Minnesota is almost ready to go 🚀

Minnesota is preparing to launch adult-use 🧳

Minnesota finally has new cannabis regulations on the books, which means the Office of Cannabis Management can officially start handing out licenses. MJBizDaily looked at how that upcoming market could shape up, considering there is a massive pool of microbusiness applicants and established companies on tribal land that will get the first shot at serving Minnesotans before the larger retailers go through a lottery process for licenses this summer. 

Maryland businesses no longer have to wait to convert to ESOPs 🧾

Maryland Governor Wes Moore approved a new law that carves out an exception for Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOP) to its rule requiring social equity licensees to wait five years before they can transfer their licenses. ESOPs allow an owner to transfer their stake in a business to a trust fund enabling employees to gain ownership of the company. This structure allows cannabis businesses to deduct expenses without having to worry about 280e, which makes it appealing to the cannabis industry. 

MO counties argue in favor of local taxes before state Supreme Court 🧑‍⚖️

Representatives of Missouri counties and the state argued that local counties are entitled to apply a 3% tax on cannabis sales in a case that is currently before the state supreme court. Plaintiff Robust Missouri Dispensary 3 LLC argued that the county can only apply a tax in unincorporated parts where there is no town or city government, which was enough to sway a state appellate court. 

Eric Adams campaigns in dispensary that he previously shut down 🍞

New York City Mayor Eric Adams campaigned at a legal weed shop last week, touting his administration's work at cracking down on the city's illicit and grey market shops. Adams was reportedly unaware that the shop he was visiting, Sweetlife, was previously shut down for selling THC-infused baked goods without a license, according to the New York Times.

Jeremy and Jay chatted with Dennis Lider, SVP of Sales and Marketing at vape technology company Ispire, about the impact of Trump’s tariffs on the vape hardware industry. It was a great conversation:

Slight increase in consumption among adult Canadians since legalization 📊

Cannabis use and misuse decreased among those who were already frequent consumers before cannabis was made legal in Canada, according to a new JAMA study. But among occasional consumers, and those who never or rarely consumed, use and misuse slightly increased. Ultimately, the study, which included 1,428 adult participants, found only modest behavioral changes toward cannabis in the five years since it became legal in Canada. Interestingly, cannabis use shifted away from flower, hashish, concentrates, and topicals, to edibles and vape pens. 

Teen cannabis use post-legalization in Canada 🔬

Another JAMA study found that cannabis use among teens in Canada increased by about 26% post legalization. The increase also included an increase of 43% in the consumption of edibles. However, those numbers should be put in context: The increase was from 14.6% of teens reporting using cannabis at least once in the past year, to 15.9%. The increases in edibles consumption were not seen in Quebec which was the sole province to not legalize edibles that might appeal to teens such as candies.

Wynk seltzer expands into four more states that lack legal adult-use 🥤

Wynk announced that it would be expanding its line of THC seltzers to Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, and Wisconsin. The company is already selling hemp-infused seltzers in Georgia, Texas, Illinois, New Jersey, Florida, and Connecticut.