Happy Friday all,

Despite what you may have seen online, a study didn’t conclude that MED prevents Covid. It’s more complicated than that and more research is needed. Still its pretty cool that the plant affects the coronavirus and its variants at all. 

Maybe someday we’ll learn what else it can do.

In today’s edition:

• Cannabis vs. covid: Not a slam dunk
• California cannabiz rallies for tax relief

Enjoy,

Alex

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TODAY in WeedWeek Live:

Castetter Cannabis Group managing director and vice-chair of the New York Cannabis Growers & Processors Association Kaelan Castetter.

WeedWeek Pro members can join the conversation at 11 a.m. PT in the WeedWeek Pro Discord community

Kaelan Castetter (Courtesy Kaelan Castetter)

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Last Friday on WeedWeek Live, Chris Anderson, CEO of Redwood Roots, which distributes for some of the Emerald Triangle’s most celebrated farms, got real about the crisis facing California craft growers.

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Business:

• An investor lawsuit in Oregon alleges management of CBD startup Sentia Wellness perpetrated a $60M fraud. A fund run by Boris Jordan, Chairman of MSO Curaleaf, is among the plaintiffs. The suit pits him against Nitin Khanna, an entrepreneur with a checkered past who was previously founder at Cura Cannabis, parent company of brand Select, which Curaleaf acquired for $400M in 2020. “We look forward to shedding more light on what happened at Sentia and the questionable business practices of these investors,” a lawyer representing Khanna said.
  Oregonian 
• Business Insider lists the top 14 firms investing in cannabis.
• Recruiting platform Vangst raised $19M.
  TechCrunch
• California brand Pilgrim Soul, which is focused on users’ “creative performance,” raised $2M.
• A new company called cannachange offers dispensary credit for consumers who recycle packaging.
• Spotify won a ruling that a cannabis software platform can’t call itself “Potify“.
  Bloomberg Law

State News:

• Michigan saw strong sales in December.
  New Cannabis Ventures
• Maryland lawmakers are split on how to legalize.
  WYPR
• Despite the state legalizing REC, it’s not clear whether Virginia’s new Republican governor and legislature will follow through.
  WDBJ (CBS)
• Los Angeles County is setting up a penalty of $30,000/day for unlicensed cannabis operations.
  L.A. Daily News
• Supporters of a Florida REC ballot initiative are delaying their effort to 2024.
  Marijuana Moment
• Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R) came close to endorsing decriminalization.
  @TheRecount

Health and Science:

• With weed now seen as a wellness product, tobacco cigarettes are having a moment with nihilistic young people.
  N.Y. Times

International:

• In southern Spain, illegal REC grows are posing as MED or hemp farms.
  El Pais

In Memorium:

• Michael Lang, who helped produce Woodstock (The 1969 edition), died at 77.
  N.Y. Times

Fun and interesting:

• Proposed tv series Bad Habit would be about a convent of California nuns who get into the weed game.
  Deadline

• A report from marketing tech shop Fyllo examines the regulatory outlook for 2022.
• Canna Law Blog discusses how to terminate a cannabis contract.
• Stanford psychiatry professor Keith Humphreys argues that from a public health perspective, Canada is getting legalization right.

• The Cannabis Marketing Association is hosting a “Ted-style virtual event” on January 18.
• Harvard Medical School instructor Dr. Peter Grinspoon will share his views on MED in a January 18 webinar sponsored by the MED Research Center at Drexel University.
• Cannabis and crypto mogul Gary Vaynerchuck announced the first Green Street Cannabis Festival May 13 and 14 in LA.
• Live markets are returning to the Emerald Triangle this Spring.
• Double Blind is beginning a course on How to Trip Sit.
• The Northern Nights Music Festival returns to Mendocino County in July. 
• Comedy game show Weeding Out the Stoned lands in New York City January 21.

• Infused drink maker Cann released its first edible: Cranberry Sage Space Crystals. They’re like pop rocks. (Pictured)
• In Florida, MSO Trulieve released a “live diamonds” product under its Muse concentrate brand.
• Extraction equipment maker Green Mill SuperCritical released its Real-Time Winterization Module.

• Marketer Matthew Shterenberg suggests advertising on Google can deliver much better value for dispensaries than Weedmaps. (Of course, Google doesn’t allow pot shops to advertise.)
• Longtime activist @edrosenthal420 finds some old-school Thai-stick.
• Check out @levelheady who makes miniatures inspired by cannabiz products.

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