Jamaica Licenses First MMJ Cultivator & Producer

Jamaica’s Cannabis Licensing Authority has granted its first approvals for the nation’s medical cannabis industry, as Everything Oily Labs Limited was issued a processing license and Epican was issued a license to cultivate, the Jamaica Gleaner reports. Hyacinth Lightborne, chair of the CLA, indicated that three other applications were also approved and those companies were “completing their requirements,” while another 57 …

Sessions: ‘Healthy’ for Feds to Approve More Cannabis Research Applications

During a Senate Judiciary Committee oversight hearing, Attorney General Jeff Sessions admitted that it would “be healthy to have some more competition” in the federal government’s cannabis research program, noting that there are currently 26 supplier applications before the Drug Enforcement Agency from entities interested in growing cannabis for federal medicinal research. “Each one of those [cultivation sites] has to …

Pennsylvania Allows First MMJ Producer to Begin Production

Cresco Yeltrah has been given the greenlight by the Pennsylvania Department of Health to begin medical cannabis production – it is the first licensed operator to receive the go-ahead in the state. The firm, one of 12 licensed in Pennsylvania, is based in Jefferson County, northeast of Pittsburgh. Cresco has already integrated with the state’s seed-to-sale tracking system and is …

Study: Opioid-Related Deaths Decrease after Colorado Legalization

According to a study published in the American Journal of Public Health, cannabis legalization in Colorado has led to a 6.5 percent decrease in opioid-related deaths, equaling .7 percent decrease in opioid deaths per month. “This reduction represents a reversal of the upward trend in opioid-related deaths in Colorado,” the authors wrote concluded in the study titled “Recreational Cannabis Legalization …

Arkansas Receives More than 320 MMJ Industry Applications

Regulators in Arkansas received 95 medical cannabis cultivation applications and 227 dispensary applications, according to state Department of Finance and Administration figures outlined by the Associated Press. Pulaski County, the state’s most populous, received 26 applications for dispensaries, the most in the state, while cultivators are most interested in setting up operations in Jefferson County – which was listed in …

Study: Cannabis May Be Protective Against Liver Disease

A medical cannabis patient’s supply of medicine in their home. (Sonya Yruel/Drug Policy Alliance) NORML | October 12, 2017 MARSEILLE, FRANCE — Cannabis may be protective against liver disease in subjects infected with both the hepatitis C virus (HCV) and the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), according to data published online ahead of print in the Journal of Viral Hepatitis. French investigators assessed the …

Toronto Stock Exchange Could Delist Cannabis Companies with U.S. Interests

The Toronto Stock Exchange could delist, suspend, or halt trading for medical cannabis companies with investments in the U.S. because the operations are prohibited under federal law. In the Oct. 16 Notice to Issuers, regulators say while they are “aware” that some states have legalized cannabis for medical and adult use, “it is illegal under U.S. federal law to cultivate, …

Congressman Earl Blumenauer: Medical Marijuana Is Safer Than Opioids

Justin Strekal | October 12, 2017 On Wednesday, October 11th, Congressional Cannabis Caucus Co-Chair Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) testified before the House Energy & Commerce Subcommittee on Health on how to deal with the opioid crisis in America. In his testimony, the Congressman makes the case for medical cannabis as a safer alternative to highly addictive opioids, especially for our veterans—as …

Uruguayan Cannabis Producer Plans to Export MMJ Oil

International Cannabis Corporation, a licensed cannabis producer in Uruguay, plans on exporting medical cannabis oil next month for sale in Canada and Mexico, according to a report from Reuters. Alejandro Antalich, the chief executive of ICC, said he hopes to eventually sell the product locally but is not permitted under the nation’s adult-use regime. The law, which originally mandated that …

Michigan Regulators Announce Application Details for New MMJ Regime

Prospective Michigan medical cannabis industry licensees and their affiliates will be subjected to a full background check, including their criminal and financial history, whether they have maintained tax compliance, and their business litigation history, according to guidance released by the state Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs. The applicant must submit their fingerprints to the agency as part of the …