Welcome to Episode 29 of This Week in Cannabis News.
There was seemingly big news when it comes to cannabis marketing in the US and Canada. Twitter wants to cash in on cannabis advertising. Elon Musk’s Twitter is now going to go after cannabis ads with a new ad policy where they will accept cannabis advertisement.
One California lawmaker would like to allow cannabis retailers to add cannabis lounges to help the industry survive and thrive. The companion bills in the State Assembly and State Senate would allow for food and non-alcoholic beverages to be sold to be sold alongside cannabis at the lounges - and perhaps be a model for other jurisdictions as they consider adding cannabis consumption lounges.
In a move to help the regulated cannabis industry compete with the unregulated market, the Province of Ontario is making some moves. The Ontario Cannabis Store said they were going to lower their cost for product for retailers, meaning retailers will now have a lower base price to purchase their product.
Another dispensary has opened up in New York City - this one called the Union Square Travel Agency. Shout out to Team Dutchie in New York on this one!
In Colorado, there's now a cannabis vending machine. Even the Governor is tweeting about how novel it is.
The vending machine is utilizing Dutchie technology—which is pretty cool, too.
Virginia passed a legalization bill in 2021, but legislation was need to allow for adult-use’s full roll-out. But a bill that would enable that adult-use program to start in earnest has stalled in the state legislature. So for now, Virginia is at a cannabis standstill, apparently.
But what seems to be slowing down in Virginia is, perhaps, speeding up in Hawaii. A pair of bills are making the way through the State Senate in that state, per Marijuana Moment.
And finally, we’ve been following Minnesota’s drive for legalization for a few months - with the newly-elected legislature pushing full-steam ahead. But, from a committee hearing in that state, we have a new argument against legalization… here's your moment of zen for this week:
This week, our cannabis expert is Bill Williams, Jr., the President of BeneLeaves - a friends and family-owned and licensed Cannabis processing business in Columbus, Ohio. He is in conversation with Kwaku Abankroh of team Dutchie to talk about his business, the Ohio market in particular, some of his mentors and heroes in life and business, and generally what it’s like operating in the sector right now in Ohio. This is the third in a series of conversation with black leaders in the cannabis industry during Black History Month.
