Canadian cannabis goes global 🌎

OH, CANADA
A slice of the sector that’s up-and-to-the-right

Driving the news: While Canadian cannabis no longer drives loads of headlines, there is one part of the cannabis industry that is clearly on the upswing: Canadian cannabis exports.

A bit more: Writing for The Toronto Star (paywalled), Ben Kaplan (a recent guest on Cultivated Live) drives into how Canadian cannabis companies have become the largest exporters of cannabis around the globe, especially to burgeoning medical markets like Germany. 

Where’s the weed going? As the world’s largest cannabis exporter, there are now loads of places Canadian cannabis is being shipped. But none larger than Australia. That’s right, Canadian cannabis is being shipped down under. 30+ tonnes of it. (Not tons, but tonnes.)

Why it matters: While Canadian cannabis has been leveling off since legalization in 2018, there are still unique opportunities that only exist for a federally legal jurisdiction like Canada: namely, exports. Until or unless countries are able to address their own demand for cannabis, Canada may have a good run as key suppliers for cannabis markets around the world.

What’s next? Expect more of the same for the time being. As we have seen in nearly every jurisdiction that has launched medical and/or adult-use cannabis — addressing demand can be a challenge in the early days. And even if President Trump doesn’t agree, Canadian exports are important to help address consumer demand.

-JR

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Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. did not provide any assurance that he would stand by his previous support for cannabis legalization during a written Q&A with the Senate Finance Committee during the confirmation process. He noted he’s deferring to the Department of Justice and the Drug Enforcement Administration. 

“I defer to the DOJ and DEA on the allocation of their resources and the development of their priorities. Consistent with all applicable laws, I will ensure that HHS’s expertise is available to assist those agencies as needed.”

Uh oh.

Governor Shapiro continues to push for legalization in PA 🔔

While it may be an uphill battle with Republican lawmakers in Pennsylvania, that won’t stop Democratic Governor Josh Shapiro from pushing legalization this week in his annual budget message. Note, he pushed for legalization in his last budget message too. Long-time Cultivated readers might remember last February’s newsletter: Pennsylvania Governor on cannabis, “It’s time to catch up”

Missouri expungements 🧑‍⚖️

One of the key attributes of Missouri’s legalization effort was the expungement of tens of thousands of cannabis-related criminal records. That process of expungement, which kicked off after the legalization vote in 2022, has cleared 140,000 records so far. But according to the Columbia Missourian, the expungement process may be slowing down. 

The march to legalization in Wisconsin is slow, but… 🧀

In a column in the Milwaukee Sentinel Journal, James Causey suggests that Wisconsin follow the lead of Maryland (and others) to legalize and expunge cannabis-related criminal records. And if that’s not enough reason, remember that Wisconsin is losing out on millions of cannabis tax dollars to Michigan, Illinois, and (soon) Minnesota. Note that in early January, Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers called on lawmakers to allow state residents to decide whether to legalize cannabis in the state via the budget process.

Big tobacco and cannabis: A primer 🚬

The folks at cannabis.net put together a pretty solid run-down of the how and when the tobacco industry got into the cannabis industry, and what the future might hold. 

Cannabis and ‘working memory’ 🧠

An observational study published last week in JAMA Network Open, found that chronic cannabis use could affect ‘working memory’. The study showed correlation, but not causation, according to researchers. More from CNN.

Legal Weed Didn’t Deliver on Its Promises | The Atlantic (paywalled)

Many Minnesota cities already sell alcohol. Should they sell cannabis? | Star Tribune