MMJ Business Daily

First Alaska Recreational Marijuana Licenses Issued

Alaska has begun issuing the first business licenses for its upcoming recreational cannabis industry, a key step in the launch of the state’s adult-use MJ market.

The first two licenses were issued Thursday afternoon at a meeting of the state’s Marijuana Control Board, which approved permits for a pair of testing labs that were first on the agenda, the Alaska Dispatch News reported.

The first, for Anchorage-based CannTest, was approved unanimously by the five-member board, and now requires local approval from the city. The second, for AK Green Labs, was approved unanimously, too.

Also on the board’s agenda: 18

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First Alaska Recreational Marijuana Licenses Issued is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Week in Review: Ohio Medical Cannabis Legalization a Possible Tipping Point

By John Schroyer

With the stroke of a pen, a former Republican presidential candidate legalized medical marijuana this week in the nation’s seventh-largest state by population.

Let that sink in for a moment.

The politician wielding the pen: Ohio Gov. John Kasich, the last GOP presidential candidate to drop out against now-presumptive nominee Donald Trump.

The result: Kasich not only cleared the way for a new medical marijuana market and countless business opportunities, but he also gave the cannabis movement a major boost on the national stage with his John Hancock.

In short, he enabled MJ reformers to unquestionably

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Week in Review: Ohio Medical Cannabis Legalization a Possible Tipping Point is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

California, Nevada Lawmakers Back Marijuana Legalization

In another sign that marijuana is increasingly mainstream, a California congressman and thirteen Nevada lawmakers took the step of publicly endorsing cannabis legalization measures in the state.

It’s a growing trend among elected lawmakers and officials, one that could simultaneously advance the economic interests of the maijuana industry.

The group in Nevada includes state Senate Minority Leader Aaron Ford plus nine other sitting senator and assemblymen, who jointly endorsed Question 2, the initiative to legalize adult-use marijuana.

The measure will appear on the Nov. 8 ballot. The group also includes one retired assemblyman, a Clark County commissioner, and North Las

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California, Nevada Lawmakers Back Marijuana Legalization is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Proposed Measure Threatens CO Cannabis Industry, Firm Says

A cannabis industry data firm is sounding the alarm over a proposed Colorado ballot initiative it says would prohibit marijuana products that generate more than 80% of industry revenue in the state.

The proposed initiative, by state House Representative Kathleen Conti, would limit the amount THC content in cannabis products to 16%. The current average is 17.1% in buds and flowers and 62.1% in concentrates, according to a 2015 study.

“When we first encountered the proposed language we quickly understood it would have a dramatic effect on the market,” Roy Bingham, CEO of Colorado-based BDS Analytics, the data firm, said

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Proposed Measure Threatens CO Cannabis Industry, Firm Says is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Is Fairbanks Becoming Alaska’s Marijuana Capital?

Just as Denver is the epicenter of Colorado’s recreational cannabis industry, it appears Fairbanks is poised to be the somewhat unlikely hub of Alaska’s upcoming rec trade.

Thanks to less bureaucratic red tape, Fairbanks has become the most welcoming municipality when it comes to marijuana companies looking to set up shop, according to the Alaska Dispatch News. Alaska voters approved adult-use marijuana in February 2015.

Fairbanks is the second most populous city in the state, with just over 31,000 people. It’s located 360 miles inland from the coastal city of Anchorage.

The city has thus far approved 47 zoning

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Is Fairbanks Becoming Alaska’s Marijuana Capital? is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

MA High Court Hears Marijuana Ballot Measure Challenges

Opponents of a ballot measure legalizing adult-use marijuana in Massachusetts made their arguments in the state’s Supreme Court Wednesday, hoping to prevent the initiative from making it on to next November’s ballot.

Lawyers for 59 voters behind one of two lawsuits asserted that the language used in the summary of the ballot measure, which was approved by the state and shown to petition signers, is not specific enough, and therefore voters were not fully aware of what the measure would legalize, local broadcaster WBZ reported.

“The voters were significantly misled when they were told that this was going

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MA High Court Hears Marijuana Ballot Measure Challenges is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Pennsylvania University’s Medical Cannabis Center Could Boost Industry

By Omar Sacirbey

A new center for medical marijuana education and research at a Philadelphia university could give the MMJ industry an economic shot in the arm.

Thomas Jefferson University just unveiled the Center for Medical Cannabis Education & Research, saying it’s the “first major health sciences university” in the U.S. to lead such an effort.

School officials and marijuana industry leaders said the facility, located within the university, will provide much-needed research into MMJ and help doctors learn about medical cannabis via online courses.

The combination of research and education could lead to more patients using medical cannabis,

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Pennsylvania University’s Medical Cannabis Center Could Boost Industry is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Ohio Governor Signs Medical Cannabis Bill Into Law

The ink is now dry on an Ohio bill legalizing medical marijuana, making the state the 26th to join the MMJ fold and putting the country past the halfway mark for states that have approved viable medical cannabis programs.

Ohio Gov. John Kasich signed the legislation into law with little fanfare, Cleveland.com reported Wednesday afternoon.

Ohio follows Louisiana, which became the 25th last month, and Pennsylvania, which became No. 24 in April.

State regulators must still write many of the details for implementing Ohio’s MMJ law. But the program easily could become one of the largest in

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Ohio Governor Signs Medical Cannabis Bill Into Law is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Denver MJ Grower May Lose License Over Neighborhood Opposition

A Denver marijuana business could, for the first time, lose its cultivation license because of neighborhood opposition.

The case underscores the fact that the Denver’s MJ industry faces a real risk from local pushback.

Starbuds, a Colorado cannabis chain, could be forced to forfeit its license to cultivate 240 plants at its original retail location if a senior regulator follows through on an agency official’s recommendation, The Denver Post reported.

Neighborhood opposition led to a hearing with a license renewal officer under the city’s department of excise and licenses. The officer recommended the license renewal be rejected, potentially setting up a

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Denver MJ Grower May Lose License Over Neighborhood Opposition is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

FL Firm Wins Patent for Synthetic Cannabis-Based Therapy

A Florida biopharmaceutical company said it has been awarded the first U.S. patent for the commercial development of synthetic cannabis-based medical treatments.

Tampa-based Teewinot Life Sciences, formerly known as CBC Biotechnologies, said  in a news release the patent – U.S. Patent No. 9,359,625 – claims a biosynthetic process for manufacturing the cannabinoids THCA, CBDA and CBCA.

The company said its synthetic production method is faster than plant cultivation, does less environmental damage, and results in a purer cannabinoids.

“Our use of synthetic biology represents a significant advancement from current plant extraction and chemical synthesis methods,” Jeff Korentur, Teewinot’s CEO,

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FL Firm Wins Patent for Synthetic Cannabis-Based Therapy is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs