Welcome back to The Week in Weed, your Friday look at what's happening in the world of legalized marijuana. This week, a bill headed to the President's desk may ease restrictions on cannabis research. Facebook and Instagram now allow searches relating to marijuana on their platforms. Cannabis licenses in California are not worth what they once were. And finally, Snoop Dogg is moving into the hemp market.
CANNABIS RESEARCH
Research into the uses and effects of cannabis is restricted by its illegality at the federal level. Congress has recently passed a bill that could change that. The HALT Fentanyl Act includes a provision that would streamline the research process for Schedule I drugs, including cannabis. It would allow for faster consideration of research requests, and would allow all researchers in the same institution to submit only one request, rather than having to submit paperwork multiple times. There is also a provision for manufacturing the drug being researched, but this does not apply to "marihuana."
CANNABIS ON SOCIAL MEDIA
For many years, a search on Facebook or Instagram for anything related to cannabis would result in a pop-up that blocked access to any page that mentioned marijuana, even if it had nothing to do with illegal sales. That no longer seems to be the case. Whether this is due to the increasing number of states that now allow some form of cannabis consumption or if it's part of Meta's shift in content moderation policies, searches for cannabis are now permitted.
CALIFORNIA LICENSES
A recent article in SFGATE describes the fall in value of at least some of California's cannabis licenses. It tells the story of a dispensary in Oxnard that has yet to open. The owner is willing to give the license to anyone willing to pay the city's $250,000 to open shop. Licenses used to go for millions of dollars, but prices have now fallen dramatically. A cautionary tale for anyone thinking a license to sell cannabis is a license to print money.
AND FINALLY
Hemp, intoxicating and otherwise, has been in the news lately, as states seek to regulate or eliminate this product. Now Snoop Dogg is entering the market. His new website, TryDeathRow.com, sells directly to the consumer. It offers products that contain less than 0.3 THC, so anyone can buy, regardless of whether cannabis is legal in their state or not.
Be well everyone – we'll see you next week.
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