ORGANIC CERTIFICATION FOR CANNABIS EXPANDS INTO CANADATHE NEWS IN BRIEF

POT COMPANIES SUE NYC REGULATORS he first Canadian marijuana farm has received organic certification, courtesy of Sun+Earth Certified in British Columbia. Sun+Earth Certified is a nonprofit third-party certification for regenerative organic Cannabis. Sea Dog Farm has existed since 2017 in Central Saanich, B.C. – at the south end of Vancouver Island, near the provincial capital of Victoria. In addition to holding a micro-cultivation Cannabis license, the five-acre family farm grows fruits, vegetables, berries, herbs and cut flowers. Sea Dog Farm uses no-till, regenerative organic practices.

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A COALITION that includes some of New York’s medical marijuana companies sued state Cannabis regulators in March in an effort to open up licensing to all retail dispensary applicants immediately.

The lawsuit, filed in state court in Albany, claims that state Cannabis regulators exceeded their legal authority when they opened the initial application pool in August only to people with past pot convictions or their relatives, instead of to everyone. The lawsuit names as defendants the state’s Cannabis Control Board and Office of Cannabis Management, as well as top officials, reports AP.

east coast N.H. HOUSE APPROVES LEGALIZATION WITH NO REGULATIONS

Cannabis industry leaders, experts and advocates founded Sun+Earth in 2019. The group promotes regenerative organic agriculture, farmer and farm worker protections, and community engagement. There are now more than 70 Sun+Earth Certified Cannabis farms in California, Michigan, Oregon and Washington.

The state’s equity program, which offered first dibs to individuals with past pot convictions or their relatives, was an attempt to create opportunities for those who have been most adversely affected by pot policing, which resulted in Black and Latino people being arrested at disproportionately higher rates.

OKLAHOMA VOTERS REJECT LEGALIZATION

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ustralian researchers have found plant-derived Cannabis oils with balanced ratios of THC and CBD to be generally safe and effective for patients with neurological diseases. These findings are based on observational trial data in the Journal of Clinical Medicine, reports NORML.

The study examined the sustained use of marijuana extracts in 157 patients with treatment-resistant neurological, musculoskeletal, autoimmune or anti-inflammatory disorders. Under Australian law, physicians may only authorize medical Cannabis to patients unresponsive to conventional prescription treatments.

Investigators reported patients age 65 or older and/or those suffering from neurological disorders, received the greatest benefits from Cannabis therapy. Conditions helped included Parkinson’s disease, peripheral neuropathy and multiple sclerosis.

Their findings are consistent with those of several other studies reporting quality of life benefits among older patients consuming marijuana.

HEALTH & SCIENCE STUDY SAYS CANNABIS OILS SAFE & EFFECTIVEOKLAHOMA VOTERS in March soundly rejected a ballot measure that would have legalized adult-use Cannabis for people over the age of 21. It was a setback for advocates who have seen the conservative state warmly embrace access to the herb for medicinal purposes. Across “Tokelahoma,” 2,890 licenses have been approved for medical marijuana businesses. Oklahoma City, the state capital, is home to more than 400 dispensaries. But in a state where 10% of residents have a medical marijuana card, 62% of Oklahoma voters rejected the proposal to legalize adult use.

states have legalized

THE IMPLEMENTATION of adult-use Cannabis sales in Canada didn’t result in any increase in traffic injury-related hospitalizations, according to data published in the journal Addiction – where investigators assessed rates of emergency department visits and hospitalizations in the years before and immediately following legalization.

“Overall, there is no clear evidence that RCL [Recreational Cannabis Laws] had any effect on rates of ED visits and hospitalizations for either motor vehicle or pedestrian/cyclist injury across Canada,” authors concluded.

The findings agree with those of a 2021 Canadian study. That one “found no evidence that the implementation of the Cannabis Act was associated with significant changes in postlegalization patterns of all drivers’ traffic-injury ED visits or, more specifically, youth-driver traffic-injury ED presentations.”

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he New Hampshire House of Representatives has approved another bill to legalize marijuana in the state. But there’s a big difference this time: This one contains no regulations or limitations on Cannabis.

About a month after the House passed a comprehensive legalization, taxation and regulation measure sponsored by bipartisan leaders, on March 16 members took up the simpler legislation to remove marijuana from the state’s list of banned substances.

“When bills get complicated and they get long and they get confused, people vote against them,” said GOP Rep. Kevin Verville. “This is the shortest, easiest way to affect the change that the majority of our constituents want – and that is the legalization of Cannabis.”

THE SOUTH

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Quoted

“When bills get complicated and they get long and they get confused, people vote against them,” said GOP Rep. Kevin Verville.“It simply doesn’t make sense to base an employment decision on that kind of unreliable outcome and test.”

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