Both business and culture surrounding legal cannabis have certainly seen a lot of attention over the last few years.

With cannabis rapidly becoming legalized in more U.S. states, we are seeing that culture reach a much broader audience.

But, is that culture representative of Black and racially diverse industry professionals?

Cannabis marketing and advertising are becoming more mainstream and cannabis companies are taking full advantage of how many people they are reaching.

Canada’s economy added 245,800 jobs in August but the cannabis industry remains on shaky ground.

The cannabis industry has an equity problem. 

The prohibition of cannabis has adversely impacted people in communities of color. Disproportionate enforcement of anti-cannabis laws by law enforcement often carries extraneous, life-altering sentences. 

As cannabis legalization is spreading across the U.S., minorities are again being pushed to the fringes as white-owned corporations are taking advantage of new opportunities with the funding to ensure they succeed. Meanwhile, due to the incredibly high cost of bringing a new cannabis brand to market. minority-owned businesses and entrepreneurs are hobbled. 

Aurora Cannabis Inc. warned Tuesday it expects to record a writedown of up to $1.8 billion in its fourth quarter, and announced it is promoting Miguel Martin, the company's head of U.S. operations, to the role of chief executive officer.

Just as some wine aficionados seek wine based on terroir, some cannabis consumers like to explore the subtleties of individual strains. Which type of cannabis works best in this situation?

When recreational cannabis consumers examine the array of flower available at their local dispensary, they’ll notice that cannabis buds may have the same strain name and potency but they look and smell differently. So how do they know which ones to purchase? 

Canada updated its quarterly sales numbers for the nationwide cannabis industry on Sep. 4. During the second quarter, which lasted from April to June, household spending on unlicensed cannabis totaled 785 million Canadian dollars and was down 4.7% from the previous quarter. This number has declined in every period since the recreational market opened in Canada on October 17, 2018. In the legal market, CA$648 million was spent on recreational pot and CA$155 million was spent on medicinal marijuana, combining for a total of CA$803 million.

Ontario is on pace to see 40 new pot shops licensed this fall as the province’s cannabis retail store regulator announced it is doubling the number of licenses it issues. 

The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO), responsible for regulating cannabis retail stores in the province, announced it will double store authorizations at the government’s direction. So far, the AGCO issued 164 licenses, 150 of which have opened shop in Ontario. Some 900 applicants are currently waiting to open cannabis retail shops.

In Toronto, Ontario’s capital and largest city, over a hundred pot shops are waiting to secure approval, while 53 have already opened. 

Councillors in Prince Edward County are looking to have a little more control over cannabis production facilities in the municipality.

An interim control by-law for the entire municipality that prohibits the expansion or creation of cannabis production facilities was approved during a committee of the whole meeting at Highline Hall in Wellington on Thursday.

Planner James Griffin couldn’t tell councillors how many current operations are located in Prince Edward County as Health Canada does not have to give notice to the municipality when they issue a licence.

Griffin did note staff were in conversation with Health Canada with neighbouring municipalities discussing odour controls, setbacks and what municipalities can control during the meeting.

For most recyclable containers purchased in Alberta, you also pay a small deposit which is then returned when the bottles or cans are dropped off for recycling.

A variety of containers can be dropped off at bottle depots for refunds — except for those used to store cannabis.

Now, the agency that governs bottle depots in the province wants to welcome cannabis containers into the deposit return system, saying the move could divert plastic from landfills and stabilize declines in depot income.

"Depots are ready to accept the product," said Jerry Roczkowsky of the Alberta Bottle Depot Association (ABDA). "It's a matter of working with the manufacturers to get the system in place."