Entertainment mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs announced late last week that he was launching what is billed as the largest black-owned cannabis brand by buying $185 million for cannabis production sites and stores in three US states.

Formerly Puff Daddy is buying the business operations of Cresco Labs and Columbia Care, two US cannabis companies that operate in multiple states and must divest their assets to complete the previously announced merger of the two companies.

The transaction, if approved by federal and state regulators, will add to Sean Combs’ portfolio of businesses, which includes projects in entertainment, media, fashion and alcohol .

Diddy, chairman and CEO of Combs Enterprises, said he was buying those assets to address inequity in the cannabis industry, where 81% of businesses are white-owned, according to a legislative report released in Maryland this week.

“My mission has always been to create opportunities for Black entrepreneurs in industries where we have traditionally been denied access, and this acquisition provides the immediate scale and impact needed to create a more equitable future in cannabis.” , Combs said in a statement.

“Owning the entire process – from cultivation and manufacturing to marketing, retail and wholesale distribution – is a historic victory for culture that will allow us to empower diverse leaders across the world. ecosystem and to be bold advocates for inclusion. »

A $185 million deal

As part of the deal, a new Combs-controlled company will acquire nine cannabis retail stores and three production facilities in New York, Illinois and Massachusetts.

In return, Combs will pay $110 million in cash and an additional $45 million in debt financing, plus future payments based on growth criteria, for a total amount of up to $185 million.

Combs said he would leverage the new venture to help increase black participation in the cannabis industry, a goal supported by Cresco CEO Charlie Bachtell.

“For an industry that needs a greater diversity of leadership and perspective, the substantial presence of a minority-owned operator in some of the nation’s most influential markets and led by one of the country’s most prolific entrepreneurs and most influential of our time is momentous…and incredibly exciting,” Bachtell said in a statement Friday.

“We are delighted to welcome Sean and his team to the industry.”

In March, Cresco Labs announced that it would acquire Columbia Care in a $2 billion stock transaction. The merger of the two companies forms one of the largest cannabis companies in the United States, with operations in 18 states where cannabis is legal, including pioneers Colorado and California.

However, regulations governing the cannabis industry and business licensing require companies to divest certain assets in states where their operations overlap, such as Arizona, Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, New York and Ohio.

Largest Black-Owned Cannabis Company

The transaction is Combs’ first venture into the cannabis industry and will create the first vertically integrated, minority-owned and operated multi-state cannabis operator in the United States, in an industry expected to grow to $72 billion by 2030. .

Vertically integrated operations in New York, Illinois and Massachusetts will enable Combs’ new company to grow and manufacture cannabis products, while wholesale and distribution assets will market these products for brand from licensed dispensaries in major metropolitan areas including New York, Boston and Chicago. The agreement also includes retail stores in all three states.

“These assets provide the Combs team with a significant presence in the market, allowing them to have maximum impact on the industry as a whole,” said Nicholas Vita, CEO and co-founder of Columbia Care.

“It’s clear to us that Sean has the right team to continue the strong legacy of these Columbia Care and Cresco Labs facilities, and we look forward to seeing how he helps shape the cannabis industry into the future through his leadership.” entrepreneurship and its innovation. »

The transaction is subject to several conditions, including regulatory approvals, antitrust clearance and the closing of Cresco Labs’ acquisition of Columbia Care. The companies are also divesting other assets to meet regulatory requirements before the deal closes.

A dozen German Cannabis Social Clubs (CSC) founded the “Dachverband der Cannabis Social Clubs Deutschland” (Association of Cannabis Social Clubs of Germany) in Berlin at the end of October. The CSCD will help people grow their own cannabis plants and politically represent the growing number of growing communities.

The CSCD, in addition to representing the interests and being the spokesperson for Cannabis Social Clubs in Germany, is considering several ways to help German CSCs.

It will support clubs with education campaigns on CSCs, help members manage clubs, and provide services related to self-cultivation of cannabis.

“The time has come,” said Steffen Geyer, CSCD President, “to do what no one has ever done before in Germany, or even in Europe – we have organized ourselves to provide our members with the best cannabis that we can, cheaply, flexibly, with respect for quality and within a social network”.

“The association currently represents nearly two dozen clubs with a few hundred members. But we […] we are already seeing a wave of CSC creation,” reports CSC Hannover President Henry Wieker.

Gaby Kozar, spokesperson for ENCOD in Austria, who participated online, stressed in her welcome speech that CSCs across Europe are waiting to see what happens in Germany. The mistakes made in the future regulation of the first EU country to legalize the cannabis market could be repeated in other states.

ENCOD, the European Coalition for a Just and Effective Drug Policy, has been promoting Cannabis Social Clubs across Europe since 2003 and has also financially supported the founding of the German association.

The CSCD has announced that it will soon present a catalog of demands from the several hundred organized cannabis self-cultivators.

What are Cannabis Social Clubs?

Cannabis Social Clubs are non-profit associations for the collective cultivation of cannabis.

They teach the skills needed to handle live hemp plants, organize collective cultivation and distribute cannabis products to their members.

Cannabis social clubs promote responsible consumption and the safe use of cannabis products through close social contact.

Cannabis Clubs already exist officially in Uruguay, Spain, Belgium (where they have a hard time) or in the United Kingdom. For advocates of CSCs, they are an effective form of cannabis abuse prevention through their low-threshold approach to social control.

US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer believes Congress is “very close” to introducing and passing the SAFE Bill that would open banks to legal cannabis businesses. The text also provides for the erasure of previous convictions in connection with cannabis.

The text has already been voted on 7 times by the House of Representatives but has always blocked in the Senate.

“We’re getting a lot closer to that,” Schumer said in an online debate. “I’m working bipartisanly with Democrats and Republicans to pass the SAFE Banking Act, which allows financial institutions to get involved in cannabis businesses and lend them money — but also to do certain things for the justice, like the erasing of a record. »

The plan, according to several lawmakers, is to table a modest cannabis reform package in the indefinite period following this week’s midterm elections, push it through both houses, and send it out. on the President’s desk before the end of the current Congress.

The SAFE bill, which Schumer is working to finalize with input from both parties and both houses, does not include provisions to legalize cannabis at the federal level.

US lawmakers have signaled that the SAFE legislation has been amended and will now contain protections for banks working with legal cannabis businesses like the original text intended but also other more modest proposals aimed at providing access medical cannabis for military veterans, to promote research and more.

Cannabis growers who have been selected to take part in the controlled cannabis cultivation trials in the Netherlands have informed the Dutch government that they will not be ready to start early next year as the government had planned.

The experiment should have started in 2021. Designated producers now say late next year is a more likely date.

The goal of the project, launched five years ago, is to remove the gray area between coffee shops and illegal cultivation.

The coalition party D66 was particularly enthusiastic about this project, which MPs believed would reduce the role of organized crime in the soft drug circuit.

Ten cities – Arnhem, Almere, Breda, Groningen, Heerlen, Hellevoetsluis, Maastricht, Nijmegen, Tilburg and Zaanstad – eventually agreed and ten growers committed to supplying a wide range of cannabis products.

So far, some growers have been unable to obtain bank accounts, as banks fear money laundering and support for criminal behavior. High energy prices, supply delays and problems with the track-and-trace system that will control the destination and sale of cannabis products are also causing difficulties, according to the letter that the NRC media could consult.

The Dutch government reacted to NRC and clarified that they were discussing with the banks about the bank accounts, without however committing to unblock the subject, and that they did not share the concerns about the monitoring system which would be operational.

Further information on the continuation of the experiment will be published in December by the Dutch government.

While the German Minister of Health presented his plan to legalize cannabis, believing that prohibition was a risk for public health and an opportunity for the black market, François Braun, French Minister of Health, prefers to leave French consumers , sick or not, illegally source cannabis.

What arguments are put forward by François Braun

With regard to medical cannabis, François Braun explained himself on the desert of French medical cannabis by holding cannabis experimentation, claiming recently on BFM TV the need to reach the objective set of 3,000 patients included .

However, the ANSM has never set this objective, the principle of the experiment being solely “to assess, in a real situation, the recommendations of the Committee in terms of prescribing and dispensing conditions and the adherence of health professionals and patients under these conditions.

“I will make decisions” at the end of this experiment on the use of therapeutic cannabis, he added, thus not opening the door to the legalization of medical cannabis in France and not giving more information on the fate of patients already included.

François Braun also highlights the “contrasted scientific results at the international level” of therapeutic cannabis, without further details. It is probably for these same contrasting results that 22 European countries and 38 American states, in addition to Australia or Israel, now prescribe medical cannabis with more or less constraints.

Regarding the legalization of cannabis, the least hypocritical will undoubtedly have been to admit to having consumed “when young”. But beware, the cannabis of today would no longer be the cannabis of yesterday.

“We now have cannabis that is modified, extremely concentrated, which is more like hard drugs than drugs from the 70s,” explains François Braun.

The French Minister of Health is a perfect illustration here of the iron law of prohibition, which states that “the more the application [de la loi] is tough, the more potent the drugs” and the more efficiency they offer in the business model: they take up less space in storage, less weight in transport, and bring in more money.

If the levels of THC in cannabis have increased over the past 50 years, and the varieties are not more balanced in THC:CBD ratio for example, it would therefore be partly because cannabis is prohibited, with no possible control over quality. and power.

François Braun, yet Minister of Health, says he is “personally” opposed to the legalization of cannabis.

A pharmaceutical company called Apex Labs announced on November 1 that it would conduct the first North American clinical trial of home-prescribed multidose psilocybin. Apex Labs is a patient-focused pharmaceutical company specializing in psilocybin treatments for military veterans.

According to a press release, the trial known as APEX-002-A01-02 will explore the effectiveness of APEX-52 (psilocybin) for veterans with depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. Apex Labs received a “letter of no objection” from Health Canada on October 24.

Veteran patients will be given low-dose and multiple-dose psilocybin for oral use.

Tyler Powell, CEO of Apex Labs, said he was excited to introduce this drug to participating patients, allowing them to safely explore whether psilocybin can help them with their health issues.

“This approval demonstrates Health Canada’s willingness to allow APEX to move forward with a clinical pipeline focused on veteran patients with PTSD and a comorbid diagnosis of depression,” said Powell.

“Veterans are already self-medicating with microdoses of unregulated psilocybin products, unaware of the potency and safety of the product they are consuming. Our goal is to expand access to pharmaceutical-grade products through regulated systems, providing transparency and support to patients who need it. »

In January 2022, Health Canada amended its Controlled Drugs and Substances Act through its Special Access Program to include psilocybin and MDMA.

“Emerging scientific evidence supports the potential therapeutic uses of certain restricted drugs, including restricted psychedelic drugs like MDMA and psilocybin that have received “Breakthrough Therapy” designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. for the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder and treatment-resistant depression, respectively,” writes Health Canada.

Recently, the University of Guelph, Ontario (Canada), was granted permission to conduct a study on psilocybin mushrooms. The university received a “distributor’s license” from Health Canada on October 25, making it one of the first universities in the country to receive such approval.

Some Canadian patients at the end of life have also received exceptional and individual authorization to consume hallucinogenic mushrooms.

A bill presented to the Council of Ministers and debated in the Mauritian parliament proposes to decriminalize the personal use of drugs in Mauritius, in addition to introducing medical cannabis more widely.

Decriminalization of personal use

The text of the law, reported by the Mauritian press, provides that the possession of drugs for personal use and without aggravating circumstances – for example cultivation for the purpose of trafficking – can escape legal proceedings. The person would be offered a follow-up against addiction and will have to appear before a body created for the occasion, the Drug Users’ Administrative Panel (DUAP).

This panel will accompany the consumer in his care journey, without penal follow-up. Currently when the Mauritian police arrest a user in possession of drugs, the latter is prosecuted criminally.

Expansion of medical cannabis testing

The second part of the bill concerns cannabis for medical use, which has so far been restricted to one trial.

Derivative products containing cannabis and prescribed to patients (capsules, oils, syrup, flower, etc.) must not exceed 30 mg and 60 ml of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) per dose.

To qualify for treatment, specific medical conditions will be required such as:

• spasticity associated with multiple sclerosis not treated by conventional means
• severe refractory epilepsy that does not respond to any conventional anticonvulsant therapy
• patients undergoing chemotherapy whose treatments for side effects are ineffective or patients with intractable pain.

These patients will be referred to Medicinal Cannabis Therapeutic Committeewhich will be instituted in each public hospital and their case will be submitted by a specialist authorized to recommend the use of medical cannabis.

The treatments will be provided over a renewable period not exceeding three months. Medical cannabis will be imported by the Ministry of Health only and the delivery supervised by the police.

Rastas want religious legalization

Alongside this reform of the Dangerous Drugs (Amendment) Bill, the island’s Rasta community is asking for permission to use cannabis during Rastafarian celebrations. Rastas rely on the island’s Constitution which guarantees religious freedom. Several countries already allow the sacramental use of cannabis or other psychoactive plants within communities.

Lawyer Sanjeev Teeluckdharry will testify before the Supreme Court very soon to explain that the constitutional rights of Rastas have so far been violated and that the religious use of cannabis must be reconsidered.

Last week, Canadian cannabis company Canopy Growth announced plans to accelerate its entry into the US market. The company said it was consolidating its US assets into a new company, Canopy USA.

Canopy’s US portfolio will include the purchase of multi-state operator Acreage Holdings, California-based extractor Jetty Extracts and oil makeredibles Wana Brands – which Canopy had agreed to buy once cannabis was legalized by US law. Canopy, however, decided not to wait for US federal legalization.

David Klein, CEO of Canopy, said the strategy will allow the company to “take charge” of its own destiny “and capitalize on the unique opportunity that the world’s largest cannabis market represents.” »

“We plan to unleash the full power of Canopy into the US cannabis ecosystem to unlock potential expansion opportunities. This strategy and positioning are true differentiators that we believe will enable our investors and our brands to realize near-term value while positioning Canopy for profitable growth and a quick start upon obtaining federal clearance. American,” explained David Klein in a press release.

The operation could take a year and a half, the time to obtain the necessary authorizations from both the American economic authorities and the various boards companies to be acquired.

Constellation Brands, the spirits giant that put more than $4 billion into Canopy said it plans to step back into a more passive, non-voting role. The alcoholic will retain its current stake but will no longer be permitted to appoint representatives to Canopy’s board of directors or approve certain transactions. He will also no longer have the right to review Canopy’s financial results.

“This transaction and the forfeiture of our warrants should eliminate the impact on our profit share, mitigate the risk to our organization and reinforce our intention not to deploy additional investments in Canopy, consistent with allocation priorities. of capital previously set forth by Constellation,” said Bill Newlands, President and CEO of Constellation.

Collectively, Canopy’s footprint currently spans 21 US states, including Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Oklahoma and Oregon.

Currently, only one European country has legalized recreational cannabis. And despite popular belief, this is not the Netherlands, where the sale of cannabis is tolerated in licensed coffeeshops, but where the cultivation, distribution and possession of cannabis remain criminal offences. In December 2021, Malta became the first country in the EU to legalize cannabis for adults. And the Czech Republic could well be the second.

If the plan proposed by National Drugs Coordinator Jindřich Vobořil comes into force in 2024 as he hopes, the Czech Republic could become the second EU country to legalize the recreational use of cannabis and its sale, before Germany, which has still not announced its schedule. The Drug Enforcement Coordinator presented his plan to tackle addiction – which includes the proposal to legalize cannabis – at a press conference last week.

“Right now, there is a political consensus for me to create this proposal to regulate cannabis, a substance that is illegal at the moment. We want to regulate it with the help of the market and we believe that this regulation will be more effective than the current prohibition. »

Mr. Vobořil is one of the leading Czech experts on drug issues, with nearly twenty years of experience in the management and development of health and social service programs related to drug addiction. On the home page of his website, the first thing you find is a quote saying that studies show that a certain proportion of the population will eventually become addicted to an addictive substance at some point in their lives. , despite society’s best prevention efforts, and that the solution is not criminalization, but rather the “controlled availability of less risky substances”.

At the press conference, the Drug Enforcement Coordinator described the current legal status quo regarding cannabis as “one big social experiment that doesn’t work.” He believes that legalizing and regulating the sale of cannabis will be more effective in addressing the problem of addiction – and will also generate significant tax revenue.

The three-year plan presents proposals for the taxation not only of cannabis, but also of addictive substances that are already legal, including tobacco products.

“There are currently no excise duties on e-cigarettes and nicotine patches, so we would introduce a lower excise duty than we have on cigarettes. As for taxes on cigarettes, at the moment they are increasing every year, and I expect that we will agree to keep things that way. »

The Czech state could earn up to 15 billion crowns (€600 million) a year thanks to the new tax proposal, which also includes the fight against the black market in cigarettes, alcohol and gambling, as well as more efficient tax collection. Other proposals in the plan include increased spending on drug prevention and treatment, as well as the creation of a new drug addiction agency, which would be responsible for drug addiction measures and their funding.

The government of Petr Fiala announced in its policy statement in January this year that it wanted to tackle the problem of addiction on the basis of scientific evidence. It should receive Mr. Vobořil’s completed plan, with its implementation dates, by the end of the year. The country also calls on other European nations to do the same.