MARKETWATCH | Top News And Data From The Cannabis Industry
Voters in Oklahoma chose to legalize medical marijuana, becoming the 30th U.S. state to do so; GW Pharmaceuticals GWPH, +0.08% got the first-ever FDA approval for a cannabis-based drug; Ice Cube’s Big3 basketball league started allowing players to medicate with CBD; Aurora Cannabis ACBFF, +10.46% closed a debt deal with the Bank of Montreal worth up to C$250 million ($188.6 million); and U.S. Congress passed a bill would (pending the President’s approval) legalize hemp, the plant often described as the non-psychoactive “cousin” of marijuana.
he enforcement of the temporary regulations is going to disrupt the industry significantly, creating a huge bottleneck in the supply chain due to new packaging and lab testing requirements. It’s going to be frustrating for everyone involved in cannabis, including consumers,” said Daniel Wacks, co-founder and CEO of cannabis company State Flower. “The black market will continue to thrive, and perhaps even more so, while everyone struggles to comply with the new product regulations. I expect we will be entering into the largest supply shortage the legal cannabis industry has ever experienced. On the other hand, after 22 years since proposition 215 was passed, California’s industry will finally have adequate consumer protections in place.”