Business
Court in France Tosses Out Ban on Hemp Flower
The Council of State overturned the government’s earlier ban on hemp flower in France.
Not only is CBD legal in France, but hemp flower as well, if the latest court ruling in the country stands.
French outlet RFI reports that On 30 December 2021, the French government legalized the sale of hemp-derived products containing CBD with 0.3 percent THC or less, after the country’s ban on CBD fell apart a year earlier. However—potentially to the dismay of D8 and hemp flower lovers—the government also banned the sale of hemp flower, citing its supposed psychotropic effects.
But a high court in France overturned that ban, ruling that CBD has not been proven to be harmful and that there are legitimate uses for flower that go beyond smoking.
On December 29, France’s Council of State, the body that advises the government on legislation and acts as a type of Supreme Court, ruled that a general and absolute ban on the marketing of the substance in its raw state was “disproportionate.” They also didn’t find solid evidence of harm from CBD. If anything, there’s evidence of the contrary.
“The harmfulness of other molecules present in cannabis flowers and leaves, in particular CBD, has not been established,” the council said. The council added that evidence suggests CBD has “relaxing properties and anticonvulsant effects, but does not have a psychotropic effect and does not cause dependence.”
In other words, the court ruled that hemp flower should not automatically be categorized as psychotropic—rather it’s far from it. Additionally, it can be consumed as a homemade tea or infused oil and not just smoked. Homemade tinctures or vaporized flower are other considerations.
Concerns Over Distinguishing Cannabis
Despite allowing flower with the latest court ruling, concerns were raised regarding exactly how the government plans on separating hemp from THC-rich cannabis, which are nearly indistinguishable to the naked eye. The Council of State considered that the THC level “could be controlled by means of rapid tests.”
The European Court of Justice ruled in November 2020 that the ban on CBD in France, which was legal in several other European countries, was illegal based on the principle of free movement of goods.
Then the highest court in the French judiciary, The Court of Cassation, ruled last June that any CBD legally produced in the European Union could legally be sold in France.
RFI reports that France is now home to around 2,000 CBD shops, according to the professional hemp association (SPC). In addition, the industry’s annual turnover is estimated at around €500 million, or $534.1 million USD. More than half of those sales are from flower alone.
Experts in the country say that the court’s latest ruling gives the green light for an “economically sustainable” hemp industry that can withstand the test of time.
Hemp Today reports that French hemp could bring €1.5 ($1.6B USD) to €2.5 billion ($2.6B USD) in annual turnover and result in 18,000-20,000 jobs, according to a French Senate group.
The French gray market for CBD was about €200 million ($214M USD) in 2021, and is expected to reach roughly €300 million ($321M USD) this year, UIVEC, a French extracts trade group, estimated. UIVEC also estimated that about 300-500 hectares of hemp were grown for CBD-producing flower in 2022.
The rules are expected to roll out in early 2023 as the legislation moves forward, and the government is expected to declare hemp compatible with the EU’s Common Agriculture Policy, develop a strategy for the industry, and set specific regulations.
Source: https://hightimes.com/news/court-in-france-tosses-out-ban-on-hemp-flower/
Business
New Mexico cannabis operator fined, loses license for alleged BioTrack fraud
New Mexico regulators fined a cannabis operator nearly $300,000 and revoked its license after the company allegedly created fake reports in the state’s traceability software.
The New Mexico Cannabis Control Division (CCD) accused marijuana manufacturer and retailer Golden Roots of 11 violations, according to Albuquerque Business First.
Golden Roots operates the The Cannabis Revolution Dispensary.
The majority of the violations are related to the Albuquerque company’s improper use of BioTrack, which has been New Mexico’s track-and-trace vendor since 2015.
The CCD alleges Golden Roots reported marijuana production only two months after it had received its vertically integrated license, according to Albuquerque Business First.
Because cannabis takes longer than two months to be cultivated, the CCD was suspicious of the report.
After inspecting the company’s premises, the CCD alleged Golden Roots reported cultivation, transportation and sales in BioTrack but wasn’t able to provide officers who inspected the site evidence that the operator was cultivating cannabis.
In April, the CCD revoked Golden Roots’ license and issued a $10,000 fine, according to the news outlet.
The company requested a hearing, which the regulator scheduled for Sept. 1.
At the hearing, the CCD testified that the company’s dried-cannabis weights in BioTrack were suspicious because they didn’t seem to accurately reflect how much weight marijuana loses as it dries.
Company employees also poorly accounted for why they were making adjustments in the system of up to 24 pounds of cannabis, making comments such as “bad” or “mistake” in the software, Albuquerque Business First reported.
Golden Roots was fined $298,972.05 – the amount regulators allege the company made selling products that weren’t properly accounted for in BioTrack.
The CCD has been cracking down on cannabis operators accused of selling products procured from out-of-state or not grown legally:
- Regulators alleged in August that Albuquerque dispensary Sawmill Sweet Leaf sold out-of-state products and didn’t have a license for extraction.
- Paradise Exotics Distro lost its license in July after regulators alleged the company sold products made in California.
Golden Roots was the first alleged rulebreaker in New Mexico to be asked to pay a large fine.
Source: https://mjbizdaily.com/new-mexico-cannabis-operator-fined-loses-license-for-alleged-biotrack-fraud/
Business
Marijuana companies suing US attorney general in federal prohibition challenge
Four marijuana companies, including a multistate operator, have filed a lawsuit against U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland in which they allege the federal MJ prohibition under the Controlled Substances Act is no longer constitutional.
According to the complaint, filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Massachusetts, retailer Canna Provisions, Treevit delivery service CEO Gyasi Sellers, cultivator Wiseacre Farm and MSO Verano Holdings Corp. are all harmed by “the federal government’s unconstitutional ban on cultivating, manufacturing, distributing, or possessing intrastate marijuana.”
Verano is headquartered in Chicago but has operations in Massachusetts; the other three operators are based in Massachusetts.
The lawsuit seeks a ruling that the “Controlled Substances Act is unconstitutional as applied to the intrastate cultivation, manufacture, possession, and distribution of marijuana pursuant to state law.”
The companies want the case to go before the U.S. Supreme Court.
They hired prominent law firm Boies Schiller Flexner to represent them.
The New York-based firm’s principal is David Boies, whose former clients include Microsoft, former presidential candidate Al Gore and Elizabeth Holmes’ disgraced startup Theranos.
Similar challenges to the federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA) have failed.
One such challenge led to a landmark Supreme Court decision in 2005.
In Gonzalez vs. Raich, the highest court in the United States ruled in a 6-3 decision that the commerce clause of the U.S. Constitution gave Congress the power to outlaw marijuana federally, even though state laws allow the cultivation and sale of cannabis.
In the 18 years since that ruling, 23 states and the District of Columbia have legalized adult-use marijuana and the federal government has allowed a multibillion-dollar cannabis industry to thrive.
Since both Congress and the U.S. Department of Justice, currently headed by Garland, have declined to intervene in state-licensed marijuana markets, the key facts that led to the Supreme Court’s 2005 ruling “no longer apply,” Boies said in a statement Thursday.
“The Supreme Court has since made clear that the federal government lacks the authority to regulate purely intrastate commerce,” Boies said.
“Moreover, the facts on which those precedents are based are no longer true.”
Verano President Darren Weiss said in a statement the company is “prepared to bring this case all the way to the Supreme Court in order to align federal law with how Congress has acted for years.”
While the Biden administration’s push to reschedule marijuana would help solve marijuana operators’ federal tax woes, neither rescheduling nor modest Congressional reforms such as the SAFER Banking Act “solve the fundamental issue,” Weiss added.
“The application of the CSA to lawful state-run cannabis business is an unconstitutional overreach on state sovereignty that has led to decades of harm, failed businesses, lost jobs, and unsafe working conditions.”
Business
Alabama to make another attempt Dec. 1 to award medical cannabis licenses
Alabama regulators are targeting Dec. 1 to award the first batch of medical cannabis business licenses after the agency’s first two attempts were scrapped because of scoring errors and litigation.
The first licenses will be awarded to individual cultivators, delivery providers, processors, dispensaries and state testing labs, according to the Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission (AMCC).
Then, on Dec. 12, the AMCC will award licenses for vertically integrated operations, a designation set primarily for multistate operators.
Licenses are expected to be handed out 28 days after they have been awarded, so MMJ production could begin in early January, according to the Alabama Daily News.
That means MMJ products could be available for patients around early March, an AMCC spokesperson told the media outlet.
Regulators initially awarded 21 business licenses in June, only to void them after applicants alleged inconsistencies with how the applications were scored.
Then, in August, the state awarded 24 different licenses – 19 went to June recipients – only to reverse themselves again and scratch those licenses after spurned applicants filed lawsuits.
A state judge dismissed a lawsuit filed by Chicago-based MSO Verano Holdings Corp., but another lawsuit is pending.
Source: https://mjbizdaily.com/alabama-plans-to-award-medical-cannabis-licenses-dec-1/
-
Business1 year ago
Pot Odor Does Not Justify Probable Cause for Vehicle Searches, Minnesota Court Affirms
-
Business1 year ago
New Mexico cannabis operator fined, loses license for alleged BioTrack fraud
-
Business1 year ago
Alabama to make another attempt Dec. 1 to award medical cannabis licenses
-
Business1 year ago
Washington State Pays Out $9.4 Million in Refunds Relating to Drug Convictions
-
Business1 year ago
Marijuana companies suing US attorney general in federal prohibition challenge
-
Business1 year ago
Legal Marijuana Handed A Nothing Burger From NY State
-
Business1 year ago
Can Cannabis Help Seasonal Depression
-
Blogs1 year ago
Cannabis Art Is Flourishing On Etsy