It should come as no surprise that one of the strongest trends in the health care space is the rising wave of natural wellness and natural alternatives categories. While the COVID-19 pandemic may have accelerated the momentum, the movement had begun well before people around the world were sent home, where self-care and well-being became watch words. A natural extension of this focus on self is cannabis, as growing research seems to support the potential benefits this natural plant may provide. Dubbed cannabis 3.0, the next phase of cannabis market maturation features exciting innovation, high-quality offerings and growing investor interest in a space with seemingly unlimted potential.

Aurora Cannabis Inc. (NASDAQ: ACB) (TSX: ACB), the Canadian company defining the future of cannabinoids worldwide, has launched Bidiol, the first medical cannabis oil in Uruguay that is wholly produced domestically. The CBD oil is available in 3% and 10% concentrations and comes in 10mL and 30mL bottles, available in pharmacies across the country.

INTRODUCTION: The legalization of recreational cannabis in Canada in 2018 has led to many patients being curious about the benefits of taking cannabis in conjunction with their cancer treatment. We investigated the perceptions among genitourinary cancer (GUC) patients regarding cannabis use as part of their care plans.

METHODS: A survey was created to explore current cannabis use behaviors, reasons for cannabis use, and the beliefs of cannabis usefulness towards cancer-related care, including cancer treatment, among GUC patients. The survey was distributed across Canada online via RedCAP through social media platforms, email, and patient advocacy groups. The survey was active from August to December 2020.

It’s been just three short years since cannabis was legalized in Canada, but it’s already clear the nation’s exorbitant taxation on cannabis cultivators is not only unsustainable; it’s killing craft growers that are paying more in tax than they earn in margins. Earlier this month, Tantalus Labs CEO Dan Sutton outlined exactly how problematic Canada’s cannabis excise tax is, with small businesses paying as much as 30 percent of their top line revenues to it, in a Twitter thread. “We are milking a calf to death,” he wrote. The industry emphatically agreed, and since then, the conversation has evolved into a campaign to raise the issue with lawmakers.

The real estate needs of Canada’s emerging cannabis sector are still shaking down as producers, processors and retailers mature.

While the retail sector grows rapidly and offers opportunity for retail property owners, the market for massive greenhouse production facilities has slumped. Processors of cannabis 2.0 products such as beverages and gummies are having to compete in the tight and increasingly costly industrial property sector.

The Canadian cannabis market is also developing unevenly as each province opens up its regulatory regime differently.

Nadia Vattovaz, chief operating officer for retailer Fire and Flower, says Alberta is moving toward maturity in the market more quickly than other provinces because it has a head start in opening up.

A recently released cannabis report indicates that new formulations will be needed to satisfy changing consumer styles and demands. The report from the EY Cannabis in Canada team outlines the rapidly changing cannabis landscape, and explains that the companies out there today need to stay active to be prepared for what’s ahead. “There’s so much possibility of how the cannabis plant can be used,” Joel Alden, a partner at EY Canada, told the Investing News Network (INN) in a phone interview.

Last year, we saw pro-pot lawmakers attempt to load up any and every COVID-19 aid bill with marijuana industry wish list items. Though none of those attempts proved successful, they are back at it again.

Last week, Rep. Ed Perlmutter (D-Colo.) offered the SAFE Banking Act as an amendment to the annual military spending bill known as the National Defense Authorization Act, or NDAA. The NDAA is a must-enact defense spending bill that Congress has passed into law each year for 60 years in a row. Which renders Perlmutter’s move especially shady.

True Leaf Brands Inc. has appointed Legacy market veteran Andrew Gordon as vice-president of Strategic Growth of the True Leaf Cannabis Inc. division. Gordon will transition to CEO of the division upon security clearance and Health Canada approval. In a prepared statement, True Leaf officials said they believe the division will benefit from Gordon’s vast experience working with diverse stakeholders and regulators to build accountable, community-responsive, and financially sustainable business models in the cannabis industry.

Previously, Gordon was senior vice-president of Kiaro Brands Inc., a publicly traded omnichannel cannabis retailer with wholesale distribution and retail stores across Canada and e-commerce sales in North America and Australia.