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Deals, deals, deals
US MSOs are already making (and terminating) big moves in 2022:
- Massachusetts-based Curaleaf closed its $211 million acquisition of Arizona dispensary chain Bloom, which operates 13 shops in the state. Curaleaf now operates 121 dispensaries across the US (New Cannabis Ventures)
- Chicago’s Cresco Labs terminated its plans to acquire Maryland-based Blair Wellness. “We have terminated the purchase agreement with Blair Wellness due to the failure of certain closing conditions to be met prior to our specified termination date,” said co-founder and CEO Charlie Bachtell (New Cannabis Ventures)
- Toronto’s Heritage Cannabis affiliate Endocanna, which is based in California, is partnering with OMNI Medical Cannabis to create customized strain recommendations based on a consumer’s unique cannabinoid system (Financial Post)
Expect more turmoil as companies grow, shrink, consolidate and shutter in 2022.
Enjoy Cannabis Daily each morning at 7 a.m.
INCUBATE THIS
Seven-storey cannabis incubator opens in downtown Los Angeles
After three years of renovations and plenty of hype, cannabis incubator Green Street is now open in downtown LA, reports Forbes.
The seven-storey historic building includes:
- Office space for cannabis industry entrepreneurs
- Art galleries
- Event space that accommodates cannabis consumers
- Gusto Green, a restaurant on the ground floor
Current tenants include Country Cannabis Co., Vacation, Gas, Asterisk, Trees by Game, Hall of Flowers, content creator Jason Pinsky and blunt artist Weavers. But Covid-19 has made it difficult to fill the available space: “Before COVID, everything was rented out. All the office spaces were taken,” said founder Rama Mayo. “Then COVID hit, and all the people left, so now we’re feeding people back in again.”
FROM ???????? WITH LOVE
IM Cannabis marks globally focused milestone with Canadian import
IM Cannabis, which has operations in Canada, Israel and Germany, announced that Israeli subsidiary Focus Medical Herbs Ltd. successfully imported 399 kg of medical cannabis grown by wholly-owned Canadian cultivator Trichome JWC Acquisition Corp (TJAC), according to a press release.
Focus Medical plans to:
- Begin sales by the end of Q1 2022
- Sell the product under the popular WAGNERS name, an Ontario adult-use brand
- Import additional cannabis grown by TJAC, other Canadian suppliers and elsewhere moving forward
CEO Oren Shuster said it’s an important milestone for the company. “With our globally integrated supply chain, indoor cultivation in Canada, and a coordinated team of compliance, regulatory, and purchasing professionals, our company is uniquely positioned to address the needs of patients and customers in Israel, Canada, and Germany.”
See our latest Business of Cannabis conversation with Shuster from last month.
OIL YOU CAN TRUST
Oils are back for Danish medical cannabis consumers after 2019 CannTrust debacle
When Canadian cultivator Canntrust was caught growing cannabis in a non-compliant grow room in 2019, Danish medical cannabis consumers lost their access to oils, reports BusinessCann. Now, after an initial pilot program by Denmark’s Stenocare, oils are back again — and availability of the category could be a boost to patient numbers.
“The loss of Stenocare oils from the experimental scheme in Denmark had a large impact on the cannabis industry,” said Prohibition Partners analyst Conor O’Brien. “Many patients began sourcing their medical cannabis from magistral preparations (extracts and isolates prepared in pharmacies) or switched to pharmaceutical products like Epidiolex when this hit the market in 2020.”
The takeaway
“The reintroduction of oils will be a welcome development for many patients in the country,” O’Brien said, “although it remains to be seen how many patients will return to using these oils after switching to alternative treatments.”
