Author: News Room

A record amount of cocaine seized by law enforcement in Belgium has the government in the market for some additional incinerators.  Agence France-Presse reports that authorities there have “seized so much cocaine from smugglers operating through the port of Antwerp that it needs more incinerator space to destroy it.”  “There’s a problem with incinerator capacity,” Belgian customs service spokesperson Francis Adyns told Agence France-Press, saying that the government has “a structural solution is on the way.” According to Agence France-Presse, “Belgian authorities are on course to seize more than 100 tonnes in 2022, a new record after 89.5 tonnes was…

Guyana’s National Assembly has passed a hemp bill that puts tight restrictions on the sector to prevent unlicensed production, threatening fines and jail time for violators. Passed earlier this week, the bill establishes a board-managed Industrial Hemp Regulatory Authority (IHRA) to administer licensing, set cultivation quotas and collaborate with the Customs Anti Narcotic Unit in the monitoring of production. While the bill decriminalizes hemp cultivation under a dividing line between hemp and marijuana at 0.3% THC, it also empowers authorities to search producers’ premises and seize property if they are suspected of growing without a permit. Unlicensed hemp operators could…

The National Park Service (NPS) is cautioning people not to lick toads that secrete an alkaloid that produces psychedelic-like effects in humans. It’s not clear if there’s been a recent surge in trippy toad-licking, but the trend is evidently common enough that the federal agency felt it warranted a warning last week. NPS said in a Facebook post on Halloween that it’s a “toad-ally terrifying” practice. There are several species of toads that secrete psychoactive compounds, but one of the most well-known is Bufo alvarius—commonly called the Sonoran desert toad or Colorado River toad—which NPS said is among “the largest…

Cannabis sales are dropping month over month, but there are signs the market is leveling out. By David Abbott, Arizona Mirror Cannabis sales continued to decline in September, but dispensary owners say it is not an unexpected phenomenon and the market will continue to mature as it withstands a worldwide recession on the heels of a global pandemic. The medical marijuana market continued its precipitous decline, dropping to slightly less than $31 million in sales for the month of September, a 12 percent dip from the $35.2 cardholders purchased in August. The decline of that sector began in earnest this…

A new study adds to the body of research indicating that access to legal and regulated marijuana markets served a “protective” purpose for people who vaped cannabis during a 2019 outbreak of lung injuries related to contaminated products. Researchers at Johns Hopkins, New York University and the American Heart Association reached that conclusion in a study published in the journal PLoS ONE this month. They analyzed the prevalence of marijuana vaping, cases of e-cigarette or vaping product-use-associated lung injury (EVALI) and cannabis laws in 13 states. While more people reported vaping marijuana in states that have legalized for medical or…

President Joe Biden is cheering the Oregon governor’s move to grant tens of thousands of marijuana pardons this week, which followed his own federal clemency action last month. And he says other states should “follow Oregon’s example.” Gov. Kate Brown (D) announced on Monday that she was issuing pardons for more than 47,000 cannabis possession convictions at the state-level—an action that comes about a month after Biden pardoned several thousand people who’ve committed federal possession offenses and urged governors to follow suit. Oregon is the latest state to pardon all prior offenses of simple marijuana possession, following my pardon of…

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has sent warning letters to five companies that sell foods and beverages containing CBD—the agency’s latest stepped-up enforcement action that comes amid growing calls for a regulatory pathway for lawful marketing of the non-intoxicating cannabinoid. FDA didn’t specify why it targeted these particular five companies out of the many more that market similar cannabidiol-infused consumables, but it said that they sell products “that people may confuse for traditional foods or beverages which may result in unintentional consumption or overconsumption of CBD.” “CBD-containing products in forms that are appealing to children, such as gummies, hard…

A bill to legalize marijuana in Colombia has been approved in a Senate committee for the first time, weeks after it also advanced in the country’s Chamber of Representatives. Lawmakers have met several times in recent weeks to debate the reform proposal, which would amend the country’s Constitution to end cannabis prohibition for adults. It passed the First Committee of the Senate on Tuesday by a vote of 11-4, though there are still more legislative steps that must be taken before it’s potentially enacted into law. 🚨Seguimos avanzando en el cambio de paradigma sobre la política de drogas. Por primera…

Voters in Arkansas defeated a ballot question to legalize cannabis for adult use by a 56.2% to 43.8% margin with 92% of the vote counted, the New York Times reports. The measure would have legalized possession and use for adults 21 and older and allowed commercial sales.   The measure was opposed by several state politicians, including Governor-elect Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R) and Republican U.S. Sens. Tom Cotton and John Boozman, the latter of which was reelected to a third term. Huckabee Sanders’ predecessor, Asa Hutchinson (R), had also said he planned to vote ‘no’ on the proposal.    Polls…

When Oklahoma regulators launched the state’s medical cannabis industry with an open and generally welcoming licensing scheme, it created a market where anyone with fortitude and starting capital could launch a business and try their hand at the cannabis industry. While The Nirvana Group originally started as the Lasi family tobacco shop, it has grown into a corporate enterprise encompassing cannabis retail, distribution, wholesale, and cultivation operations, all handled in-house. This Q&A covers Arshad Lasi’s journey as a young CEO building out the enterprise, establishing the various vertical operations, and tips for running a family-owned and -operated business. The interview…