MMJ Business Daily

More Big Rec Endorsements in California, Arizona

Recreational marijuana legalization initiatives in two states netted some notable endorsements on Monday.

In California, the state’s Democratic Party chapter announced its support of the Adult Use of Marijuana Act (AUMA), the rec initiative backed by billionaire Sean Parker. That makes it the first legalization measure to receive the formal support of a major statewide party.

The endorsement “underscores the responsible and consensus approach of the (AUMA) and strengthens what is already the largest, most enthusiastic and most diverse coalition ever assembled in support of a marijuana legalization effort,” campaign manager Brian Brokaw said in a press release.

Meanwhile, U.S.

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More Big Rec Endorsements in California, Arizona is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Minnesota Preps for Expansion Deadline

Minnesota’s two medical marijuana businesses are scrambling to get new dispensaries open before a July 1 program expansion deadline.

Under Minnesota law, the two cannabis companies in the state, LeafLine and Vireo Health, have until July 1 to get open up to four dispensaries each, according to the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

As of June 1, Minnesota had only three dispensaries, in Minneapolis, Eagan and Rochester, so many patients in the 12th-largest state in the nation were hours from the nearest dispensary. Two more dispensaries have opened so far this month, in St. Cloud and Moorhead, while another three

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Minnesota Preps for Expansion Deadline is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

15 Illinois Dispensaries Still Waiting to Open

Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner surprised his critics and supporters alike when he issued 52 medical cannabis dispensary permits and 18 cultivation licenses last February without preamble. But though 37 of those dispensaries are now open, 15 have yet to begin serving patients.

The reasons, according to Illinois MMJ czar Joseph Wright, range from zoning problems to various business issues, the Belleville News-Democrat reported.

That’s led to speculation that some of those licenses may be surrendered, or handed over to different licensees, if the original license winners can’t manage to get a dispensary up and running.

“More

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15 Illinois Dispensaries Still Waiting to Open is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Chart of the Week: Cannabis Retailers Excel in Key Revenue Metric

By Eli McVey

Dispensaries and recreational marijuana shops fare well against other retailers in a key financial metric: revenue per square foot.

Cannabis storefronts average $974 in revenue annually per square foot of space – slightly higher than a Whole Foods and much more than the typical pharmacy, according to the Marijuana Business Factbook.

The figure, combined with survey responses from cannabis executives showing that the vast majority of dispensaries and rec stores are either break-even or in the black, indicates that cannabis retailers are fundamentally strong.

Revenue per square foot is a commonly used metric to

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Chart of the Week: Cannabis Retailers Excel in Key Revenue Metric is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Colorado Anti-Marijuana Ballot Campaign Now Underway

Advocates who want to scale back Colorado’s marijuana industry have received the green light to begin gathering signatures to put the issue before voters in the fall.

The Colorado Supreme Court gave the go-ahead Thursday to supporters who want to put an initiative on the November ballot that would impose potency caps and packaging restrictions on a variety of marijuana products, the Associated Press reported.

The proposed measure would ban all marijuana products with THC potency of more than 16%, which would make products such as vape pens and some edibles illegal.

It also would effectively regulate concentrates makers and

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Colorado Anti-Marijuana Ballot Campaign Now Underway is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Cannabis Company Plans Huge Grow Site in CA

A California marijuana company plans to build massive medical cannabis cultivation site in Desert Hot Springs, in the southern part of the state.

G FarmaLabs, based in Anaheim, said it received a conditional use permit from the city’s planning commission earlier this month that allows it to conduct an 18-month grow.

The company plans to use revenue from the temporary grow to fund construction of a permanent facility in Desert Hot Springs that G FarmaLabs said will total 102,000 square feet, according to a company video.

The permanent site will consist of three greenhouses, a processing and operations center,

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Cannabis Company Plans Huge Grow Site in CA is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Michigan Marijuana Rec Campaign Files Suit to Make Ballot

MILegalize, the Michigan campaign that gathered signatures for 11 months to get an adult-use cannabis initiative before voters this November, has filed suit against the state in a bid to get its measure on the ballot.

In its lawsuit, MILegalize argues that a requirement that ballot measure campaigns gather all of their signatures within 180 days runs contrary to the state constitution. The requirement only formally became law this year when the governor signed a bill on June 8 making it so, the Detroit Free Press reported.

MILegalize started collecting signatures last year, well beyond the 180-day window. For

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Michigan Marijuana Rec Campaign Files Suit to Make Ballot is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Week in Review: Microsoft Makes a Splash, AZ Bank Snuffs Out Cannabis Crowdfunding Bid & Pig ‘N Whistle Wins

By Omar Sacirbey and John Schroyer

Microsoft makes a landmark foray into the marijuana business, an Arizona bank pulls the plug on a cannabis company’s crowdfunding effort, and a Denver MJ company scores a legal win.

Here’s a closer look at some notable developments in the marijuana industry over the past week.

Microsoft Isn’t Very Micro in Cannabis

Microsoft’s blockbuster disclosure about partnering with Kind Financial to go after government cannabis inventory tracking contracts shouldn’t alarm software companies already in that particular niche.

In fact, they may find wannabe partners knocking on their own doors.

That’s the opinion of

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Week in Review: Microsoft Makes a Splash, AZ Bank Snuffs Out Cannabis Crowdfunding Bid & Pig ‘N Whistle Wins is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

California Medical Marijuana Oil Producers Raided

Local law enforcement agents raided five properties in Sonoma County, California, connected to a pair of well-known medical marijuana oil producing companies, indicating the industry continues to face a legal risk even while the state is crafting rules for MMJ businesses.

The two brands, Absolute Xtracts and Care by Design, had to halt production after county police seized equipment and inventory, the Santa Rosa Press Democrat reported.

But authorities also said the head of the company, Franklin Hunter, was using “illegal and hazardous production methods,” and was breaking a number of city ordinances, according to the paper.

A spokesman for the

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California Medical Marijuana Oil Producers Raided is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

California’s Mendocino County Creates Marijuana Appellations

California’s Mendocino County is known for producing a diverse array of quality wines. But now the northern coastal county is angling to be known for producing quality marijuana strains distinguished by their growing region.

In what could be a first for this country, Mendocino is being divided into different cannabis appellations to distinguish individual growing regions. Currently, Mendocino has 11 proposed cannabis regions, TheDailyMeal.com reported.

In wine, an appellation designates where a grape was grown and harvested, the type of grape planted, and the environmental factors contributing to a wine’s unique characteristics. Think of France’s Champagne sparkling wines.

By applying

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California’s Mendocino County Creates Marijuana Appellations is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs