Blogs

How Your Endocannabinoid System Affects Your Cannabis Experience

Published

2 years ago

August 9, 2022

Our environment and the decisions we make in our daily life can impact our ECS in remarkable ways, giving us the power to improve our wellbeing naturally.

According to experts in cannabis wellness, there are 15 factors that can impact your cannabis experience. In some ways, your unique endocannabinoid system (ECS) may be the most important factor impacting your cannabis experience.

In this article, we will present a clear breakdown of the ECS; we will explore how this remarkable system bridges the body and mind; and we will discuss different ways you can impact your ECS to improve your health and wellbeing.

Your Unique Endocannabinoid System

Did you know that your ECS is unique? If you have ever tried a cannabis product that helps your friend relax and refresh, but when you take it you feel energized and uplifted, that may be because your ECS is different from your friend’s.

Not only is there genetic variation in the human ECS, but also the decisions you make in your day-to-day life can influence your individual ECS. For example, your diet, stress levels, sleep, and exercise can change your endocannabinoid tone.

Endocannabinoid (eCB) tone refers to the overall state of your ECS. Specifically, eCB tone reflects the levels of eCBs, their synthesis and catabolism, and “the relative density of cannabinoid receptors in the brain.”

What Does the Endocannabinoid System Do?

The primary function of the ECS in organisms is to maintain homeostasis, or to maintain stability in an organism’s internal environment in response to changes in the external environment. The homeostatic role of the ECS is summarized as, “relax, eat, sleep, forget, and protect.” Additionally, the ECS plays an important role in regulating cell division, neuroplasticity, metabolism, pain, emotional memory, inflammation, and immune processes.

Given the various functions of the ECS, it is no surprise that cannabis can be used for a variety of wellness goals. For example, you can use cannabis for recovering after a workout, focusing and creating, improving sleep, relieving mild pain, or improving social experiences.

What is the Endocannabinoid System?

In humans, the ECS is made up of the type 1 cannabinoid receptor (CB1) and the type 2 cannabinoid receptor (CB2), the endogenous ligands (AEA and 2-AG) that are also known as eCBs, and the enzymes that produce and degrade the ligands.

Ligands are signaling molecules that bind to receptors on cells. When a ligand binds to a receptor on a cell, it produces an effect in the cell. Usually receptors only accept one (or a few) specific ligands. The eCBs 2-AG and AEA are found “in all tissues, organs and bodily fluids thus far investigated.”

Both eCBs activate the CB1 and CB2 receptors, as well as the vanilloid receptor (TRPV1), which plays a role in sensing temperature and pain. CB1 and CB2 receptors are part of the superfamily of “G-protein coupled receptors,” which means they are proteins in the membranes of cells used to convert extracellular signals into intracellular responses.

CB1 receptors are found on neurons throughout the brain and the peripheral nervous system, as well as in muscle tissue, bone, and variety of other tissue types. CB2 receptors are primarily found on immune cells, although they are also found on bone and liver cells, as well on neurons in the brain and peripheral nervous system.

What Are Endocannabinoids?

While CB receptors are composed of proteins, eCBs are lipids. Lipids are organic compounds that don’t dissolve in water (fats and oils). As a result, the ECS can be described as a “complex network where endogenous bioactive lipid signals are produced by cells and released ‘on demand’.”

As we discussed, eCBs are ligands to the CB receptors. The eCB 2-AG is a “moderate affinity, CB1/CB2 full agonist”, while AEA is a “high affinity, CB1-selective partial agonist” and a low affinity, CB2 partial agonist. In biology or biophysics, affinity refers to the strength by which two or more molecules bind. High affinity means a strong molecular interaction.

When a ligand activates a receptor to produce a cellular response, it is called an agonist of that receptor. When a ligand binds to a receptor, does not produce a cellular response, and blocks agonists from binding, it is called an antagonist.

AEA is a partial agonist of CB1 and CB2, which means that AEA can activate the CB receptors, but is unable to “induce maximal activation.” 2-AG is a full agonist of CB1 and CB2 receptors, so it can induce maximal activation of both receptors.

2-AG and AEA are released when an organism needs them (“on demand”), but the eCBs are rapidly broken down after they activate CB1 or CB2. As a result, eCB concentration is determined by the rate at which the enzymes break them down. AEA is catabolized by the enzyme FAAH, and 2-AG is catabolized by the enzyme MAGL, as well as other enzymes.

What is the Endocannabinoidome?

Scientists have found a variety of “CB1 receptor interacting peptides and a series of arachidonic acid derivates that generate endocannabinoid-like effects”, as well respective receptors and enzymes for these molecules. This expanded ECS is called the endocannabinoidome (eCBome).

Recent research indicates that the non-euphoric effects of cannabinoids like CBD or THCV are due to their interactions with the eCBome.

How Does the Endocannabinoid System Work?

How does the ECS maintain homeostasis in an organism?

You can think of the ECS as “a lipid-signaling system…that modulates neurotransmitter release.” When eCBs (or exogenous cannabinoids) bind to CB receptors on neurons, the release of that neurotransmitter is suppressed. For example, if eCBs attach to a GABAergic neuron, the release of GABA will be suppressed.

Why Does THC Get You High?

Cannabis contains a wide variety of chemical compounds including hundreds of cannabinoids, terpenes, flavonoids, and other compounds. Many of these compounds exert complex biological effects. However, THC is the primary intoxicating cannabinoid in cannabis. But why does THC get you high?

THC mimics the eCBs in your body and binds to CB1 receptors in your brain, creating a euphoric effect. Researchers have found that the expression of CB1 receptors in the brain “correlates with the psychoactive effects of cannabis.”

Specifically, CB1 receptors are found in areas of the brain related to “appetite, memory, fear extinction, motor responses, and posture,” all of which are affected by THC. CB1 receptors are concentrated primarily on presynaptic terminals of GABAergic and glutamatergic neurons in the brain. GABA is the primary inhibitory neurotransmitter and glutamate is the primary excitatory neurotransmitter, and their balance determines the brain’s overall level of excitation.

cannabis brain — Photo by Feodora Chiosea/Getty Images

The Evolution of the ECS

Scientists have determined that the ECS has ancient evolutionary roots. Cannabinoid receptors are found in “mammals, birds, amphibians, fish, sea urchins, mollusks, leeches, and Hydra vulgaris,” which has the simplest nervous system of any known organism. Insects and protozoa do not have an ECS.

Genetic researchers have traced back the diverse cannabinoid (CB) receptor genes to one ancestral CB gene that predates the divergence of vertebrates and invertebrates. As a result, the “primordial CB receptor” evolved at least 600 million years ago, around the time of the Cambrian explosion. Now that we have a solid understanding of the ECS, we can explore how genes, environment, and actions may impact your ECS—and also your cannabis experience.

Do Genes Affect Your Cannabis Experience?

A 2018 literature review titled “Pharmacogenetics of Cannabinoids” notes that a “patient’s response to cannabinoid treatment may have a genetic background, which depends on gene polymorphism involved in the action, metabolism, and the transport of these substances in the organism.”

Pharmacogenetics is a field of study that tries to determine why individuals experience variable responses to the same drug. For example, some people are unable to feel the effects of edibles even when they eat very high doses of THC.

Studies have shown that two people can have completely different levels of THC metabolites if one of them produces a certain form of an enzyme. The enzyme is called CPY2C9 and it comes in different forms depending on which variant of the CPY2C9 gene one has. A rare subtype of this gene produces a variant of the enzyme that metabolizes THC faster than normal, making it exceedingly difficult for these individuals to feel the effects of edibles.

However, cannabis can be taken through a variety of ingestion methods, so you can still get wellness benefits from cannabis even if edibles don’t work for you. Individuals with this genetic variant will still feel the effects of inhaled cannabinoids.

In the next section, we will explore some controversial findings regarding genetic variations in the human ECS.

What Do My Endocannabinoid Genes Mean?

Many gene testing services can tell you which ECS gene variants you carry. Genes are sequences of nucleotides in DNA that encode the synthesis of a gene product, which is either RNA or protein.

Genes can acquire mutations in their sequence, which are called variants. Variants can encode slightly different versions of a protein.

Two widely studied gene variants in the ECS are the CNR1 gene, which encodes the CB1 receptor, and the FAAH gene, which encodes the enzyme FAAH. As discussed, FAAH breaks down the eCB AEA. People with gene variants of CNR1 or FAAH will have slightly different versions of the CB1 receptor or the enzyme FAAH. In recent years, researchers have been trying to link these genetic variants to different disorders or phenotypes.

For example, researchers have studied a CB1 polymorphism in humans and associated it with a “protective effect…against stress-related” disorders like depression or PTSD. A 2015 New York Times article titled “The Feel Good Gene” discussed a genetic variation of the FAAH gene that results in people having lower levels of FAAH. Less FAAH breaking down AEA means increased levels of AEA.

In animal studies, mice genetically engineered to have this gene display lower levels of anxiety behavior and decreased “fear learning.”

It is important to note that the New York Times article draws some dubious conclusions. The article claims that people with this genetic variant are lucky because they are resistant to anxiety, more easily able to forget fearful experiences, and thus will be less likely to be addicts. However, other studies have shown the opposite: that this genetic variant is associated with “increased risk for addiction” in humans.

In reality, numerous studies have indicated that environment trumps genetics when it comes to addiction, mental health, and disease. If you have taken a genetic test and determined which ECS gene variants you have, you should consider it to be interesting data, not something that determines your life or future.

Rare Genetic Variations of the ECS

In some rare cases, genetic variation in the ECS produces remarkable situations. For example, researchers studied a woman who experienced no pain while giving birth and who had never experienced anxiety. She reported frequently burning herself without pain, only noticing when she smelled her burning skin, but healing rapidly and without scars. Additionally, she reported never panicking, even in dangerous or fearful situations.

She had a gene that produces a variant of FAAH that is less effective than normal, increasing levels of AEA. However, researchers also discovered she had a rare mutation in a “pseudogene” they called FAAH-OUT. The combined effect was a “loss of function of FAAH in the patient.”

Her remarkable inability to feel pain was thought to be related to her increased levels of AEA, which led to increased signaling at CB1 receptors. As for her lack of anxiety, physical and emotional pain are distinct, but brain regions that process emotional and physical pain overlap.

In the next section, we will dive into the ways your environment, emotional state, and actions can impact your ECS—for better or for worse.

How the ECS Links Your Body and Mind

One of the most important functions of the ECS in mammals is to return an organism to homeostasis after stress. Essentially, stress (including psychological stress) affects your ECS. In short, stress impacts your ECS and your ECS impacts your stress response. That’s why researchers believe the ECS “represents a microcosm of…mind-body medicine.”

When mammals experience stress, they have increased activity in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA axis). The hypothalamus is a gland in the brain that is involved in hormonal responses and controls the activity of the pituitary gland, which secretes hormones into the bloodstream. In general, the HPA axis serves to mobilize a response to stress. The amygdala is another brain region involved in stress, particularly a section called the basolateral amygdala (BLA). The amygdala is one of two almond shaped clusters deep in the brain that govern the fear response.

The amygdala is the primary gateway through which sensory information is converted into an emotional response. Sensory information enters the BLA, where it is processed before it is sent out to the emotional processing portion of the brain. As a result, a mammal’s emotional arousal is thought to be governed by how sensory information is processed in the BLA.

Researchers have studied the role of the ECS in stress-induced anxiety. They found that if you disrupt eCB signaling in the amygdala, either through genetic modification or with a drug, the effects will mirror stress-induced anxiety.

They injected a CB1 antagonist (blocks eCBs from activating CB1 receptors) into the BLA of rats. Blocking CB1 receptors in the BLA caused an increase in HPA activation, a spike in anxiety behaviors, and a decline in fear extinction. Fear extinction is the ability to forget fearful memories, and “deficits in extinction learning are the hallmark of human anxiety disorders.”

The researchers concluded that “eCB signaling in BLA constrains activation of the stress response and anxiety.” Specifically, CB1 activation inhibits HPA axis activation, which decreases stress and anxiety. They also determined that “collapse of endocannabinoid signaling in the amygdala underlies stress-induced anxiety.”

How Stress Impairs the Endocannabinoid System and How to Fix It

When a mammal experiences stress, the HPA axis is activated and stress hormones are released. Additionally, FAAH is activated, rapidly breaking down AEA in a variety of regions in the brain, including the amygdala.

Less AEA results in less CB1 signaling on glutamatergic (Glu) neurons in the BLA. Less CB1 signaling on Glu neurons means that more glutamate is released, increasing excitation in the amygdala. A negative feedback loop is triggered when there is a “hypersecretion” of cortisol (excess secretion), which triggers “on demand” synthesis of eCBs. The eCBs activate CB1 receptors on Glu neurons and diminish or suppress the output of Glu, returning the organism to homeostasis.

After an acute stress, “AEA-CB1 signaling [in the BLA] becomes particularly important in the mitigation of stress-induced anxiety.” Chronic stress alters the ECS and causes a downregulation of CB1 receptors in the brain, decreased levels of eCBs, and impaired eCB signaling. As a result, neurons have less eCB signaling on CB1 receptors and neuronal excitability goes up.

Researchers have found that “prolonged psychological stress and sleep deprivation…inactivate BLA AEA-CB1 signals.” So, if you have ever found yourself feeling cranky or a little anxious due to sleep deprivation, it might be because eCB signaling in your BLA is temporarily impaired.

Stress management and a variety of other activities may reverse the effects of chronic stress on eCB signaling. For example, mice given access to a running wheel recover chronic stress induced deficits to their ECS. Additionally, “clinical anecdotes suggest that stress-reduction techniques, such as meditation, yoga, and deep breathing exercises impart mild cannabimimetic effects.”

How Exercise Boosts Your ECS

Many of the benefits of exercise are related to its effects on your ECS. For example, the famous “runner’s high” has been found to be caused by eCBs rather than endorphins.

Essentially, exercise acts as a stressor that activates the HPA axis and the ECS, elevating levels of eCBs and increasing CB1 signaling.

Exercise produces different effects in different regions of the brain. For example, exercise increases CB1 signaling in the hippocampus, which is how exercise affects motivation, memory, and neuroplasticity. The hippocampus is a part of the brain that plays a role in memory formation.

In animal studies, exercise has been found to increase reward signaling in the brain, decrease stress, and increase fear extinction. Exercise produces these benefits by impacting the hypothalamus.

Specifically, exercise increases levels of AEA in the hypothalamus, increases HPA activation, and increases CB1 and dopamine signaling.

Different types of exercise, or exercising in different conditions, may produce different effects on the ECS. For example, strenuous hiking at high altitude significantly increases serum AEA from baseline, more so than strenuous hiking at normal altitude.

How Your Actions Impact Your ECS

Your daily decisions can impact your ECS in a variety of ways.

For example, when you use high doses of cannabis regularly, you build up a tolerance that is largely due to your brain decreasing expression of CB1 receptors, so there are less CB1 receptors to which THC can bind.

There are a variety of activities other than exercise that have been shown to positively impact your ECS. For example, massages have been shown to increase serum AEA by 168%, while singing in a choir was found to increase serum AEA by 42%.

In animal studies, social play enhanced CB1 activation in the amygdala and nucleus accumbens, a part of your brain involved in reward and motivation. As we established, enhanced CB1 signaling in the amygdala is associated with lower anxiety. Remarkably, this mechanism (enhanced CB1 signaling in the amygdala) may be one of the reasons ice baths and cold exposure is associated with mental health benefits.

How Cold Affects the ECS

Many prominent figures from former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey to Lady Gaga have touted the mental health benefits of cold-water exposure, as popularized by Wim Hof. Please note that cold exposure is a significant stress on the body and can be dangerous. We are not discussing the treatment of any stress or anxiety disorders. The information below is for educational purposes, is based on animal studies, and is not meant to be prescriptive of what one should do. Please consult your doctor before making any changes to your lifestyle or routine.

A recent study sheds light on the remarkable way that cold alters the ECS. A group of researchers observed that exposing rats to cold led to a significant reduction in anxiety and depressive behaviors. Given the evidence that eCB signaling in the amygdala gates the stress and anxiety response, they hypothesized that cold might alter eCB signaling in this region of the brain.

Remarkably, they found that one hour of cold exposure led to a 40% increase in density of CB1 receptors in the amygdala. The researchers concluded that this effect may be responsible for the dramatic decrease in stress and anxiety behaviors they observed following cold exposure.

How Cannabis Impacts Your ECS

Cannabis can have either a stimulating or a suppressive effect on your ECS. Cannabis and cannabis products are “complex polypharmaceuticals, consisting of dozens of cannabinoids, as well as terpenes, flavonoids, and other compounds.”

Acute cannabis exposure may “kickstart” the ECS by increasing CB1 receptor density, increasing sensitivity of CB1 receptors to cannabinoids, and increasing AEA biosynthesis. However, chronic, high dosing of THC produces the opposite effect. CB1 receptors are downregulated, and tolerance goes up. The dividing line between “acute” and “chronic” cannabis use is a grey zone and likely differs among individuals.

However, cannabis is not just THC, and different compounds in cannabis have distinct effects. For example, CBD boosts neurogenesis (generation of new neurons) in the hippocampus. Adding CBD to THC enhances CB1 expression in the hippocampus and hypothalamus. Additionally, CBD has been shown to inhibit “the cellular uptake of AEA and its breakdown by FAAH,” increasing AEA signaling. CBG is also a relatively potent inhibitor of AEA cellular reuptake.

In conclusion, the ECS is a complex system that is critically important for our wellbeing. Our environment and the decisions we make in our daily life can impact our ECS in remarkable ways, giving us the power to improve our wellbeing naturally. We hope this article has inspired you to get started on your cannabis wellness journey and harness the power of your unique ECS.

Use the Jointly App to Get More Out of Cannabis

Have you started your cannabis wellness journey? Jointly is a new cannabis wellness app that helps you discover purposeful cannabis consumption so you can achieve your wellness goals with cannabis and CBD. On the Jointly app, you can find new cannabis products, rate products based on how well they helped you achieve your goals, and track and optimize 15 factors that can impact your cannabis experience. These 15 factors include your dose, the environment in which you consume cannabis, who you are with when you ingest, how hydrated you are, the quality of your diet, how much sleep you got last night, and more. Download the Jointly app on the App Store or the Google Play Store to get started on your cannabis wellness journey.

Source: https://thefreshtoast.com/cannabis/how-your-endocannabinoid-system-affects-your-cannabis-experience/

Blogs

Border sales a boost for most marijuana retailers across US

Published

1 year ago

September 8, 2023

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Marijuana sales along state lines are key revenue generators for retail operators in the United States, and new insights suggest a similar business bump along international borders, particularly Mexico.

Data compiled by New York-based wholesale technology platform LeafLink – as well as information gathered from state agencies, quarterly reports and interviews with several cannabis companies – bear that out.

LeafLink analyzed hundreds of ZIP codes at the request of MJBizDaily and found strong links that when new recreational markets open, retailers near borders stock up on inventory significantly more than operators located elsewhere in a state.

Data from the past three years revealed wholesale marijuana products purchased by border stores jumped 140% after the launch of adult-use sales, while retailers located in more interior areas increased purchases by about 80%.

“The growth when a state launches adult-use sales at a border store in terms of purchasing activity is around double the growth of the remainder of the state,” LeafLink Strategy Analyst Ben Burstein told MJBizDaily.

Of course, numerous factors are at play – perhaps none more impactful than the marijuana policies of neighboring states.

That’s why Illinois retailers near Wisconsin, where marijuana possession is illegal, are still attracting Wisconsinites nearly four years after the launch of recreational sales.

There also are retail sales-tax implications, a big reason why St. Louis-areas operators are seeing an influx of shoppers from southern Illinois, where cannabis taxes are at least three times higher than in Missouri.

Meanwhile, border retail in New Mexico is boosting depressed economies along hundreds of miles of its shared borders, drawing stampedes of consumers from neighboring Texas and, more recently, cross-border buyers from Mexico.

Retail shakeup in the heartland

The February launch of adult-use sales in Missouri has caused ripple effects throughout the Midwest.

Missouri holds the rare distinction of bordering eight states, with only Illinois offering recreational marijuana sales.

Missouri’s 6% retail tax on recreational marijuana purchases is also among the lowest in the nation, drawing Illinois consumers across the Mississippi River in droves to buy much cheaper weed.

All in, cannabis sales taxes in neighboring Illinois eclipse 30%, second only to Washington state. And in Chicago, sales taxes can easily top 40%.

Demand is booming in western Missouri, too.

In April, Missouri retailers near the border of Kansas, where marijuana possession is also illegal, told MJBizDaily they were seeing foot traffic increase ninefold after expanding into recreational sales.

The rush of new customers, coupled with cultivation-capacity lags, has led to big spikes in wholesale flower prices and inventory shortages throughout the supply chain.

Retailers, for their part, are trying to keep pace.

To meet consumer demand, wholesale purchases per store in the Kansas City, Missouri, market increased from $97,000 in the quarter before the launch of recreational sales to $491,000 in the quarter after, a whopping 406% jump, according to LeafLink data.

In the St. Louis market, which borders southwestern Illinois, wholesale purchases per store increased nearly 57%, to $610,000, after adult-use sales began.

“The demand’s been bigger than anyone expected,” Burstein said.

A zero-sum game

In marijuana retail, particularly near state borders, it’s a zero-sum game.

The sales boom in the St. Louis market, which has more than 70 stores, has deflated business on the Illinois side of the border, where retailers have lost millions of dollars in sales since Missouri’s adult-use launch, according to quarterly reports and earnings calls.

Top executives at New York-based multistate operator Ascend Wellness Holdings, which has two shops near the Missouri border, cited revenue declines at its southern Illinois stores in recent earnings, saying it has led to suppressed margins that are expected to linger for much of the year.

Florida-based MSO Jushi Holdings, which also operates two Illinois stores near the Missouri border, reported an 8.8% year-over-year revenue decline to $66.4 million in its second quarter, partially attributing the slide to adult-use sales in Missouri.

In an Aug. 11 second-quarter earnings call, Jushi CEO James Cacioppo said total Illinois sales declined 20% from the first quarter and 40% year-over-year.

“I think we under-anticipated the pricing power initially out of the gate that retailers were going to have in Missouri,” Jushi Chief Strategy Director Trent Woloveck told MJBizDaily in an interview.

“The impact was a little bit greater than then we had thought due to that pricing for flower, vapes and infused products.”

In response, Jushi has implemented several initiatives, including adding new promotions and diversifying product SKUs (stock-keeping units) to ease the impact of declines sales in Illinois.

Northern exposure

Market dynamics in northern Illinois, particularly along the Wisconsin border, are a different story.

Wisconsin is among 10 states without a medical or recreational marijuana program.

Illinois counties bordering Wisconsin – including Lake, McHenry, Jo Daviess and Winnebago – accounted for 15.4%, or $239.7 million, of the nearly $1.6 billion in cannabis sales last year in the state, according to a fiscal analysis requested by pro marijuana-legalization lawmakers in Wisconsin.

The Wisconsin Legislative Fiscal Bureau report, which was released in March, cited annual statistics from the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.

Moreover, the report estimated about 7.8% of marijuana sales in Illinois in 2022, roughly $36.1 million, were generated by out-of-state residents traveling from Wisconsin.

Under Illinois law, out-of-state residents can only purchase recreational cannabis.

Two of Chicago-based multistate operator Cresco Labs’ 10 stores in Illinois are located near the Wisconsin border: a Sunnyside outlet in South Beloit at the border and one in Rockford, about a 30-minute drive away.

The South Beloit store often draws up to 1,000 daily visitors, according to Cresco’s national retail president, Cory Rothschild – traffic on par with the nation’s busiest marijuana retailers in highly populated areas.

It’s all the more impressive, considering that South Beloit has a population of roughly 8,000 and is more than 40 miles from Madison, the nearest city and Wisconsin’s state capital.

“It’s an extremely high-volume retail location,” Rothschild told MJBizDaily.

“South Beloit and Rockford as well are probably (among the) top dispensaries in the country.”

Maryland

Maryland is the newest recreational cannabis market, with nearly 100 medical marijuana dispensaries having converted to adult-use retail in late June.

While LeafLink wholesale data suggests about a 10% increase in wholesale product purchases statewide after the launch of adult-use sales, some retailers along Maryland’s south and eastern borders are doubling orders to meet demand.

In Elkton, near the Delaware border, stores are ordering about $41,000 in wholesale products per month, up 115% since the launch of recreational sales on July 1.

In the Rockville/Germantown area – outside of Washington DC and near the Virginia and West Virginia borders – monthly wholesale purchases have increased about 42%, to $54,000 per store, since recreational sales began.

Though MMJ dispensaries opened in West Virginia in 2021, the state still has some of the harshest marijuana laws in the country, according to the Marijuana Policy Project.

Meanwhile, Virginia’s adult-use rollout has been put on ice by Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin.

MSO MariMed’s wholesale business serving retailers in Maryland has benefited from increased demand from neighboring states, according to Jeff Jones, director of operations.

“We have retail customers that are very close to Virginia, Pennsylvania and West Virginia, and I’m sure that’s driving a significant amount of their business,” he said.

The Massachusetts-based company supplies every retailer in the state with its product brands.

MariMed is planning to double its cultivation and canopy space in Maryland, with product from that expansion expected to hit the wholesale and retail markets in the first quarter of 2024, Jones said.

Its retail operation in Annapolis – the state capital is about a 45-minute drive from Pennsylvania or West Virginia – hasn’t experienced the same type of uptick from border business but is still performing well, according to Jones.

A tale of two borders

The small town of Sunland Park, New Mexico, has racked up outsized sales since the state launched recreational retail in April 2022.

The sparsely populated bedroom community is situated across the border from El Paso, Texas, and Jaurez, Mexico, which have a combined population of more than 2.2 million.

That purchasing power has helped Sunland Park’s 88063 ZIP code top the state for per-capita adult-use spending, a sales metric that divides dollars spent for cannabis by population.

Per-person recreational marijuana spending in Sunland Park was $1,044, according to an MJBizDaily analysis of data from the New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department.

Its 88063 ZIP code also houses two of New Mexico’s leading cannabis stores.

Ultra Health and Everest Cannabis Co. generated nearly $6.1 million in combined sales from August 2022 to February 2023, according to MJBizDaily research.

Because business has been so strong at that Sunland Park store, Ultra Health last summer opened an adjacent location that handles only online orders for pickups.

The majority of its 42 stores were strategically aligned to capture business along New Mexico’s more than 600-mile border with Texas, the second-most-populated state.

“I would say half our business is Texas-related,” Ultra Health CEO Duke Rodriguez told MJBizDaily.

As part of that strategy, the company is planning to open an outlet in Lordsburg with hopes of drawing customers from Mexico, Texas and Arizona.

Mexico border towns share more than commerce, including family, culture and language.

Some residents own commercial properties and homes on either side of the border.

And residents tend to travel freely between Juarez, El Paso and Sunland Park to shop, dine and visit friends and family, according to Rodriguez.

Many also buy regulated marijuana, which might come as a surprise to some industry watchers, especially those unfamiliar with border business in the Southwest.

Though transporting licensed cannabis across the U.S.-Mexico border is barred under federal law, it’s fairly common, industry insiders tell MJBizDaily.

“The product is intended to be consumed within the state of New Mexico and should not cross state or international boundaries,” Ultra Health’s Rodriguez advised.

“The reality is some consumers cross these boundaries intentionally or by not being fully aware of the risk and prohibition.”

Sales in other border communities, such as Clovis and Hobbs – where Ultra Health also has stores – are also outpacing the field, another sign that Texans, and some Mexicans, are crossing the border to purchase marijuana from New Mexico marijuana retailers.

Source: https://mjbizdaily.com/border-sales-a-boost-for-most-cannabis-retailers-across-us/

Blogs

Cannabis Art Is Flourishing On Etsy

Published

1 year ago

September 4, 2023

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Although there is an available and thriving market for cannabis art, most e-commerce websites and platforms prohibit artists from selling art that depicts cannabis.

Is there any section or industry without cannabis influence? It’s starting to look like there isn’t any, as, throughout history, cannabis users have displayed their creative capabilities in various ways. And now cannabis art is flourishing on Etsy

Cannabis users and enthusiasts are some of the most innovative people you’ll ever meet, and their inspiring works of art have been admired for decades. Most of the works created by cannabis enthusiasts have also sparked debate for centuries, dating William Shakespeare’s times.

Cannabis and the creative arts

Research has shown a fantastic connection between cannabis and creativity, an intriguing relationship that is attributed to the plant’s remarkable properties. Cannabis interacts with the human brain through the endocannabinoid system and receptors in the brain.

Extensive works of research show that creative prowess and imagination heighten when users consume cannabis, thus enabling divergent and distinct thought patterns. Hence the reason great men and women like Maya Angelou and Louis Armstrong celebrated the impact of cannabis on their creative careers.A more significant percentage of the creative industry is also full of trailblazers who have affirmed that cannabis is a significant influence on their success. For such artists, marijuana inspires the way they hone their crafts and showcase their ideas.

Despite such a show of artistic brilliance, some artists struggle with finding a place to showcase their works. Why is this the case? Why can’t artist showcase their cannabis-inspired art?

The problem with finding a market showcase

Although there is an available and thriving market for cannabis art, most e-commerce websites and platforms prohibit artists from selling art that depicts cannabis. Some of these merchant shops also flag items such as CBD paraphernalia and insist that such things cannot be sold.

With such restrictions, creative artists fail to get an adequate space to share their creations with the world. Artists feel shut out of the market space, and then COVID-19 happened.

The Coronavirus Pandemic made everything worse for cannabis artists and businesses to maintain operations, which created a disturbing gap in the market.

The Solution: A cannabis-themed marketplace

As the challenge became increasingly worse, two outspoken cannabis advocates co-founded an online marketplace called The Artsy Leaf. Space was set-up as a multi-vendor marketplace to make it possible for artists to display their works.

The co-founders Abbey Weintraub Sklar and Rebecca Goldberg discovered that there were many international craftsmen, women, and artists with products that weren’t shared on any platform. The artists’ products are unique cannabis-friendly items that were mostly scattered on censored tech platforms that limited their exposure to the world.

Goldberg and Skylar understood the importance of an online vendor marketplace created for creators and buyers in the cannabis industry. COVID-19 and its resultant impact was also the inspiration behind an online space.

Initially, it was supposed to be an in-person CBD marketplace, but the pandemic made physical meetings impossible for buying and selling purposes. Hence the reason the co-founders made it an online space with a highly functional website.

The Artsy Leaf

The Artsy Leaf marketplace replaces other online platforms that were too restrictive for those in the cannabis industry. Some of those unfriendly sites didn’t provide room for tagging, describing, and listing CBD products, making it difficult for artists to advertise their products.

But with the Artsy Leaf marketplace, vendors and small business owners have maximum freedom to advertise their cannabis items. The platform also incorporates advertising with SEO consulting and doesn’t hide its processing fees.

The co-founders maintain that their desire to help all cannabis vendors succeed drives the marketplace. The website launched with an initial 14 vendors, and with its viable operational approach, more vendors are expected to join this revolutionary idea.

A virtual cannabis marketplace is what the world needs right now to bridge the gap between artists and buyers. Cannabis-inspired pieces will always remain relevant globally because of how unique and disruptive they can be. The Artsy Leaf is the right incubation place for ideas, purchases, and value exchange.

The future of the online marketplace

The future of the online cannabis marketplace for artists looks promising, and why is this so important? Well, cannabis is gaining a lot of momentum in America, with more states legalizing marijuana more people will gain access to weed, and when they do, they may be inspired to create unique art pieces or be looking to purchase unique cannabis inspired works.

Either way, the cannabis world needs an outlet for artists to share their works, and this is where platforms like the Artsy Leaf become crucial. Other online platforms may start to look into adjusting their policies regarding this issue because this sector is about to explode.

It is time to change the current status quo on the other E-commerce sites not allowing cannabis artists to showcase their genius.

Bottom line

The world is awakening to the ever-increasing potentials of cannabis. Through marketplaces like the Artsy Leaf, cannabis artists and art lovers can meet, interact and sustain the cannabis industry.

Without platforms like these, cannabis-inspired art will gradually decline, and that isn’t good for the cannabis industry at all. We must all continue to encourage the establishments of platforms (online and offline) where artists can thrive. Budding cannabis artists need more places to express themselves, and the Artsy Leaf is a suitable platform.

If you are a cannabis-themed artist, an aspiring one, or a small business owner and you struggle with promoting your work, you can visit The Artsy Leaf.

Source: https://thefreshtoast.com/cannabusiness/cannabis-art-is-flourishing-on-etsy/

Blogs

Beer Lingo, A Guide To Becoming A Better Patron

Published

1 year ago

August 24, 2023

ghsGFsre564

Bars are wondrous places full of beer, chatter, celebration, ways to get drunk and opportunities to meet friends. But they are also tricky. As with most niche scenes, there is lingo you need to know, terms you should memorize and slang with which you should show facility. What’s Imperial mean? How do you pronounce “weisse?” And how much should I tip my bartender? Hang on, because you’re about to find out the answers to all of these. Here is your beer lingo, a guide to becoming a better patron. BTW, the Slavic word ‘beer’ came from the verb ‘to drink’. Initially, beer was any kind of drink.

Hops

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Small green pine cone-like buds that grow on vines. Their oils and acids preserve and flavor beer.

Hoppy

The thing snobby people refer to about beer, and what people who hardly ever drink beer say they don’t like. Hoppy is often used as a synonym for the word ‘bitter,’ but there are plenty of beers that use loads of hops and don’t taste the least bit bitter.

Malt

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The sugars used to sweeten beer.

Malty

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That syrupy, sweet flavor in beer drunk by amateurs.

Perry

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A cider-like drink made exclusively with pears.

Imperial

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A word out in front of certain beer styles (Stout, IPA) meaning they’re much stronger.

Mead

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Beer produced from honey, water and yeast.

Ale

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Ale is brewed using a warm fermentation method, resulting in a sweet, full-bodied and fruity taste. It is a maltier, top-fermented beer.

Lager

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A beer that is effervescent and light in color and body. it is a dry, bottom-fermented drink.

IPA

Stands for India Pale Ale because it was originally brewed in the United Kingdom and shipped to British soldiers in India during colonization (which is still basically happening). It is made with more hops, to give it a stronger flavor. There’s no standardised threshold at which a pale ale becomes an IPA, though.

Cask-Conditioned

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The process in which a draught beer retains yeast to enable a secondary fermentation to take place in a cask in the pub cellar. Cask conditioned beer is the traditional drink of the British pub, and served properly, it can be among the most subtle and beguiling of beer types.

Fresh Hop

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Beer made with recently picked hops that haven’t been dried. It provides distinctively grassy, plant-like, and “green” flavor profiles without the bitterness associated with IPAs and other beers featuring copious dried hops.

Weisse

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Pronounced ‘Vice’ is the counterpart in German for “white,” most commonly used in reference to the sour Berliner type of beer, but also sometimes to the Bavarian type, as in weissbier. Weizen is the German word for “wheat,” most often applied to the Bavarian wheat beer style.

Microbrew

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Compared to macrobreweries, which produce millions of barrels per year, microbreweries produce a relatively small amount of beer—between 1,000 to no more than 15,000 barrels annually. But aside from their size, what makes microbreweries special is that they’re known for brewing specialty beers.

The type of beer you do not use for beer pong unless you make more money than your bartender.

Pint

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The size of glass most beers are served in, and also the thing you dropped and smashed when you were trying to text your Uber driver.

Dive Bar

The kind of bar you actually really like going to, unless you’re trying to impress a date or a friend. It is typically a small, unglamorous, eclectic, old-style drinking establishment with inexpensive yet strong drinks; it may feature dim lighting, shabby or dated decor, neon beer signs, packaged beer sales, cash-only service, and local clientele

BTW, the strongest beer in the world has a strength of 67.5%. It was created in 2017 by the Scottish brewery Brewmeister. The beer is called Snake Venom

Pickup Line

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The thing you should never say because it never works.

Tip

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The amount of money you give a bartender after a transaction, which should be more than you initially think to give because A) most bartenders are relatively poor and deserve dough, and B) if you tip a lot you’ll be remembered C) if you tip too little you’ll be remembered D )

How do you want to be remembered?