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Foreign assets could be next on the block for cash-hungry cannabis companies
International holdings becoming burden to companies needing to divest non-core assets
Financial Post (Canada)
Friday, January 10, 2020
Two years ago, Canadian cannabis companies were racing to scoop up international assets, from swaths of fertile land in southern Africa to cultivation licences in Jamaica and everything in between. Now, with fears of a cash crunch looming over the industry, some of the same producers who spent tens of millions to build an international presence have started dialling back, putting projects on hold or divesting of their foreign operations altogether. And it’s a trend that some pot analysts expect will only intensify over the next 12 months. “Licensed producers are now in a capital constrained environment and investors want to see profitability.” (See: ‘Building a new industry from scratch is hard’: Cannabis firms brace for more spilled blood in 2020) -
L'étude de la proposition de loi relative à l’amnistie des cultivateurs de kif ajournée
Toutefois, l’exécutif montre un signe d’ouverture sur une question qui a longtemps essuyé un niet
Tel Quel (Maroc)
Vendredi, 10 janvier 2020
Il faudra s’armer de patience pour connaître la position du gouvernement au sujet des deux propositions de loi portées par le PAM, au sujet de la légalisation du cannabis et l’amnistie des cultivateurs de la plante. L’étude de la proposition de loi relative à l’amnistie des cultivateurs de cannabis a été ajournée, lors d’une réunion de la commission de justice à la deuxième chambre avec Mohamed Benabdelkader, ministre de la Justice. Déposée en 2015 par le PAM à la deuxième chambre, la proposition de loi relative à la légalisation du cannabis sera examinée au sein de la commission des secteurs productifs à la deuxième chambre, mais aucune date n’a été fixée pour le moment. -
Senegal's remote cannabis growers evade crackdown
Cannabis grows easily in Senegal's tropical climate, which makes it a tempting crop for impoverished farmers
AFP (France)
Friday, January 10, 2020
Most Senegalese farmers sell peanuts and vegetables, but in one hamlet lost in a mangrove swamp in the country's south, only one crop is commercially viable -- cannabis. Kouba, a village deep in the mangroves of Casmance and inaccessible by road, teems with caiman crocodiles and rare birds. Locals say no police officer has set foot there since the 1980s, and a recent crackdown on cannabis cultivation has passed them by. "Ever since I was born, people have been cultivating cannabis," says Philippe Diaba. "If you don't grow cannabis here, you can't get by." Kouba villagers say the drug fetches between 15,000 and 30,000 CFA francs ($25-$50, 23-45 euros) a kilo -- compared with just 500 CFA francs for a kilo of onions. (West Africa needs to look at partially decriminalising drugs, says thinktank) -
New York could legalise cannabis this year, governor says
Legalizing the drug would pour hundreds of millions into the coffers of a state facing a $6 billion budget gap, he said
The Independent (UK)
Thusday, January 9, 2020
Governor Andrew Cuomo pledged for the second year in a row to legalise recreational cannabis in New York, prioritizing a push that fell apart last year amid tensions over who should be allowed to sell the drug and where the revenue should go. New York could become the nation’s 12th to do so. Mr Cuomo made the legalisation of cannabis a key priority as he outlined his agenda for 2020, saying taxes imposed by a regulatory scheme could bring some $300m into the state’s coffers and confront injustices in enforcement of drug laws. “For decades, communities of colour were disproportionately affected by the unequal enforcement of marijuana laws. Last year we righted that injustice when we decriminalised possession,” Mr Cuomo said in his annual State of the State address. -
South Africa's black farmers fight to enter marijuana market
The new marijuana industry could soon be controlled by big pharmaceutical companies, cutting out long-time growers
The New York Times (US)
Wednesday, January 8, 2020
Following the Constitutional Court's decision in 2018 to decriminalize the personal use and cultivation of cannabis in South Africa, there are concerns on the ground that black farmers who have been working for decades in what has been an illegal industry may miss out on the potential boom. Many smaller growers cannot afford to get the licenses needed to grow marijuana for medicinal and research purposes. The stringent requirements include getting police clearances, registering a specified plot size, erecting high-tech security fencing, getting irrigation systems and setting up agreements with overseas buyers, among others. The cost of establishing a legal marijuana farm is estimated to be $200,000 to $350,000, according to a South African agricultural publication, Landbouweekblad. -
Tainted drugs are fuelling Thunder Bay's opioid deaths, say advocates. They want a safe supply to fight it
A safe supply of opioids 'would mean less death,' says CEO of NorWest Community Health Centres
CBC Radio (Canada)
Wednesday, January 8, 2020
Inside the only supervised injection site in Thunder Bay, Ont., nurse practitioner Josh Fraser has reversed so many opioid overdoses that he says the lives saved are "too many to count." "It's not about trying to stop it," Fraser said of drug use in the northwestern Ontario city. "I think it's about providing a safe place and meeting people where they're at." The NorWest Community Health Centres' supervised injection site is part of a wider call by the Alliance for Healthier Communities — a network of community-governed health-care providers — asking the federal government to address contaminated drugs in the illicit market, and provide a safe supply for opioid users. A safe supply "would mean less death," but would require the federal government to collaborate with the provinces on a national strategy. -
Philly’s supervised injection site backers say they won’t delay opening while Justice Dept. appeals
A site has not been selected and fund-raising continues
The Inquirer (US)
Tuesday, January 7, 2020
The Philadelphia nonprofit hoping to operate the nation’s first supervised injection site it would not let an expected appeal by the Justice Department — or threats from the U.S. attorney in the city — stop it from opening soon. In a court filing, attorneys for Safehouse asked U.S. District Judge Gerald A. McHugh to enter a final order cementing his October decision that an overdose prevention facility like the one organizers have proposed would not inherently violate federal law. Once the order is signed, the filing said, Safehouse intends to launch as “soon as possible,” moving the nonprofit closer to a standoff with U.S. Attorney William M. McSwain, who has vowed to “use all enforcement tools” at his disposal to shut down any site that opens before the appellate process plays out. -
Thailand rolls out cannabis clinic based on traditional medicine
There are already around 25 cannabis clinics attached to general hospitals around the country
Reuters (UK)
Monday, January 6, 2020
Thailand opened its first full-time clinic specialising in traditional and alternative cannabis-based medicine, as part of a move by the government towards developing a medicinal cannabis industry. "This is a pilot clinic, because we cannot produce enough doctors with expertise in cannabis," Public Health Minister, Anutin Charnvirankul, told reporters at the opening ceremony in Bangkok. Patients will receive treatment free of charge for the first two weeks, he added. Thailand, which has a tradition of using cannabis to relieve pain and fatigue, legalized marijuana for medical use and research in 2017 to boost agricultural income. -
Bloody Philippine drug war fails to curb methamphetamine supply: VP
Robredo said the government must change its strategy and halt police anti-drug operations
Reuters (UK)
Monday, January 6, 2020
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs has only managed to curb the supply of methamphetamines by less than 1% of annual consumption, proof that it has been a bloody failure, his main political rival, according to Vice President Leni Robredo, who was elected separately to the president.Thousands of suspected drug traffickers and users have been killed in the campaign that Duterte launched soon after he won election in 2016. Robredo, who recently served a brief stint as the president’s drug “tsar”, said vast quantities of the highly addictive drug were available because seizures had barely dented the supply. “It is very clear, based on official data, despite the number of Filipinos killed and the budget spent, the volume of shabu supply curbed didn’t exceed 1%.” -
More than $3m worth of cannabis sold in Illinois on first day of legalisation
Illinois' new regulations have been widely praised for enshrining in law the fact that money made from sales will be pumped into job creation and improving left-behind neighbourhoods.
The Independent (UK)
Friday, January 3, 2020
It was a happy – and seemingly high – new year in Illinois after cannabis sales of more than $3m were made on the first day of the drug being legal for recreational use in the state. Some 37 dispensaries made 77,128 transactions as thousands of residents saw in the start of 2020 by lighting up. "The amazing thing about that is that there's a significant portion of these dollars that go directly into this community reinvestment fund, so we can continue to rebuild communities that have been hardest hit by the war on drugs," said Toi Hutchinson, senior adviser for cannabis control. Illinois is now the 11th US state to legalise the sale of cannabis to adults for recreational purposes.
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