Drug Enforcement Administration Archives - Green Market Report

StaffOctober 31, 2023
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4min00

The Daily Hit is a recap of the top financial news stories for Oct. 31, 2023.

On the Site

DEA Proposes Increasing Amount of Cannabis, Psychedelics Authorized for Research

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration proposed a significant increase to the federal production of cannabis, psilocybin, and a few other narcotics that are currently either Schedule I or II controlled substances, the agency announced in the federal register this week. Read more here.

Connecticut Cannabis Landscape Evolving Quickly, No Shortages Feared

The Connecticut recreational marijuana industry – one of several that launched earlier this year – is quickly coming into its own, with 64 licensed dispensaries and a quartet of grow operations that have been laboring to supply them. Read more here.

Colorado Regulators Weigh Banning Marijuana Businesses at Events

A proposed ban on marijuana businesses in Colorado participating in private events that don’t have their own state permits drew strong pushback from the industry this week, as regulators near the end of a new rulemaking period for cannabis companies. Read more here.

Ayurcann’s Direct-to-Consumer Shift Pays Off

Canadian cannabis extractor Ayurcann Holdings Corp. (CSE: AYUR) (OTCQB: AYURF) reported a meaningful surge in annual revenue and expanded product availability, according to its latest financial statements. For the fiscal year that concluded on June 30, Ayurcann doubled its gross revenue to $22.37 million, up from $11.08 million the previous year. Read more here.

Christina Lake Posts 30% Revenue Jump in Q3 Amid Price Woes

Christina Lake Cannabis Corp. (CSE: CLC) (OTCQB: CLCFF) reported a revenue increase of 30% in its third-quarter financial results ending Aug. 31, marking a rise to $8.9 million over the same nine-month period last year, the company announced Tuesday. Read more here.

In Other News

Rep. Earl Blumenauer

Earl Blumenauer, a Democrat who has represented Oregon in the House for nearly 30 years, said Monday that he would not run for another term. Blumenauer has been a staunch supporter of federal cannabis reform during his time in Congress. Read more here.

Chicago zoning lawsuit

Plans to open a marijuana dispensary in the old Rainforest Café restaurant in Chicago’s River North are now the subject of a lawsuit. Illinois state law doesn’t allow dispensaries within 1,500 feet of each other. The owners of an established dispensary nearby claim opening a new one at the Rainforest Café site would violate that law. Read more here.

Minnesota cannabis rulemaking

Building out the infrastructure needed to support a rising cannabis market in Minnesota is no easy task. Before the state’s new Office of Cannabis Management begins its rulemaking process, the department has launched a survey to ask for community input. Read more here.


StaffAugust 30, 2023
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4min00

The Daily Hit is a recap of the top financial news stories for Aug. 30, 2023.

On the Site

Biden Administration Calls on DEA to Move Marijuana to Schedule 3

Marijuana rescheduling just got real. On Monday, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under the Joe Biden administration formally recommended to its peers at the Department of Justice that marijuana be moved lower on the list of federally controlled substances, from Schedule 1 to Schedule 3. Read more here.

StateHouse Shows Resilience Despite Revenue Dip in Q2

The California-based company’s net revenues for the period were $25.3 million, down versus the $34.6 million in the same period last year. However, gross margins improved to 49.9% in the second quarter from 46.6% in the prior year’s period. Read more here.

Entourage Health’s Revenue Slips in Second Quarter

Entourage Health Corp. (TSX-V: ENTG) (OTCQX: ETRGF) announced its financial results for the second quarter ending June 30, 2023. Entourage reported total revenue increased 1% to $13.37 million over last year’s revenue of $13.18 million. However, revenue fell sequentially from the first quarter’s $15 million. Read more here.

Simply Better Brands Q2 Revenue Soars 40% Despite Net Loss

Simply Better Brands Corp. (TSX: SBBC) (OTCQB: PKANF) reported its second quarter financials ending June 30, showing a 40% increase in revenue, reaching $23.6 million, as the company tries to invests in growing its brands and expanding its reach. Read more here.

RIV Capital Details New York Adult-Use Strategy – and it’s Not Retail

RIV Capital Inc. (CSE: RIV) (OTC: CNPOF), one of the few “registered organizations” in New York licensed to sell medical marijuana through its Etain subsidiary, made clear that its approach to the Empire State’s recreational cannabis market is to compete on wholesaling and brand-building, not retail. Read more here.

In Other News

California Cannabis Administrative Prosecutor Program

The California Department of Justice has launched a cooperative program to help cities combat the prolific illicit market in the state. Through the program, the state plans to provide resources and education to build localized enforcement programs. Fresno is the first city in the state to participate. Read more here.

Delta Extraction

A Missouri judge denied on Wednesday Delta Extraction’s effort to stop the recall of 62,000 products containing the company’s THC concentrate that the state deemed a “potential threat to health and safety.” Read more here.

Pelorus Capital Group

Pelorus Capital Group entered into a managed service agreement with StateHouse Holdings Inc. to construct and manage operations at Pelorus’ cannabis cultivation asset located in Humboldt County, California. Read more here.


Dave HodesJanuary 18, 2023
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8min00

There is psychedelics high fashion. Psychedelics perfume. A psychedelics series on Hulu featuring A-list actor Nicole Kidman. There are psilocybin microdose candies at weddings, replacing alcohol.

Psychedelics of all kinds are working their way into mainstream culture in California and elsewhere. The social elite – Mike Tyson, Miley Cyrus, even Prince Harry – are telling everyone that they’ve not only taken psychedelics, but that it’s changed their lives.

Business conferences about psychedelics are popping up everywhere, including what promises to be the granddaddy – 10,000 attendees in Denver in June for Psychedelic Science 2023 conference.

Johns Hopkins Medicine, NYU, Massachusetts General Hospital, MIT, some top California universities – all are studying psychedelics, some with millions of dollars invested in their work. There is even a new psychedelics caucus in Congress.

Psychedelics is back, big time, and here to stay. But is public attitude changing with the times?

According to a 2021 questionnaire given to 99 people about their attitudes on psychedelics and psilocybin therapy, the majority (72%) supported further research, with 59% supporting psilocybin as a medical treatment.

Younger age groups, those with previous psychedelic experience, and those with nonreligious beliefs were more likely to have favorable attitudes towards psilocybin. A total of 55% of the total sample would accept psychedelics as a treatment if a doctor recommended it.

It’s this sort of momentum for psychedelics that is driving the movement to decriminalize and legalize psychedelics across the U.S. There are now about 15 states or cities in states considering legislation or building working groups to decriminalize or legalize psychedelics. Colorado and Oregon legalized medical use of psychedelics, with Oregon’s legalized medical psilocybin program officially started this year.

There will be much more about the general public’s attitude on the practical use of psychedelics coming out of the Oregon program. But there is still a knowledge gap to overcome, even at the highest levels.

For example, in one study, researchers explored the acceptability of psychedelics among psychiatrists and found that, overall, psychiatrists perceived psychedelics as hazardous and “appropriately illegal.”

The data demonstrates misinformation about psychedelics and a lingering cultural stigma even among highly educated mental health professionals.

So are we still stuck with the stigma of psychedelics, sometimes coming from those respected authorities who we think should know better?

A report about psilocybin in the United Kingdom found that 59% of respondents would use psilocybin-assisted therapy if they had a condition for that kind of treatment. But 24% feared that they would get addicted to psilocybin.

Getting more and better information measuring the general public’s attitudes on psychedelics is fleeting at best. Too much is anecdotal, representing smaller groups or smaller subgroup demographics.

One group of researchers is attempting to develop a model for such measurement, reporting that in a rapidly developing research field such as psychedelics, it is important to understand how the general public views the topic, as well as any specific subgroup – professionals in the mental health field, policymakers or patients.

“Systematically assessing and measuring attitudes on psychedelics in a variety of settings and groups could help understand the wider context and implications of their medical use for psychiatry and society in general,” the researchers noted. “Any further developments in psychedelic research may also affect public opinion trends, which should be followed over time. A validated psychometric instrument allows for direct comparison and replication of data and is best suited to this purpose. Poor general knowledge on psychedelics is understandable, as psychedelic research has only recently experienced revival and the information on these topics is slowly reaching the mainstream.”

What they did find out is that a survey of college students’ attitudes on hallucinogens showed a majority thought that hallucinogens cause addiction. A significant number of participants thought that drugs such as heroin belong to the psychedelic group, indicating a poor understanding of psychedelics’ effects and the classification of illicit substances in general.

“Our findings of the association between knowledge and attitudes on psychedelics strongly indicate that assessing educational interventions is a logical next step,” the study concluded.

The U.S. federal government is perhaps the most difficult obstacle to overcome in changing the public’s perception, because the DEA’s Controlled Substances Act lists most psychedelics as being some of the worst substances on the planet. They are federally illegal, off limits, bad.

There’s a lot to learn still. A lot of misinformation to correct.

After the last 2-3 years of busy psychedelics business development, it feels like the psychedelics industry should be further along in helping the public understand where it’s coming from and where it’s going. The appears not to be the case.

Yet.


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The Green Market Report focuses on the financial news of the rapidly growing cannabis industry. Our target approach filters out the daily noise and does a deep dive into the financial, business and economic side of the cannabis industry. Our team is cultivating the industry’s critical news into one source and providing open source insights and data analysis


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