Four out of the five main candidates in the French presidential election support a relaxation of the country’s cannabis laws.

Under the current law, first passed in 1970, taking any illegal drug carries the risk of a one-year prison sentence and a fine of up to 3,750 euros.

However cannabis remains one of the most popular illegal drugs in France, with 47 per cent of 17-year-olds saying they have tried it, according to a recent survey by the French Observatory for Drugs and Addiction.

Every summer, tens of thousands of migrant workers swarm a remote area of Northern California — the marijuana-growing capital of the US — to find work as "trimmers" after the weed has been harvested.

Their job is to prune the fluffy, green buds with small pairs of scissors to clear them of leaves before they wind up on dispensary shelves or in dealers' pockets.

The work is arduous and pays between $100 and $300 a day for 10 to 15 hours of labor on the black market, which generated 87% of pot sales in North America in 2016.

Canada's Chocolate Town starts manufacturing legal weed? Sounds like the pilot for a sitcom — or a match made in marketing heaven.

Tidal Health Solutions, a medical marijuana company based in St. Stephen, tells CBC News that in addition to current openings for an assistant grower and lab technician, the company also plans to hire "between 30 and 40 workers" in the coming months, according to partner and spokesperson Kent Hovey-Smith.

The man widely regarded as the front-runner for South Carolina's top federal prosecutor job is a Republican state representative who gave early support to Donald Trump's campaign in this early voting state.

But Rep. Peter McCoy — whose name frequently circulates in legal circles as a likely top contender for the job, in part because of his Trump support — has introduced comprehensive medicinal cannabis legislation here, which appears to contradict his would-be boss' statements on drug policy. U.S. Attorney Jeff Sessions has made no secret of his plans to take a hard line on drugs, reminding reporters just weeks after being sworn in that marijuana distribution remains a federal crime, regardless of what states may do to legalize it.

A new report on the recreational and medical marijuana industry in Oregon estimates that 12,500 jobs have been created with cumulative annual wages of $315 million.

With the report, done by Beau Whitney of Whitney Economics, Oregon joins Colorado in reporting a big economic boost from the legalization of marijuana.

It’s important to note that Whitney wrote the report for the Oregon State House of Representatives Committee on Economic Development and Trade. In another words, it’s a government-sponsored report. With that caveat, the report shows some impressive numbers associated with the marijuana business, much like Colorado reported late in 2016.

President Trump promised in his inauguration speech to create 25 million new jobs for Americans in the next decade. A new report indicates one way to help get to that goal is to allow states that have legalized marijuana to move forward uninterrupted.

New Frontier Data, which specializes in data analysis for the cannabis industry, recently published a report projecting that legalized marijuana will create close to 300,000 jobs over the next three years. But is this projection realistic?

The business empire built by Canada’s “Prince and Princess of Pot” is on the verge of collapse.

Marc and Jodie Emery have been ordered to cease operating their Cannabis Culture dispensary business after they were arrested Wednesday at Pearson Airport while on their way catch a flight to Barcelona, Jodie said Saturday in a phone call from Toronto.

Emery said they were taken into custody by plainclothes officers as they exited an Uber vehicle and were later strip-searched and detained. She described their treatment by police as “disturbing and shocking” and said they were only permitted to speak with lawyers hours after the arrest.

A new recreational marijuana retailer has opened in South Salem.

Locally owned marijuana business Herbal Remedies opened a new location Friday at 3940 Commercial Street SE between McDonald’s and camera store The Shutterbug. The new Herbal Remedies location features, for instance, a “bud bar” where customers can view and smell different kinds of marijuana through special clear containers.

"Basically, I'm hoping that we can just grow into the future of Salem," Herbal Remedies co-owner Jered DeCamp said. "I want to be a staple in Salem."

Marijuana legislation

A recap of the medical marijuana-related bills filed by the state Legislature during the 91st General Assembly. All bills must be approved on the floor of both the House of Representatives and the Senate before being sent to Gov. Asa Hutchinson to sign into law. Any bill changing the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Amendment must be approved by a two-thirds majority in both chambers. All statuses are as of Monday morning:

HB1026 Pushes deadline for state agencies to publish marijuana regulations to May 8. Status: Signed into law as Act 4.