Marijuana News Round-Up

This week in our marijuana news round-up. Will cannabis-infused beverages take over the beer and alcohol market? Many think it could be a much healthier alternative. And a real contender for alcohol beverages if federal legalization of cannabis happens. 

Talking about disruption in consumer products, how close is Big Tobacco to moving in on the cannabis industry? Learn about some of the strategic investments companies like Philip Morris have made in the past five years. And why the tobacco giant won’t be “selling cigarettes” in the UK for much longer. 

Cherokee Tribe in South Dakota Opens First Dispensary in State

After a state has legalized medical marijuana, it can take months or years to put the infrastructure in place. Legislation needs to be followed in terms of providing business licenses to cultivators, processors, and manufacturers. 

Guidelines for referring physicians (who complete the medical card health evaluation) have to be implemented. In some cases, doctors need to complete cannabis certification training. Tax infrastructure needs to be developed—bylaws to provide restrictions to where cannabis businesses can be established. The list goes on and on (frustratingly) for patients waiting to get their medical card and buy legal marijuana. 

Two Tribes First to Open Dispensaries

There have been two instances of American Tribes that are beating the state to the punchline. While progress is slow on a large scale level, in both North Carolina and South Dakota, Tribal leaders have jumped in on the business opportunity. By providing medical card health evaluation services to patients and dispensaries stocked with cannabis products!

The first medical marijuana dispensary was opened by the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe on July 1, 2021, in South Dakota. Voter approval of both adult0use (recreational) and medical marijuana in November 2020 was sufficient for the Tribe to open a dispensary and medical card registration service on their land. In South Dakota, the dispensary is owned by FSST Pharms, LLC, the registered business owned by the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe. 

The Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe opened a medical cannabis retail dispensary on July 1, 2021, in Flandreau, South Dakota, about 45 miles north of Sioux Falls. The opening follows voter approval of a medical marijuana measure in last November’s election.

The dispensary is named Native Nations Cannabis and owned by the tribe under FSST Pharms, LLC.

Are You Afraid of Losing Your Job Because of Employer Drug Testing?

Should a patient with a medical card ever have to choose between painful symptoms and keeping their job? That is the catch 22 situation that most Americans with a medical marijuana card are in right now. 

Some studies suggest that employment drug testing has gone up in tandem with the number of states that have legalized medical marijuana. Meanwhile, global retail giant Amazon recently shared that they will not be drug testing employees anymore. With the exception of staff that operates vehicles or heavy equipment. 

Do people with a medical card have protections under the Americans With Disabilities Act? Some states are already working on or implementing labor law protections for employees that use cannabis outside of work. Learn why federal legalization could make every medical cardholder exempt from the consequences of a positive drug test in the workplace. 

For more marijuana news read: “Toke or Broke? Keeping a Job With a Medical Card”. 

Swapping the After Work Beer for a THC Drink Instead?

Federal legalization of cannabis in the MORE Act would change just about everything about cannabis culture. And businesses that create products like cannabis-infused beverages. Right now, there are places where you can get them, like California and Colorado. But the FDA has recently stated that CBD and THC in food products are strictly prohibited. 

While states may legalize the production and sale of THC-infused beverages, the products can’t legally be sold out of the state. And that means the companies that make them can’t even think of multi-state distribution. Unless they set up shop in each state, much the way vertically integrated cannabis dispensaries have to. 

How much beer does the average American drink? Would cannabis-infused beverages be a much healthier alternative? We review some of the advantages, including health considerations for people who want to end the day with a relaxing drink, whether it’s hops or bud infused. 

Read more marijuana news in this article: “Bongs Won’t Stop Beer Bellies but THC Beverages Might.”

Cigarette Companies Want to Offer CBD and THC Alternatives for Smoking Cessation

Is it ironic that the same companies that created global addiction to nicotine products are now getting ready to enter the cannabis market? There is evidence that some of the largest tobacco brands in the world have been buying businesses and divisions to bolster their growth in cannabis products, if or when it is federally legalized in the United States. 

Philip Morris CEO shocked everyone by stating the company’s intention to stop selling tobacco products in the UK soon. Instead, they want to get everyone hooked on healthier and more satisfying cannabis and cannabidiol smokable products. From vapes to ‘cigarettes’ and possibly CBD chew? 

What would change in a national cannabis marketplace if local dispensaries had to compete with the corner gas station for legalized products? Are people in favor of seeing “Big Tobacco” create a cannabis monopoly in the United States? We look at the potential impact. 

For more marijuana news read: “Big Tobacco Making a Play to Monopolize Marijuana?”