MAY 12, 2018
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THIS IS WEEDWEEK CANADA.
Welcome to WeedWeek Canada, the best way to keep up with Canada's green rush.

WWCanada is a Saturday morning newsletter for professionals in the world's largest fully-legal cannabis market. Our goal is to deliver key data and insights in a quick, digestible format.

Like the original WeedWeek , WWCanada strives to replicate the separation of business and editorial operations practiced at reputable news organizations. Most importantly, advertisers have no influence on editorial content. (For complete ethics statement see the bottom of this email.)

WWCanada is written by Jesse Staniforth, a freelance journalist in Montreal who has reported extensively on indigenous issues, cybersecurity, food safety, and cannabis for outlets including Leafly, ThinkProgress, The Walrus and Salon. You can find him on twitter @jbstaniforth .

Jesse will be moderating a discussion about the legal and regulatory challenges of the post-legalization world at Montreal's CannabisFest (part of StartupFest) on July 10.
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ALEX HALPERIN
The WeedWeek Podcast
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This week, Hayley and Alex talk to Alan Brochstein, stock analyst and founder of New Cannabis Ventures, about the changing climate for cannabis stocks, and how to play the market.

The episode lands Monday by 4:20 p.m. Pacific.

Don't forget to  rate us five stars on iTunes  !

Previous episodes:
-Episode 17 Oakland veterinarian Dr. Gary Richter on pot for pets
-Episide 16 Jennifer Lujan, director of social impact at Eaze.
-Episode 15 Combat veteran and IHeartJane CEO Socrates Rosenfeld.
-Episode 14 Chef   Holden Jagger of SoCal caterer  Altered Plates discusses the alchemy of cooking with cannabis
-Episode 12 Cannabis attorney   Hilary Bricken on what's not working in the California market.  A must listen for professionals!
-Episode 11  Jim McAlpine founder of the  420 Games
-Episode 10 Previously incarcerated activist and entrepreneur   Lukas Lucas on L.A.'s equity program
-Episode 9 Journalist  David Bienenstock on social justice within the industry and his new podcast  Great Moments in Weed
-Episode 8  Jackie Fox (Hayley's mom) on becoming a MED user later in life.
-Episode 7  Dr. Peter Grinspoon, Harvard Medical School, on cannabis, opioids and the medical establishment.
-Episode 6  Anja Charbonneau, editor of design forward cannabis magazine  Broccoli
-Episode 4 L.A. cannabis Business attorney    Ariel Clark on what cannabis entrepreneurs need to know
-Episode 3 Congressman and longtime legalization supporter  Earl Blumenauer
-Episode 2   Emily Dufton, author of  Grass Roots: The rise and fall and rise of marijuana in America, on the history of legalization

Comments or feedback?  Don't be shy.

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Here's the news.
Politics
Federal officials continue to encourage Canadians not to lie to US border personnel about their cannabis use.
 
Canadians in focus groups told the federal government that they wanted cannabis tax revenues to go to the provinces, not to pay for deficit reduction or public education campaigns about the potential harms of cannabis. (iPolitics)
 
The 5 Conservatives on the 12-member Senate Standing Committee on Social Affairs, Science, and Technology will likely vote to delay Bill C-45 for a year and outlaw home cannabis cultivation. While the 2 Liberals on the committee will vote to stay the course, the 5 independent Senators will ultimately decide the Bill’s fate. (The Hill Times—Paywall)
Injured and PTSD-afflicted veterans have been struggling since Veterans’ Affairs Canada cut funding for MED by 70% last year. (Globe and Mail)
 
A Health Canada representative stressed CBD remains illegal, and said anyone with evidence of CBD products being sold in Canada should pass that information to police. (CBC News)
 
Responding to the Senate’s Aboriginal Peoples’ Committee’s call to delay legalization for a year, Health Canada said the current system was dysfunctional and would not be improved by delaying legal REC. (CBC News)
 
Activists launched the Campaign for Cannabis Amnesty, calling for the federal government to grant full pardons for convictions of possession of up to 30 grams. Bill C-45 does not address previous cannabis convictions. (CBC News)
 
Federal Conservative Party leader Andrew Scheer, said he smoked cannabis “when [he] was young.” He still opposes Bill C-45, calling it “bad legislation.” (Globe and Mail)
 
The Senate will remain in session until Bills C-45 and C-46 have passed.
  • "We have an obligation as a Senate to deal with the legislation that's before us before we take a summer break," said Senator Peter Harder. (CBC Politics)
 
Bill C-46, the “companion” legislation dealing with impaired driving, may be delayed, but Bill Blair says the federal government will go ahead with legalization regardless, because police already have the authority to arrest impaired drivers. (CBC Politics)
 
Federal task-force chair and former Health Minister Anne McLellan said banning home cultivation would be paternalistic and unenforceable.
 
The Senate Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade fretted over Canada breaking its obligations under three international treaties, but Senators have not decided on a single way forward to addressing Canada’s international obligations after REC legalization. (The Lawyer’s Daily)
Business
Oristep Consulting projected the global MED market, valued at $12.67B in 2016, would be worth $33.41B by 2022. (NewsWire)
 
CIBC analysts predict that REC will outpace liquor sales by 2020. (Financial Post)
 
An estimated 70% of all cannabis industry profits is expected to go to provincial taxes. (Huffington Post)
Thousands of kilos of cannabis plant-waste could be used in for their fibres in products like clothing, cement-reinforcer, and building siding. However Health Canada mandates producers destroy their plant waste. (Financial Post)
 
Building and marketing cannabis brands without branded packaging, advertising, and celebrity endorsements will be a complicated business with millions on the line. (Vice)
 
Products like pet treats and CBD oils help relieve the stigma associated with cannabis. (Toronto Star)
 
Cannabis is significantly cheaper in Canada than in the US due to our longer history of legalization, said data analysis firm Priceonomics. (Market Watch)
  • BDS Analytics found that Americans and Canadians consumed cannabis in similar ways—to relax, manage anxiety, and de-stress. 50% of US and Canadian cannabis users are full-time workers, 50% are creative, and 38% are physically active. (Dope Magazine)
 
A report from New Frontier Data says Canada became the world’s cannabis export giant virtually overnight. (Ottawa Citizen)
 
Shopify will handle online sales for the Ontario Cannabis Store, and may bid to handle other province’s online sales. (Business Insider Prime—Paywall)
 
 
Alcohol producers are looking to add cannabis products to their lineups. (Globe and Mail—Paywall)
 
Germany will continue to license MED from Canadian producers, regardless of whether REC legalization puts Canada in violation of the 1961 UN Single Treaty on Narcotic Drugs. (Marijuana.com)
 
LPs worry the BC Liquor Distribution Branch is offering wholesale prices far too low for quality cannabis. This risks making BC’s REC “boring weed,” thereby encouraging the black market, said an anonymous executive. (Marijuana Business Daily)
 
Though American states with legal REC saw a jump in property values, the same will likely not happen in Canada. (Yarmouth County Vanguard)
 
Liquor Stores N.A., which owns Alberta’s Liquor Depot retailers, changed its name to Alcanna to signal its focus in the Canadian cannabis market. (CBC Alberta)
 
Liberty Health Sciences licensed Aphria’s brand Solei Sungrown Cannabis for sale in Florida and Massachusetts. (NewsWire)
 
National Access Cannabis signed a letter of intent with Colombia’s LaSanta S.A.S. to import 600 kilograms of resin or equivalent volume of oil for MED in NAC’s Canadian clinics. (NewsWire)
 
Cannabis data-analytics firm StrainprintTM announced $3.8M in Series A funding led by industry investor Cesare Fazare. (NewsWire)
 
 
Provincial News
Hamilton, Ontario has almost 46 unlicensed dispensaries for a population of 740,000. Under the current Ontario plan, all will be closed and replaced by a single Ontario Cannabis Store. (Lift)
 
Closures of Toronto’s unlicensed dispensaries have pushed the edibles market online. (City News)
 
A Toronto hydroponics supplier said those who admit to home-growing face insurance premium hikes. (CBC Toronto)
 
Within a few years, BC provincial tax from cannabis may top $110M. (Vancouver Sun)
 
BC does not have a policy for handling  MED use in its hospital system. (The Star Vancouver)
 
BC passed its impaired driving law mandating drivers suspected of being under the influence of cannabis be brought to police stations so a Drug Recognition Expert can test them. (Vancouver Sun)
 
Police on Vancouver Island will not confirm whether or not they raided the warehouse of Mota Cannabis Products, one of Canada’s largest unlicensed edibles producers. Edibles will not be legal until next year. (CTV News)
The Manitoba government did not meet with the Office of the Children’s Advocate prior to drafting its cannabis legislation. Children’s Advocate Daphne Penrose said she was concerned that zero tolerance for possession of cannabis under age 19 would saddle young people with criminal records. (City News, CBC Winnipeg)
 
Winnipeg decided not to set its own rules for where cannabis can be sold, deferring instead to rules determined by the government of Manitoba. (Global News)
 
Though Alberta has chosen not to limit the number of cannabis retailers, it limits the number of applications any company can make for retail spaces to 37. (The Star Calgary)
 
Edmonton’s proposed lottery system for awarding retail cannabis permits is too uncertain for prospective businesses, said Fire & Flower VP Government and Stakeholder Relations Nathan Mison. (Global News)
  • Another prospective retailer described the Alberta Gaming, Liquor, and Cannabis Commission licensing process as “pretty gruelling” and “invasive.” (CBC Edmonton)
 
Northwest Territories defence lawyer Peter Harte said violence in the territory may decline after REC legalization as drinkers switch to cannabis. (CBC North)
 
Northwest Territory’s MLAs have been asking communities for feedback on the territorial government’s proposed cannabis legislation. One said that citizens do not have enough information yet and that MLAs have mostly been answering questions. (CBC North)
 
The Quebec government continues to demand Ottawa allow the province to ban home growing,. (Radio-Canada—in French)
  • Minister of Canadian Relations Jean-Marc Fournier said because Quebec accepted the federal initiative for REC legalization, Ottawa must accept Quebec’s terms. (Montreal Gazette)
 
The 11 Nova Scotia Liquor Commission’s retailers that will also sell cannabis are renovating their outlets to place their cannabis counters behind a frosted glass divider, which will allow the NSLC to “keep the area bright and open and inviting.” (CTV Atlantic)
 
Halifax marchers organized by Maritimers Unite for Medical Marijuana called for police to stop arresting MED patients and raiding dispensaries. (CBC Nova Scotia)
 
The Canadian Federation of Independent Businesses criticized the Newfoundland Liquor Corporation’s Cannabis NL for primarily approving major retailers, instead of smaller businesses in the first step of applications for retail cannabis licenses. (CBC Newfoundland)
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Bye,
Jesse

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