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According to a new report, sales will be higher among males than females, while customers between the age of 30 to 40-years-old will be the most interested in purchasing cannabis products.

Cannabis software firm Akerna Corp (NASDAQ:KERN) expects national cannabis retail sales to reach $95 million on 4/20, the unofficial marijuana holiday. That’s according to a new Flash Report out of the Denver-based company.

Flower Power

Akerna says the top-selling product category on Tuesday, April 20, will be flower, accounting for 49% of all legal sales. To put this into perspective: flower has claimed 45% of all legal cannabis sales daily in 2021.

Photo by Jp Valery via Unsplash

Vape pens and cartridges will be the second most popular product among the customers on 4/20, the firm anticipates.

Many doctors also believe that cannabis is best used together with other forms of medicine, so don’t use this as an excuse to no longer see your oncologist.

Data from the journal Gynecologic Oncology Reportsreveals that most gynecologic oncology patients find cannabis products to be either just as effective or even more effective compared to prescription meds that are aimed at reducing cancer symptoms.

Yale New Haven Hospital investigators polled 31 patients of gynecologic oncology about their medical cannabis consumption. A total of 74% of respondents were either undergoing immunotherapy or chemotherapy during the time of study. A staggering 83% of them reported that marijuana was effective for managing symptoms especially in the areas of insomnia, neuropathy, appetite, and anxiety while most of them also believed that its efficacy and safety was just the same or even better than conventional prescription medications.

Photo by Esther Kelleter/EyeEm/Getty Images

“The majority of patients in our study felt that medical cannabis was equivalent or superior in efficacy to other medications (e.g. opioids, antiemetics, anxiolytics, and sleep aids) in relieving their symptoms… Of the subset of patients using medical cannabis for pain, 63 percent reported a reduction in opioid use… These data suggest medical cannabis may be a reasonable alternative or adjunct to medications frequently used for cancer or treatment-related symptoms,” concluded the authors.

On Monday, New Mexico became the latest state to legalize adult-use cannabis, after Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed the Cannabis Regulation Act. Sales are expected to begin before April 2022.

Following a legalization wave led by New York and Virginia, this approval now puts more than 43 percent of Americans living in legal cannabis jurisdictions, according to The Marijuana Policy Project.

“The successful bill signing today of adult-use cannabis legislation in New Mexico would not have been possible without the leadership of Governor Lujan Grisham and the tireless support of the State Legislature,” said David Culver, vice president of global government relations at Canopy Growth.

The Bills

Signed bill HB2 allows New Mexicans 21 and over to possess up to two ounces of cannabis, and cultivate six mature and six immature plants at home. The bill also regulates the production and sale of recreational cannabis while including measures to incentivize populations disproportionately impacted by prohibition to enter the industry.

“We are going to increase consumer safety by creating a bona fide industry. We’re going to start righting past wrongs of this country’s failed war on drugs. And we’re going to break new ground in an industry that may well transform New Mexico’s economic future for the better,” said Gov. Grisham, a strong proponent of cannabis reform.

Real estate is one of the more difficult aspects of the cannabis industry. Securing a license is tough but getting your location is even tougher. Each state has different regulations and restrictions, which combined with unique real estate markets makes finding and securing property essential. It’s an expensive endeavor and one in which traditional mortgages aren’t typically an option. 

This presentation will focus on the New England and New York area cannabis real estate markets. It will cover the following states: Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. 

A new survey conducted in Texas reveals that 61 per cent of respondents who are part of the state’s medical cannabis program turn to the herb as replacement for prescription drugs.

Almost 2,900 people participated in the survey by Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy along with the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) regarding their medical cannabis use.

“Our recent survey of 2,866 Texas residents who use medical cannabis sought to gain insight into the needs and experiences of this population,” notes the survey, which was conducted online between Aug. 11, 2020, and Oct. 6, 2020. The participants were recruited through medical cannabis patient networks and about 22 per cent of them were military veterans.

The majority of medical marijuana patients in Texas reported that they used cannabis to cope with pain management. Closely behind stood veterans, who used the drug to treat symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.

Notable results include the fact that 39 per cent of respondents believed cannabis has improved their way of life and 84 per cent had considered leaving Texas in order to live in a state with more inclusive medical marijuana policies.

More than 40,000 pounds of medical marijuana have been sold in Arkansas since the first dispensary opened in May 2019, according to the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Commission (AMMC). A dispensary in Bentonville has sold the most medical marijuana.

The 42,769 pounds sold is valued at $285 million, according to a press release from Scott Hardin, a spokesman for the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration, the parent agency of the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Commission. State taxes on the dispensary sales since May 2019 total just under $30 million. Most of the tax revenue is placed in the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences National Cancer Designation Trust Fund.

The AMMC has issued licenses for 38 dispensaries, with 32 dispensaries in operation and six working toward opening. There are 12 dispensaries that have reached at least 2,000 pounds in sales. The Arkansas Department of Health reports 74,779 active patient cards. Over the last 30 days, patients across the state spent an average of $880,000 each day on medical marijuana purchases, according to the AMMC.

The constitutional amendment legalizing medical marijuana for 17 qualifying conditions and creating a state medical marijuana commission, was approved by Arkansas voters 53% (585,030) to 47% (516,525) in November 2016. There are only six U.S. states – Alabama, Idaho, Kansas, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Wyoming – in which marijuana is illegal to sell in any form for any purpose.

State marijuana regulators are reconsidering how they will now run a lottery to decide who wins licenses to operate six additional medical marijuana dispensaries after no business answered a bid solicitation to develop the process. 

"Unfortunately, the state did not receive any responses," Brian Hodge, a spokesman for the Department of Business Regulation, said Wednesday. "We are currently exploring alternative options and still expect to conduct the lottery by later this spring." 

In February the state sought a company to “design and develop the methodology for the random selection process,” that would be held, in public, around May 14. 

The bid proposal said the company would be "primarily responsible for securing all equipment, technology, or other necessary mediums to run the process.” 

It wasn’t immediately clear what alternative options regulators were now discussing. 

The Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA) has extended the licensure deadline for hemp farms from April 9 to May 28.

The department received multiple requests from hemp farmers over the last few weeks to extend the deadline. Many existing and prospective hemp farmers expressed that they are still experiencing delays in obtaining the necessary land and seeds to plant this spring, ODA told Hemp Grower in an email.

After considering farmers' concerns, the ODA decided to extend the deadline.

Any prospective licensee can download a guide to submit a new application here.

The change in the presidential administration has focused cannabis businesses on the potential for legalization nationwide.

Running parallel to full federal legalization will be a corresponding regulatory and taxation scheme replacing the current regime of IRC §280E which prohibits anything but the cost of goods sold being deducted from a state licensed cannabis operation’s income statement. 

The evolution of the federal taxation of cannabis started with the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937, which applied tax to marijuana used for medicine.

Historians and critics alike maligned this legislation as an attempt to stop the use of cannabis rather than tax it.

The fines were greatly out of line with any failure in tax compliance — violators were fined up to $2,000 and a potential prison sentence of up to five years, while the actual tax was merely $1 per ounce or $24 per year. 

A 2015 study found that obese mice actually lost weight from ingesting cannabis because THC caused changes in the gut microbiome that regulates weight loss and digestion.

Cannabis consumers have known for years about the effects of cannabis on appetite.

In fact, one of the more enduring stereotypes of the side effects of cannabis usage is the consumer getting the “munchies” after consumption, which is often a highlighted feature of modern U.S. television situational comedies, such as anepisode of “The Big Bang Theory” and others.

But there is a more serious side to the munchies mania. This side-effect of cannabis consumption is now the focus of studies by researchers in clinical trials using cannabis in cancer patients who typically lose their appetites and, thus, lose weight.

Photo by Melissa Ross/Getty Images

The popular TV show "Chopped," as every foodie knows, involves four chefs who face off against one another in a timed cooking contest. The goal is to prepare a three-course meal using four secret ingredients. The one who gets the best score from a panel of judges wins.

A new spinoff of that show is designed to appeal to a cannabis-loving audience. It's one of the surest signs yet of the mainstreaming of cannabis in American culture.

The new show, called "Chopped 420," will debut on Discovery+ on - you guessed it - April 20. That's because 420 is considered a holiday for cannabis users or at least a time to reflect upon how the code for cannabis by California high schoolers became a global phenomenon. 

The goal of both "Chopped 420" and another spinoff on Discovery+ called "Chopped Next Gen" is to draw in younger viewers to "Chopped"-related shows and other content, according to Variety.

The new show will run for five weeks on Discovery+.

For the initial run of the show, five episodes will stream on Discovery+. Comedian Ron Funches will host, and the judges' panel includes chefs Esther Choi, Luke Reyes and Sam Talbot. Other judges will consist of drag performer and cannabis activist Laganja Estranja and comedian Tacarra Williams.

California’s licensed marijuana shops are doing an excellent job at preventing sales to minors, according to a first-of-its-kind study commissioned by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

That means the industry is living up to a key promise advocates made when voters legalized cannabis for adults 21 and older nearly five years ago.

“Licensed marijuana retailers are clearly keen to follow the rules,” said Angela Eichelberger, a research scientist with the Insurance Institute who authored the report with University of Chicago and University of Minnesota experts. “They’re aware that the industry hasn’t won everybody over yet, and they don’t want to get shut down.”

The study did find isolated violations of state law at some legal shops, such as workers giving out free samples of edibles. And researchers offered suggestions to further boost protections for minors.

But the study’s authors said the California’s still vibrant world of unlicensed retailers is the biggest problem when it comes to selling cannabis to underage consumers. Statewide, the illicit market remains three times larger than the legal market, since the lack of taxes and regulations allows unlicensed shops to sell cheaper products to anyone who comes shopping — including minors.

Despite all of the resistance, the fact is that cannabis legalization is happening right now. State by state, country by country, it’s going global.

When the Biden Administration took the White House, the headlines all clamored that it will be a “good time for cannabis”.

Stocks seemed to echo the sentiment.

Yet, since the administration took office, they fired staffers for admitting they smoked weed in the past, Kamala Harris rolled back her “pro pot stance” to align with the President’s, and now the entire “weed thing” has been put on the back burner.

Photo by Win McNamee/Staff/Getty Images

This month just might be the best time in a long time to buy cannabis stocks. Why? Much of the initial excitement about the increased prospects of significant U.S. cannabis reform has waned. With the Biden administration focused on other priorities, some investors could even be despairing that anything will be done.

However, changes that would benefit the cannabis industry are still likely on the way. Other factors are already at work that should also provide momentum. But not all pot stocks are in as good of a position to win as others. Here are my picks for the three best marijuana stocks to buy in April.

When it comes to small business opportunities these days, few phrases give people the old dollar-sign-eyes more than “legal cannabis”.

From states like Michigan where it’s been approved for both medicinal and adult use, to places like South Carolina where legalization has been a popular topic for ballots and voters, cannabis is slowly turning into one of America’s biggest businesses.

You don’t need us to tell you that – Investopedia reports that (as of Nov. 2020) over 340,000 American jobs were devoted to the handling of plants at various stages along the retail cycle, and the industry was estimated at over $13 billion as of 2019.

More than two years after Michigan voters approved marijuana for adult use, residents convicted of many pot-related crimes that have now been legalized have an opportunity to expunge them from their records.

Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed a sweeping "clean slate" package of bills in October that will automatically expunge some criminal records in 2023, while others have to be applied for. On Monday, Attorney General Dana Nessel announced a new website where Michigan residents can learn about how to begin the process expunge the marijuana-related criminal records that require an application.

"Michiganders voted to legalize recreational marijuana use years ago," Nessel said in a statement. "Residents should rightfully be able to eliminate convictions for actions that are no longer considered a crime in our state."

According to the new website, "a person convicted of 1 or more misdemeanor or local ordinance marijuana crimes may petition the convicting court to set aside the convictions if they were based on activity that would not have been a crime after December 6, 2018, when a 2018 voter-passed initiative to legalize recreational use of marijuana in Michigan went into effect."

The website explains the requirements, including a checklist of eligible misdemeanor marijuana offenses. Additionally, a person convicted of one or more criminal offenses including felonies (but not more than a total of three felonies) may petition to expunge the convictions.

New Zealand medical cannabis company Puro has kicked off the harvest of its crop, which it claims to be the largest in the country to date.

Planted in December last year, tens of thousands of plants have been grown on the 10-hectare site in Kēkerengū, on the Kaikōura coast of NZ’s South Island (Te Waipounamu). Cultivated under organic protocols, harvesting is being carried out entirely by hand by more than 40 workers over a period of around 5 weeks.

While people have likely smoked from a pipe or a bowl that had remnants from a different weed strain, mixing two strains is not something that usually done, at least not as a first choice. Is it possible to produce different highs when mixing two types of weed? Can a person tailor a high by playing scientist? Some people believe that’s the case and some don’t.

Mixing strains together can boost weed’s much discussed entourage effect, that feeling when different elements of cannabis come together and produce a powerful high, much stronger than when consuming a single cannabinoid by itself. The entourage effect is the reason why many people claim that consuming one cannabinoid for relaxing or therapeutic effects is not as effective as consuming the entirety of the plant, terpenes and all.

If truly looking to explore unique effects, mixing two strains together may be able to do that, for better or worse. In any case, mixing two strains isn’t rocket science. While a person can end up with a very strong high or something that sends the user to bed, the feeling will pass.

What should a person do?

Stick to one type of product and use common sense. If smoking flower, choose two preferred strains and pair them in equal parts. Don’t mix a vape with flower, or an edible with flower. Start off slow and reign in that creative monster.

When prepping a bowl, take care with the flower by placing it in glass containers and out of the sun and storing it in a cool, dry place. This will preserve the plant’s terpenes and allow for fuller experience.

New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed legislation Monday legalizing recreational marijuana use within months and kicking off sales next year, making it the seventh state since November to put an end to pot prohibition.

The governor, a Democrat, has supported marijuana reform as a way to create jobs and shore up state revenue.

On Monday, she also touched on concerns about the harm inflicted on racial and ethnic minorities by drug criminalization and tough policing, noting that the new law could free about 100 from prison and expunge criminal records for thousands of residents.

“It is good for workers. It is good for entrepreneurs. It is good for consumers," she said of legalization. “And it brings about social justice in ways in which we have been talking about and advocating for, for decades.”

The signed bill gives the governor a strong hand in oversight of recreational marijuana through her appointed superintendent of the Regulation and Licensing Department.