For all the challenges that marijuana stocks have faced in the past year, including a lack of profitability and analysts being bearish on the industry, there's been no shortage of investors who have been willing to buy shares of cannabis companies despite the risks involved. The biggest risk for any cannabis investor today centers around how sensitive the stocks are and how volatile they can be in response to new developments in the industry, or just analyst opinions. This volatility shouldn't be ignored, as investors could see their portfolios lose significant value in a short amount of time.

Canadian cannabis companies are still in the honeymoon phase of what's been rapid early growth for the new recreational marijuana market in Canada. However, in 2020 that's going to change in a hurry, and it could be a whole lot more difficult for cannabis companies to impress investors with their growth numbers. That could be bad news after what's already been a tough 2019 for the industry. Here's why things could get worse next year.

Lightning-fast. High-speed. Breakneck. 

This is how quick the modern cannabis experience is changing — and nobody knows this better than the consumers who are witnessing this rapid growth firsthand. From dispensary shelves filled with products you’ve never seen before to the increasingly serious push for legal cannabis nationwide, to cannabis consumption lounges opening up in a few lucky locations, we are living through the cannabis renaissance. And yet, more expansive change is still on the horizon.  

Deepak Anand is a recognised thought leader in the global cannabis space and brings 15 years of leadership experience in the health, charitable and non-profit, and private sectors in Canada.

Deepak Anand of Materia Ventures shares his thoughts on how the rest of the world can learn from the challenges Canada has overcome.

In October of 2018, Canada became the first G7 country to legalize recreational cannabis, and was only the second to fully legalize in the world after Uruguay. In the year to follow, Canada truly became a leader in the cannabis industry by showing the rest of the world what to do, and also what not to do. The year 2019 was certainly no walk in the park for marijuana businesses, or their patrons, but we’ve all learned some lessons through Canada’s cannabis growing pains. Here is a trip down memory lane at just a few of the top stories that shaped Canada’s cannabis landscape in 2019:

Heading into 2020, we’re marking the first full year of cannabis legalization in Canada. And since every provincial and territorial government seems to have set up a different iteration of how the regulated weed market should operate, it makes sense that some were more successful than others – to say the least.​

Here are a few of our picks for the winning — but mostly, losing — regulated cannabis markets of 2019.

A ban on the promotion of vaping products in convenience stores and gas stations comes into effect across Ontario on Wednesday, as the province mulls further changes to keep the items away from young people.

The regulations were announced by the Progressive Conservatives in the fall, in response to research that shows vaping is on the rise among young Ontarians.

The new rules will bring vaping regulations in line with the current ban on in-store tobacco advertisements, but will still allow the products to be promoted in specialty shops open to those 19 and older.

A spokeswoman for Health Minister Christine Elliott said in a statement that the government intends to take further action in 2020, but did not provide additional details.

Nova Scotians are loving their second-wave cannabis products — so much so that they’re getting nearly impossible to find at licensed stores across the province.

Beverly Ware, spokesperson for the Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation (NSLC), told NEWS 97.5 on Friday that edibles, in particular, are flying off the shelves. The demand for the recently available products has been high, to the point where “almost all” of the Crown corporation’s store locations have treats like cannabis-infused chocolates and gummies in short supply, Ware said.

When the curtain finally closes on 2019, it'll go down as one of the strongest years in a long time for the broader market, and likely the worst year for marijuana stocks.

What had been an incredible buzz for investors throughout the first quarter turned into a major buzzkill for the remaining nine months. Since the end of the first quarter, most cannabis stocks have lost a significant amount of their market cap as questions fly concerning the growth trajectory of the global pot industry moving forward.

But the big question: What does 2020 hold for marijuana stocks?

As we look toward the New Year, I'd suggest that the following five trends are poised to dominate the cannabis landscape.