Canopy boosts Atlantic Canada supply with production set to begin in Fredericton facility 

Canopy Growth said Monday it received a cultivation licence for its facility located in Fredericton which will help supply the Atlantic Canada market with legal recreational cannabis. The facility, which cost the company $40 million, comes online with more than 86,000 square feet and an initial forecasted annual output of about 5,500 kilograms of pot. The company said the facility will create more than 130 jobs in the Fredericton area and help to supply more than one-third of Canopy’s agreed-upon purchase orders with provincial cannabis wholesalers.

Choom looks to Florida cannabis market for U.S. retail expansion plans 

Canadian cannabis retailer Choom Holdings is looking abroad for its next expansion opportunity. Choom said in a release Monday it has signed a letter of intent to purchase a 95 per cent equity interest in a yet-to-be-named Florida-based cannabis company. Terms of the deal were not material, Choom said. It also stated the Florida company is working on its application with state officials to operate up to 25 retail locations as well as a cultivation facility for medical marijuana purposes. Choom has three cannabis stores currently open in Alberta with a total of 39 stores across Canada under development.

TGOD tests out medical product with Growers’ Circle pilot project

The Green Organic Dutchman Holdings said in a release it has begun to sell its “certified-organic” cannabis to medical patients through its Growers' Circle program. The program includes a select group of patients across Canada receiving a limited production rollout of TGOD’s premium medical-grade cannabis product. In an email to BNN Bloomberg, TGOD chief executive officer Brian Athaide said the company has been using its Hamilton facility for a few small commercial harvests during the last two quarters. The production volume is “relatively small so we are starting with a pilot group of a couple hundred patients to test the pipes (order, shipping, billing, the app, etc.).”

New Jersey’s pot legalization plans suspended after bill fails to clear state senate hurdle 

New Jersey’s legal cannabis plans are back on ice Monday after legislation to legalize the drug was pulled due to a lack of votes to pass in the state’s senate. According to a vote tracker on NJ.com, the vote was destined to fail with 24 state senators set to vote against the bill, meeting the 21 vote minimum needed to keep sales and possession of cannabis from licensed operators illegal. It is unclear when New Jersey lawmakers will attempt to revisit a bill to legalize cannabis although another vote could happen as early as May, NJ.com said.