Author: Lorraine Mullaney
CBD’s popularity sparks gold rush to develop rare cannabinoids
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 19th January 2022 || Business briefing |
Potential demand for rarer cannabinoids is prompting firms to explore other methods of manufacturing, such as biosynthesis and chemical synthesis, to give higher yields at lower...
How US Democrats’ cannabis reform plans ran aground despite promises
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 12th January 2022 || Blog , Regulatory briefing |
After early promise, no cannabis-focused legislation has yet made it onto president Joe Biden’s desk for signing. So why is that? ...
Hemp and CBD expansion in Thailand continues with government help
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 5th January 2022 || Business briefing |
Government support of Thailand's hemp and CBD industry is paying off. Examples include US based Australis' partnership with local GTH and MPX International's agreement with Salus Thailand ...
‘Snake oil’ claims for CBD and Covid-19 top latest list of US FDA warning letters
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 29th December 2021 || Regulatory briefing |
The most common subject of recent warning letters from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) over unsubstantiated health claims was CBD products that were claimed to mitigate, prevent, treat, diagnose or cure Covid-19 ...
Cannabis companies go on acquisition spree for US stores and tech companies
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 15th December 2021 || Business briefing |
Cannabis firms continued to expand their footprint through to the end of 2021, with the lucrative US market being the strategic focus of many acquisitions, covering retail chains and tech companies ...
UK health trust teams up with Awakn to investigate psychedelic treatment
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 13th December 2021 || Business briefing |
The UK’s National Health Service (NHS) has expressed some interest in the viability of psychedelics as a course of treatment ...
Growing investor interest sparks more funding for psychedelic clinical trials
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 10th December 2021 || Business briefing |
The potential of psychedelics to treat a range of mental health conditions continues to attract increasing levels of funding for clinical trials as firms work towards bringing them into mainstream medical use ...
Multi-million, multi-state M&A deals as cannabis dispensaries spread across US
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 17th November 2021 || Business briefing |
As the market for medical cannabis goes on growing, dispensaries continue to drive merger and acquisition activity in the US as multi-state operators invest millions of dollars in expanding their retail footprint ...
Two studies seek to show the benefits of cannabinoids for liver health
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 5th November 2021 || Business briefing |
A research team at the University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG) in the Netherlands recently launched a three-year study into whether medicinal cannabis oil can help to regress liver-cancer tumours ...
Secondary concerns a growth area as US firms buy into cannabis industry services
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 26th October 2021 || Business briefing |
The economic tide flowing for cannabis continues to float businesses in the US in secondary areas such as cultivation systems and delivery services too ...
Cannabis dispensaries tempt investors into multimillion US acquisitions
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 21st October 2021 || Business briefing |
US cannabis dispensaries are attracting significant interest from investors and several multi-million dollar deals have been agreed as operators expand their footprint into new states ...
Potential for psychedelic treatments prompts big North American buyouts
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 15th October 2021 || Business briefing |
Interest in psychedelic drugs and treatments continues to grow, as evidenced by three major takeovers in Canada and the USA, two involving drug treatments developments and another offering a network of ketamine infusion treatment centres ...
Personal mental health histories lead to investments in psychedelics research
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 12th October 2021 || Business briefing |
Two North American entrepreneurs have put millions of dollars into exploring the treatment efficacy of psychedelics, based on personal experience of using them to help deal with their own mental health issues ...
From craft beer to coffee, patience is a virtue in cannabinoid beverages
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 4th October 2021 || Business briefing |
Patience continues to be the watchword when it comes to innovation in the cannabinoid beverage space. Developments continue but companies appear willing to take their time to enter the market as regulation loosens ...
Grow Group hits its crowd-funding target inside an hour – and keeps on going
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 28th September 2021 || Business briefing |
A UK cannabis firm reached its minimum crowd-funding target of £3.2m ($4.4m) in just one hour. And the investment keeps on coming ...
US DEA calls for big increases in cannabis and psilocybin production for research
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 23rd September 2021 || Business briefing |
The US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) is calling for an increase in production of cannabis and psychedelics to supply federal research and clinical trials ...
Jane Technologies raises $100m to keep rolling out cannabis e-commerce
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 22nd September 2021 || Business briefing |
A plan to solve issues with cannabis e-commerce has attracted investors to the tune of around $130m in total ...
Cleared CBD restaurant owner: ‘I hope my case makes UK police think again’
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 20th September 2021 || Regulatory briefing |
The long-running saga of one of the first UK police raids on a retail location selling hemp products has finally ended after a jury took just 30 minutes to reach a non-guilty verdict on drug charges ...
TerrAscend expands into Michigan with $545m purchase of Gage Growth
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 10th September 2021 || Business briefing |
A $545m deal to buy the company Gage Growth will give North American cannabis operator TerrAscend access to the cannabis market in the US state of Michigan ...
British chef brings two-star Michelin expertise to US CBD beverage market
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 6th September 2021 || Business briefing |
Two-star Michelin expertise is coming to the US CBD sector with the advent of a new CBD beverage with flavours developed by British chef Michael Caines ...
Investor funding drives company growth and increases cannabis research
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 11th August 2021 || Business briefing |
New funding raised from investors will propel cannabis company expansion and research ...
US firms Ayr and Unrivaled expand their footprint across multiple states
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 10th August 2021 || Business briefing |
US cannabis businesses continue to expand their presence into new states through mergers and acquisitions ...
Canadian cannabis firms look to the US market as they prepare to expand
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 6th August 2021 || Business briefing |
A Canadian cannabis retailer is banking on boosts from cross-selling and increased social media presence to buoy US sales as it gobbles up accessory providers ...
Public health insurance is driving growth of the German medical cannabis market
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 3rd August 2021 || Business briefing |
Public health insurance reimbursements and no defined list of indications for medical cannabis have helped the German medical cannabis market start to realise its massive potential ...
Watchdog study finds high levels of inaccuracy in delta-8 THC labels
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 28th July 2021 || Business briefing |
Research from a CBD watchdog firm has found considerable inconsistencies between the levels of delta-8 THC stated on product labels and what was revealed by laboratory tests ...
Researchers find even synthetic CBD can degrade and produce THC if badly stored
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 26th July 2021 || Business briefing |
Both synthetic and plant-derived CBD degrade when stored incorrectly, producing THC, according to a new study ...
Takeover will enable more research and development towards psychedelic meds
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 19th July 2021 || Business briefing |
The Canadian pyschedelics company MagicMed will be taken over by the US firm Enveric Biosciences in a move that will create greater research and development as well as commercialisation opportunities ...
Clinical trials to explore potential of psychedelics are on the rise in Europe
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 16th July 2021 || Business briefing |
A range of European firms are looking to further advance research into psychedelic compounds after securing funding and backing ...
It’s all about the brand as firms look to expand across the US and beyond
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 22nd June 2021 || Business briefing |
Brand creation and consolidation is driving a number of major business deals in the US market ...
European ingredient popularity drives cannabinoid sector’s latest M&A action
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 18th June 2021 || Business briefing |
Appetite for European ingredients producers appears to be driving the latest round of merger and acquisition (M&A) action in the cannabinoid sector ...
CBD startups exceeding all fundraising expectations as investors leap aboard
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 15th June 2021 || Business briefing |
CBD and cannabis startups from Scotland to Florida are attracting increasing numbers of investors as they scale up their businesses and break crowd-funding records in the process ...
Wave of e-commerce and retail store purchases keep High Tide on the rise
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 1st June 2021 || Business briefing |
Canadian cannabis retailer High Tide is continuing its advance into the US market with the $26m acquisition of 80% of CBD e-commerce platform Fab Nutrition (FAB CBD) ...
Canopy spreads, while Sundial purchases Canada’s largest cannabis retailer
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 31st May 2021 || Business briefing |
Merger and acquisition activity remains high in the industry and two major Canadian firms – Sundial Growers and Canopy Growth – have made acquisitions this month ...
Tilray closes deal with Aphria and turns to lobbying for cannabis reform
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 21st May 2021 || Business briefing |
The boss of the world’s new largest global cannabis company has likened the industry’s potential to that of the alcohol business before the ending of Prohibition in the early 1930s ...
Trulieve Harvest merger billed as largest in US cannabis
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 13th May 2021 || Business briefing |
US cannabis firm Trulieve has bought Harvest Health and Recreation in a $2.1bn deal that aims to create the US’s most profitable cannabis company in what is being billed as the largest US cannabis transaction to date ...
Covid helps fuel cannabis acquisitions by Greenlane and Dutchie
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 11th May 2021 || Business briefing |
Two US firms, Greenlane and KushCo, have merged in a deal that aims to create a major manufacturer and distributor of cannabis accessories in the US ...
Growing medical market prompts expansion in New York and Pennsylvania
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 7th May 2021 || Business briefing |
When Biden won the US election in November 2020 the stock market value of cannabis firms soared in expectation of a more lenient political climate under the Biden administration ...
Heading south: Valens and Canopy increase presence in US CBD market
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 6th May 2021 || Business briefing |
Various business deals across the US and Canada see cannabis and CBD companies expanding their portfolios and growing their brands in a series of acquisitions, investments and partnerships ...
Cann Group teams up with Emyria to develop pharmacy grade CBD capsules
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 21st April 2021 || Business briefing |
Australian medicinal cannabis firm Cann has moved quickly to maximise the benefits of its CBD Gelpell capsule technology by entering into a collaboration deal with healthcare technology firm Emyria ...
Jersey well placed to become Europe’s major growing hub for medical cannabis
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 20th April 2021 || Business briefing |
Jersey could become “a cannabis hub for Europe” after Northern Leaf successfully completed a second round of funding that will enable it to complete its pharmaceutical cannabis cultivation facility on the island ...
Tilray expands its influence Down Under, moving on New Zealand medical market
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 15th April 2021 || Business briefing |
Canadian cannabis firm Tilray is moving in on New Zealand’s market for medical cannabis and has received the necessary approvals to launch Tilray medical cannabis products across the country ...
US and Australian cannabis companies see great profit potential in Europe
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 2nd April 2021 || Business briefing |
There are profits to be made from selling cannabis in Europe, according to US company Curaleaf after it signed an agreement to acquire Europe’s largest vertically integrated independent cannabis company ...
Canopy happy to put the US fate of its CBD sparkling water drink in the stars
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 24th March 2021 || Business briefing |
Cannabis giant Canopy Growth has defended its decision to use a celebrity astrologer to promote the US launch of its CBD-infused sparkling water drink Quatreau ...
UK Food Standards Agency relaxes the rules slightly on novel food submissions
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 15th March 2021 || Regulatory briefing |
Companies now only to have submitted an application to the UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) in order for their edible CBD products to stay on the market after 1st April ...
Wrigley’s heir goes public with $1.9bn plan to ‘transform US cannabis industry’
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 9th March 2021 || Business briefing |
The heir to the Wrigley’s chewing gum fortune, Beau Wrigley, has entered into a deal he claims will accelerate the growth of his multi-state cannabis company, Parallel, and change the landscape of the US cannabis market ...
Hexo buys Zenabis ‘for accelerated domestic and international growth’
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 8th March 2021 || Business briefing |
Canadian cannabis brand Hexo has acquired medical and recreational cannabis producer Zenabis Global in a CAD 235m deal that will boost its cultivation capacity and secure a footprint in the European market ...
Tobacco giant Altria calls for US federal legalisation and regulation of cannabis
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 1st March 2021 || Business briefing |
Marlboro cigarette manufacturer Altria has stated its support for the federal legalisation of cannabis – with a view to Cronos, the Canadian cannabis company in which it has a major stake, thriving in a legal US market ...
US state regulators’ association calls for joined-up federal thinking on cannabis
Written by Lorraine Mullaney || 24th February 2021 || Regulatory briefing |
A US association of cannabis regulators has written to Congress urging the modernisation of cannabis policy at federal level ...