COVER STAR
Cookies CEO makes history on the cover of Forbes
Rapper and entrepreneur Berner, the CEO of Cookies, is the first representative of the cannabis industry to appear on the cover of Forbes magazine.
The piece argues that high taxes and strict regulations have over-burdened California’s regulated cannabis market.
Despite the challenges outlined in the piece, Berner—who formerly worked in the illicit market—expressed delight in the achievement on Twitter. “Wow! Extremely humbled and blessed to be one of the faces for federal legalization in our country! Even more humbled to land the cover of Forbes Magazine, which is the dream of some of the largest CEOs in the world.”
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POSITIVE PROGRESS
Where US state legalization efforts are gaining momentum
So far, Rhode Island is the only state to pass adult-use legalization legislation in 2022, but all is not lost: Mississippi medical sales could start this year, according to Politico. And November could see a wave of reform, with ballot initiatives in the works in Maryland, South Dakota, Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, North Dakota and Nebraska.
But reform efforts aren’t gaining traction everywhere. Advocates in these states are facing strong resistance:
- Delaware
- Ohio
- Hawaii
- New Hampshire
- Kansas
- South Carolina
- Tennessee
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Wisconsin
- Kentucky
BINNED BUD
425 million grams of Canadian cannabis was destroyed last year
Canadian cannabis producers destroyed a record-breaking 425 million grams of cannabis in 2021, according to MJBizDaily.
That number is trending significantly upward:
- In 2020, 279 million grams were destroyed
- In 2019, 155 million grams were destroyed
Some of it is due to quality issues, but overproduction is another issue challenging cultivators. “I think some of the larger producers just want cannabis in their inventories,” said B.C.-based consultant Stewart Maxwell. “Even if they never sell it, it still looks good on your books to have assets.”
SHARE PRICE JUMP
Denmark’s Stenocare rebounds after challenging year
After three months of declines, Danish medical cannabis oil producer Stenocare’s share prices jumped in the last week on both the Copenhagen NASDAQ and Frankfurt Stock Exchange rose by 17.5% and 10%, respectively, per BusinessCann.
So far in 2022:
- The Danish Medicines Agency greenlit the company’s application to sell THC oil in a national pilot program in January and made its first sale in May
- Stenocare ended its import agreement
- with Canada’s CannTrust after that company’s licence was suspended
- The company has grappled with pharmaceutical-level standards introduced by Denmark’s regulators
“The way that we look at it now is the opportunity,” said CEO Thomas Skovlund Schnegelsberg. “Competition is struggling, all of the North American companies are scaling down or even exiting. So that leaves a great spot for a company like Stenocare.”
