the full story.
Did the U.S. Patent Office just make rolling joints illegal?
Despite cannabis and tobacco being polar opposites, medical cannabis producer Vireo Health has just applied for a patent for “tobacco products infused with cannabis”. This includes joints that mix the two (or spliffs as they’re more commonly referred to), cigars, pipe tobacco and cannabis mixed in a bowl, smokeless tobacco products, and vapes. Vireo believes that adding cannabis to tobacco products could make the latter less harmful, although it’s a strange way to approach the subject. Click here for the full story.
European foothold for ‘World’s largest CBD extractor’
Mile High Labs, extraction company from Colorado, established its first European base in Belfast, Ireland last year, and now, they just recorded their first sales in the United Kingdom and European Union. Mile High, who describes themselves at the ‘world’s largest extractor of CBD isolate’, said in a press release that they put together a team that’s highly dedicated to this European expansion. John Wallace, Managing Director of Mile High Labs U.K./E.U. said: “We are very excited to officially launch European operations with our first sales into the U.K. and E.U.” Click here for the full story.
When IoT meets the cannabis industry
The Internet of Things (IoT) is the interconnection of everyday objects via internet. For example, refrigerators, cars, wristwatches, toothbrushes, and many other common items that were typically not associated with Wi-Fi. These devices can be monitored and controlled remotely, and they can communicate with other IoT devices on a secured network. Nowadays, there are over 6 billion IoT devices in the world, so naturally, many are geared towards cannabis – one of the fasted growing industries in the world. Click here for the full story.
Israeli researchers study cannabis for the treatment of endometriosis
Israeli researchers have begun pre-clinical trials to look at the effectiveness of cannabinoids in treating endometriosis, a condition that affects millions of women of childbearing age worldwide. The research is being conducted by Gynica, a company that’s been licensed by the Health Ministry to produce cannabis-based medical products for woman with a strong focus on cannabinoids in gynecology. Lumir Lab, a leading cannabis research facility in Jerusalem, is also participating in the study. Click here for the full story.
Could mood specific strains be the next big thing?
Back in the 60s, cannabis was quite different from the buds people know and love today. There were no special cannabis cultivation or extraction methods in those days and people just smoked whatever was available to them. Fast forward a few decades and cannabis is now legal in many areas throughout the world, but it has also majorly changed in character with the “hippy buds” of years past. These days cannabis is cultivated to have certain cannabinoid concentrations and combinations of terpenes. Click here for the full story.
