MMJ Business Daily

Maryland medical marijuana grower sues to halt licensing process

A Maryland medical marijuana cultivation company that failed to win one of the state’s preliminary business licenses filed an emergency motion asking a judge to block the Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission from issuing final grow permits.

In its filing, Alternative Medicine Maryland argued the commission did not follow the law because it failed to consider an applicant’s race when handing out the preliminary grower licenses, The Baltimore Sun reported.

None of the 15 winning companies are led by African-Americans. The commission is scheduled to meet Wednesday to discuss the status of the preliminary licenses.

The lack of

…

Maryland medical marijuana grower sues to halt licensing process is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Florida regulators order firm to stop selling smokable MMJ product

Florida’s Department of Health ordered a Quincy-based dispensary to quit selling a medical cannabis product that could potentially be broken down and made into marijuana that can be smoked.

Trulieve began selling its first whole-flower cannabis product meant for vaping last week at five retail dispensaries and through home delivery. The buds in the Entourage Multi Indica vaporizer cup, however, could also be used in joints, pipes or bongs.

The Department of Health authorized Trulieve to sell sealed vaporizer cups containing marijuana. However, Office of Compassionate Use Director Christian Bax said in a cease-and-desist letter to Trulieve that

…

Florida regulators order firm to stop selling smokable MMJ product is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Nevada now accepting early start marijuana business applications

Nevada’s Department of Taxation has begun accepting applications from existing medical marijuana businesses interested in selling recreational MJ under the state’s “early start” program.

Existing medical cannabis cultivators, processors and retailers that are in good standing with the state are eligible to apply for the early launch of rec sales.

The application period for the temporary licenses started May 15 and closes May 31, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported.

The early start program will begin July 1 and run until January. That’s when regulators are due to finalize rules for the rec program, which isn’t expected

…

Nevada now accepting early start marijuana business applications is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

NJ doctors panel recommends expanding MMJ conditions list

A New Jersey state panel of doctors recommended expanding the the list of treatable conditions for medical marijuana to include chronic pain, a move that would likely widen the patient pool and boost MMJ sales.

According to the Newark Star-Ledger and the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Medicinal Marijuana Review Panel voted 5-1 to add people suffering from different types of chronic pain, Tourette’s syndrome, irritable bowel syndrome and anxiety related to autism or Alzheimer’s disease.

Ken Wolski, executive director of the Coalition of Medical Marijuana New Jersey and a longtime advocate, told the Inquirer the panel’s chronic

…

NJ doctors panel recommends expanding MMJ conditions list is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

The road to legalization in Canada: Q&A with Anne McLellan, chair of rec marijuana task force

By Omar Sacirbey

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tapped Anne McLellan last year to head the country’s marijuana legalization task force.

McLellan – whose task force issued its report in December – is confident the government will meet its July 2018 target date for the recreational program’s launch. But she knows potential pitfalls abound.

A potential supply shortage, for example, could hamper the rollout of the recreational program. And provincial governments may balk at some aspects of legalization.

Marijuana Business Daily spoke with McLellan – a former deputy prime minister and Liberal Party Public Safety Minister – to get

…

The road to legalization in Canada: Q&A with Anne McLellan, chair of rec marijuana task force is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Minnesota medical cannabis companies losing millions

Minnesota’s two licensed medical marijuana manufacturers have lost a combined $11 million in just two years of sales, according to financial documents obtained by The Associated Press, continuing losses that hint at systemic problems with the state’s tightly regulated program despite a recent expansion that allowed thousands more patients to buy the medication.

Minnesota Medical Solutions posted a $1.2 million loss in 2016, a year after losing more than $3 million. But LeafLine Labs’ losses worsened: The company said it lost $4.7 million last year, after losing $2.2 million in 2015.

Those figures come from annual financial statements the private

…

Minnesota medical cannabis companies losing millions is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

NASCAR says no to marijuana company’s logo on racer’s car

NASCAR ordered driver Carl Long’s team to remove a Colorado marijuana company’s logo from the hood of his car, saying it violated sponsorship and paint scheme regulations.

The incident, which occurred at a track in Kansas City, Kansas, underscored the difficulties marijuana companies have encountered when trying to market their brands. Social media giants including Facebook and Instagram, for example, have shuttered the accounts of cannabis businesses.

Veedverks, a Denver-based medical marijuana company, had its logo painted on the hood of Carl Long’s No. 66 car, the Associated Press reported. But

…

NASCAR says no to marijuana company’s logo on racer’s car is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Iowans could look to Minnesota for low-THC medical cannabis

(Note: This story has been updated from an earlier version.)

Top state lawmakers in Iowa and Minnesota are trying to work out a system allowing Iowans to buy low-THC medical marijuana oils and pills in Minnesota, a novel arrangement that could raise issues with the federal government.

It could also bolster sales for Minnesota’s only two MMJ manufacturers: LeafLine Labs and Minnesota Medical Solutions.

A bill signed by Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad expands a limited 2014 law by allowing more patients to buy low-THC medication from in-state dispensaries by December 2018, The Des Moines

…

Iowans could look to Minnesota for low-THC medical cannabis is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Chart: Washington DC’s medical marijuana industry poised for more growth

By Eli McVey

Washington DC’s medical cannabis market is one of the smallest in the nation, but the program is adding patients at a healthy clip – and new business-friendly regulations as well as increased public outreach could push the numbers much higher.

Over the past year, roughly 1,400 patients joined DC’s medical marijuana program, an increase of nearly 40%.

Although patient counts have fluctuated so far in 2017 on a monthly basis, a correction in the way the Department of Health tracks enrollment is responsible for the variation, and the industry remains on solid footing.

Still, the

…

Chart: Washington DC’s medical marijuana industry poised for more growth is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Maine medical marijuana sales slow markedly in 2016

Medical marijuana sales in Maine continued to rise last year, but the pace of gains slowed considerably from previous years for what could be a variety of reasons – including a jump in the number of caregivers who grow marijuana for patients.

Figures from the state’s revenue department show that Mainers spent $24.8 million on non-edible marijuana products at the state’s eight dispensaries in 2016, a 5.3% increase over 2015 sales, the Portland Press Herald reported.

However, the 5.3% boost pales in comparison with the 46% and 40% year-over-year growth that Maine dispensaries experienced in 2015 and 2014,

…

Maine medical marijuana sales slow markedly in 2016 is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs