MMJ Business Daily

Roger Stone pulled as cannabis conference’s keynote speaker

Roger Stone’s appearance as a keynote speaker at an upcoming marijuana conference has been canceled, Marijuana Business Daily has confirmed.

Citing a commitment to “inclusion” and “growth” of the marijuana industry, the Cannabis World Congress and Business Exposition (CWCBExpo) announced Wednesday that Stone – a longtime adviser to Donald Trump who has been accused of making racist statements – will no longer be a featured speaker at its conferences in Los Angeles on Sept. 13-15 or in Boston on Oct. 4-6.

According to a news release from CWCBExpo, the conference’s “forums … are crucial to the growth and legalization of

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Roger Stone pulled as cannabis conference’s keynote speaker is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Marijuana advertising outlawed at Las Vegas airport

Commissioners in Nevada’s Clark County have voted to ban marijuana advertising and possession at Las Vegas’ McCarran International Airport.

The advertising ban covers all airport-owned property throughout the county – which includes Las Vegas – including land that’s leased to private businesses, the Review-Journal reported.

The ban doesn’t apply to taxis and personal vehicles cloaked in vinyl advertising, according to the newspaper.

Commissioner Larry Brown – who supported the advertising ban and the exceptions for vinyl-wrapped vehicles – said marijuana industry representatives helped ease his concerns about cannabis and advertising enough to allow him to support

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Marijuana advertising outlawed at Las Vegas airport is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

MJBizDaily bolsters hemp coverage

Marijuana Business Daily has hired a veteran journalist from The Associated Press to ramp up the publication’s coverage of the hemp industry.

Kristen Nichols (formerly Wyatt), a political reporter at the AP for 17 years, will write news, analysis and feature stories on the hemp and CBD markets for Marijuana Business Daily and Marijuana Business Magazine.

She’ll also help conduct market research on the industry and assist with conference-related content, such as the upcoming Business of Hemp Forum at the Marijuana Business Conference & Expo in Las Vegas.

Marijuana Business Daily has written about hemp-related developments occasionally over the past few years but

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MJBizDaily bolsters hemp coverage is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Recreational marijuana shortage predicted in Massachusetts

Massachusetts isn’t slated to begin recreational marijuana sales until next summer, but industry insiders are already predicting an inventory shortage akin to what happened in Nevada and other states that have launched MJ programs in recent years.

The problem is simple: There won’t be enough supply to satisfy demand, according to MassLive.com.

“The first places to open up will sell out in less than a week,” Peter Bernard, the president of the Massachusetts Grower Advocacy Council, told the news outlet.

New adult-use businesses will be allowed to apply for cultivation permits starting in April. Licenses won’t

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Recreational marijuana shortage predicted in Massachusetts is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

$10,000 in hemp CBD products stolen at Alaska fair

An Anchorage cannabis clinic is reporting that thieves at the Alaska State Fair stole some $10,000 worth of hemp-based edibles and tinctures from its booth, underscoring the risks for businesses displaying pricey CBD merchandise at such venues.

ReLeaf Alaska and the Alaska State Fair announced the theft Tuesday, Anchorage TV station KTUU reported.

ReLeaf helps patients obtain doctors’ recommendations for medical marijuana as well as MMJ cards.

Police say the theft happened in an exhibit hall early Aug. 15, when the fair was closed. A jewelry display and a drone display were also tampered with, police said.

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$10,000 in hemp CBD products stolen at Alaska fair is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Texas licenses first producer to grow low-THC medical cannabis

Texas has given the green light to one of three planned CBD producers in the state, but the program remains severely constricted.

In the first step to putting the Texas Compassionate Use Program into action, the Department of Public Safety issued a final business license to Engle-based Cansortium Texas, according to CultureMap Austin.

Surterra Texas and Compassionate Cultivation still are awaiting final approval after advancing out of the original pool of 43 applicants.

Under the Texas program:

• Only low-THC (a maximum of 0.5%) medical cannabis oil may be produced.

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Texas licenses first producer to grow low-THC medical cannabis is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Washington state broker aims to sell bundle of 12 marijuana retailers

By Bart Schaneman

A dozen marijuana retail businesses in Washington state are employing an unusual strategy on the mergers and acquisitions front: package their assets together for a combination sale.

In a move that’s being described as “unprecedented,” Seattle-based investment bank GRN Funds is asking $60 million-$70 million for the 12 retail cannabis firms.

The ambitious plan has spurred questions about whether such a strategy can work, particularly after two Washington state cannabis entrepreneurs recently failed to sell their businesses together in a similar – albeit much smaller – fashion.

The plan also faces some hurdles tied to Washington state’s

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Washington state broker aims to sell bundle of 12 marijuana retailers is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Canada’s Cronos teams with partner to grow medical cannabis for export from Israel

By Matt Lamers

Cronos Group is partnering with an Israeli collective settlement to grow medical marijuana in northern Israel, becoming what is believed to be the first Canadian MMJ producer to establish a production facility overseas for global exports.

The partnership, announced Wednesday, brings together Toronto-based Cronos Group with Gan Shmuel, a kibbutz about 60 kilometers north of Tel Aviv that also owns a stake in an Israeli company that grows and sells citrus fruits.

Cronos plans to export the MMJ to overseas markets and ultimately hopes to generate nearly 200 million Canadian dollars ($160 million) a year

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Canada’s Cronos teams with partner to grow medical cannabis for export from Israel is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Maryland starts growing first medical marijuana crops

At least two of Maryland’s 15 licensed medical marijuana producers have started growing their plants, giving some badly needed good news to the state’s embattled MMJ program.

ForwardGro has been posting photos of its plants on Instagram, and Curio Wellness has also planted seeds, The Washington Post reported.

That news comes a week after MMJ regulators approving licenses for three more cultivators, two processors and one testing lab.

Curio plans to have MMJ products like tinctures available by mid-December, CEO Michael Bronfein told the newspaper. ForwardGro executives declined to say when they would be able

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Maryland starts growing first medical marijuana crops is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Ohio college steps forward to test medical cannabis

An Ohio technical college has thrown its hat into the ring to help test cannabis for the state’s medical marijuana program.

Hocking College – located in Nelsonville, about a one-hour drive from the Ohio Statehouse – said Tuesday its “goal is to partner with the state” under legislation requiring that public colleges and or universities get first crack at MMJ testing licenses, according to a news release.

Hocking’s announcement is significant because there previously appeared to be little interest among Ohio’s colleges to test medical marijuana. The application period for testing lab licenses is Sept.

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Ohio college steps forward to test medical cannabis is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs