Thursday, April 20, 2023

Investor Ideas #Potcasts, #Cannabis News and #Stocks on the Move: Happy #420! (TSX: $FAF.TO), (CSE: $CURA.C), #Mississauga and #UberEats

 



 

Investor Ideas #Potcasts, #Cannabis News and #Stocks on the Move: Happy #420! (TSX: $FAF.TO), (CSE: $CURA.C), #Mississauga and #UberEats 

 

Delta, Kelowna, BC, April 20, 2023 (Investorideas.com Newswire), investorideas.com,  a global news source covering leading sectors including marijuana and hemp stocks and its potcast site  release today’s podcast edition of  cannabis news and stocks to watch plus insight from thought leaders and experts.

 

Listen to the podcast:

https://www.investorideas.com/Audio/Podcasts/2023/042023-Cannabis.mp3

 

Read this in full at https://www.investorideas.com/news/2023/cannabis-potcasts/04201FAF-CURA-Mississauga-UberEats.asp

 

Hear Investor ideas cannabis potcast on iTunes  

 

Hear the investor ideas potcast on Spotify

 

Today’s podcast overview/transcript:

 

Happy 4/20! In today’s podcast we go over a few public company announcements, retail cannabis in Ontario and UberEats in B.C.,

 

Fire & Flower Holdings Corp. (TSX: FAF) (OTCQX: FFLWF), a leading cannabis consumer retail and technology platform announced advancements in the relationship between the Company's strategic partner, Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. and Fire & Flower through the completion of a Master Licence Agreement with MC Cannabis Inc., an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Couche-Tard.

 

Overview of the Master Licensing Agreement

       Fire & Flower will have the exclusive right of first opportunity to negotiate with Couche-Tard with respect to entering new retail cannabis businesses and franchise arrangements in Canada, as well a potential retail expansion to additional legal cannabis markets outside of Canada.

       Couche-Tard has exclusively committed to developing Fire & Flower branded retail cannabis stores in Ontario under the Master Licensing Agreement.

       The first five Fire & Flower branded retail cannabis stores will be recently opened co-located stores, adjacent to Circle K convenience stores in the Greater Toronto Area that are currently operating as MC Cannabis Inc. and will be re-branded to Fire & Flower.

 

Benefits of the Master Licensing Agreement

       Leverages Couche-Tard real estate footprint and resources to develop licensee stores.

       Gives Fire & Flower the opportunity to expand its system sales, brand presence and the Hifyre™ digital retail platform in Canada and, through the exclusive right of first opportunity, to participate alongside Couche-Tard in a potential expansion to additional legal cannabis markets outside of Canada.

       Expands reach of the Spark Perks™ membership program and industry-first Spark Marketplace App.

 

"With the signing of this agreement, we have achieved another important step forward with our strategic partner, Couche-Tard. We continue to work closely together to build a sustainable growth engine, leveraging Couche-Tard's high quality real estate assets, retail operations expertise and capital, accelerating our path to profitability and goal of free cash flow," shared Stéphane Trudel, Chief Executive Officer of Fire & Flower. "Successful retail is built on delighting our customers with great locations, people and products. Today, we have expanded our ability to grow the Fire & Flower network in Canada and other international legal cannabis markets by adding this scalable building block that we can further refine together in the first federally legal cannabis market in the world."

 

"Couche-Tard is pleased to have entered into a Master License Agreement with Fire & Flower. The Hifyre digital retail platform, including the Spark Perks membership program and the Spark Marketplace app, will bring a distinct competitive advantage to our cannabis stores. The current co-located cannabis stores adjacent to Circle K locations and anchored by convenience stores, fuel and car wash offerings are showing growth and we look forward to combining this with the recognized Fire & Flower brand and technology-enabled shopping experience to make it easy for customers," shared Steve Pitts, Vice-President of Operations, Central Canada, of Couche-Tard.

 

"As we look to markets opening in the United States and Europe, we will work alongside our strategic partner to expand Fire & Flower to international markets," shared Stéphane Trudel, Chief Executive Officer of Fire & Flower.

 

Curaleaf Holdings, Inc. (CSE: CURA) (OTCQX: CURLFannounced that as of Monday, April 17th, the Board of the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory (CRC) reversed itself and voted to approve Curaleaf's adult-use cannabis licences.

 

The CRC Board's decision came after first voting to vacate their decision from Thursday, April 13th, when they attempted to deny Curaleaf's adult use licence renewals.

 

Said Curaleaf CEO Matt Darin, "Today's decision by the CRC Board to vacate their unprecedented action last week is an incredible victory for our 500 NJ team members and vindication for what we knew all along: Curaleaf is in good standing with the CRC and has fulfilled every requirement necessary for the renewal of our licences. I am incredibly proud of and grateful to every one of the hundreds of dedicated team members who showed up today, not just for their jobs and livelihoods, but for a better, safer cannabis industry in New Jersey."

 

In previously attempting not to renew Curaleaf's adult use licences, the CRC Board had disregarded the Commission's staff recommendation to renew Curaleaf's adult use licences and the fact that the company has no pending violations.

 

As part of the approval, Curaleaf will be providing the Commission with additional information regarding its labour practices and confirm its ongoing compliance with New Jersey law.

 

Said Curaleaf Chairman Boris Jordan, "This decision by the Board is a victory for Curaleaf, a company that has proudly generated tens of millions of tax dollars for the State, invested upwards of $75M more to support its cannabis industry, and supplied cannabis products to nearly all of New Jersey's licensed dispensaries, including social equity licence holders. Curaleaf remains open for business and will continue working collaboratively with the CRC Board and its staff to ensure our good standing in the State of New Jersey."

 

In recent news, Ontario’s largest city which had banned retail cannabis stores up until this point, voted this Wednesday to opt in.

Mississauga, Ont., was one of dozens of municipalities to ban retail cannabis stores from their communities when cannabis legislation came into effect in 2018.

 

The city council voted Wednesday 8-4 to opt in.

 

Mayor Bonnie Crombie spoke in favour, saying she had supported opting out in 2018, hoping the province would give municipalities greater control over location of stores. The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario is responsible for issuing licences and in municipalities that have opted in, one of the only restrictions on location is that stores must be at least 150 metres away from a school. Now after five years, it’s clear the province will not be granting any additional oversight powers to municipalities, Crombie said.

 

“I’ve watched and observed the experience in other municipalities and it does seem to sort itself out,” she said.

 

“There hasn’t been the clustering that we have been concerned about … All I have observed over the past five years is the proliferation of illegal stores and I don’t want that here. We can’t close them down. We don’t have the ability to close them down and if we’re going to have a product for sale in Mississauga, let’s make it a safe product for goodness sake.”

 

Coun. Dipika Damerla put forward the motion, saying that opting out of the legal framework has allowed illegal stores to flourish in the city, including one in her ward that police have unsuccessfully tried six times to shut down.

 

“So the goal today here is not a choice between no stores and legal stores,” she said. “The choice today is illegal stores, the profits of which are going to create more illegal activity, or legal stores.”

 

“According to the OCS, Mississauga continues to be disproportionately served by the illegal market, compared to communities that have ‘opted in,'” the Mississauga staff report says.

 

In a statement, representatives for OCS said they support Mississauga's decision to lift the ban, saying the choice "marks a major step forward as the cannabis industry continues to evolve within the legal framework."

 

In other news, Uber Eats is now offering cannabis deliveries in British Columbia.

 

The tech company has partnered with cannabis company Leafly to offer the service, which became available as of Tuesday. The two companies have already been offering cannabis deliveries in Ontario since October 2022.

 

Those over 19 years of age will be able to place cannabis orders through their UberEats app and have them delivered by provincially certified staff. The app will now feature a “recreational cannabis” category, and ask for age verification.

 

"More British Columbians are accessing legal cannabis than ever before. We are partnering with industry leaders like Leafly to help retailers offer safe, convenient options for people in British Columbia to purchase legal cannabis for delivery directly to their homes. This will help reduce impaired driving and improve road safety," said Klaas Knieriem, General Manager of New Verticals for Uber Eats Canada.

 

"Over the last few years, we have invested heavily in our delivery offering and selection has expanded tremendously. Uber Eats has grown quickly to become a versatile platform usable by diverse businesses large and small."

 

"Leafly has been empowering the cannabis marketplace in Canada for more than four years and we support more than 850 cannabis retailers in British Columbia. We are thrilled to work with Uber Eats to help licensed retailers bring safe, legal cannabis to people across the province," said Yoko Miyashita, CEO of Leafly.

 

There will be 13 cannabis stores in B.C. that will be available to deliver through Uber Eats to start. Ten of those dispensaries are located in Vancouver, along with two in Victoria, and one in New Westminster.

 

Cannabis deliveries in B.C. are not anything new however, as home delivery for non-medicinal cannabis has been allowed in B.C. since July 2021 and has also been available through Canada Post since July 2022.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Investor ideas reminds all listeners to read our disclaimers and disclosures on the Investorideas.com website and that this podcast is not an endorsement to buy products or services or securities. Investors are reminded all investment involves risk and possible loss of investment.

 

To hear more Investorideas.com podcasts visit: https://www.investorideas.com/Audio/.

The Investorideas.com podcasts are also available on iTunes ( Apple Podcasts) ,  Audible , Spotify, Tunein, Stitcher, Spreaker.com, iHeartRadio ,  Google Podcasts and most audio platforms available.

 

About Investorideas.com - News that Inspires Big Investing Ideas

Investorideas.com publishes breaking stock news, third party stock research , guest posts and original  articles and podcasts in leading stock sectors.  Learn about investing in stocks and get  investor ideas in cannabis, crypto, AI and IoT, mining, sports biotech, water, renewable energy, gaming and more. Investor Idea’s original branded content includes podcasts and columns : Crypto Corner , Play by Play sports and stock news , Investor Ideas Potcasts Cannabis News and Stocks on the Move podcast ,  Cleantech and Climate Change , Exploring Mining , Betting on Gaming Stocks Podcast and  the AI Eye Podcast.     

Disclaimer/Disclosure: Investorideas.com is a digital publisher of third party sourced news, articles and equity research as well as creates original content, including video, interviews and articles. Original content created by investorideas is protected by copyright laws other than syndication rights. Our site does not make recommendations for purchases or sale of stocks, services or products. Nothing on our sites should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell products or securities. All investing involves risk and possible losses. This site is currently compensated for news publication and distribution, social media and marketing, content creation and more. Disclosure is posted for each compensated news release, content published /created if required but otherwise the news was not compensated for and was published for the sole interest of our readers and followers. Contact management and IR of each company directly regarding specific questions. More disclaimer info: https://www.investorideas.com/About/Disclaimer.asp Learn more about publishing your news release and our other news services on the Investorideas.com newswire https://www.investorideas.com/News-Upload/ and tickertagstocknews.com

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Investor Ideas does not condone the use of cannabis except where permissible by law. Our site does not possess, distribute, or sell cannabis products.

 

Friday, April 14, 2023

Investor Ideas #Potcasts, #Cannabis News and #Stocks on the Move: (NASDAQ: $TLRY), #Germany and #NovaScotia

Investor Ideas #Potcasts, #Cannabis News and #Stocks on the Move: (NASDAQ: $TLRY), #Germany and #NovaScotia

 


Delta, Kelowna, BC, April 14, 2023 (Investorideas.com Newswire), investorideas.com,  a global news source covering leading sectors including marijuana and hemp stocks and its potcast site  release today’s podcast edition of  cannabis news and stocks to watch plus insight from thought leaders and experts.

 

Listen to the podcast:

https://www.investorideas.com/Audio/Podcasts/2023/041423-Cannabis.mp3

 

Read this in full at https://www.investorideas.com/news/2023/cannabis-potcasts/04141TLRY-Germany-Nova-Scotia.asp

 

Hear Investor ideas cannabis potcast on iTunes  

 

Hear the investor ideas potcast on Spotify

 

Today’s podcast overview/transcript:

 

In today’s podcast we go over a quick industry announcement, Germany”s revised cannabis plan, news out of Nova Scotia regarding medical coverage, and THC potency.

 

Tilray Brands, Inc. (Nasdaq: TLRY) (TSX: TLRY), reported its financial results for the third fiscal quarter ended February 28, 2023 earlier this week as well as announcing that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire HEXO Corp. (NASDAQ: HEXO) (TSX: HEXO) for an aggregate purchase price of approximately US$56 million, to be satisfied through the issuance of 0.4352 of Tilray Common Stock for each outstanding HEXO share. The acquisition, which is structured as an arrangement under applicable Canadian laws, builds on the successful strategic alliance between the two companies and positions Tilray for continued strong growth and market leadership in Canada, the largest federally legal cannabis market in the world.

 

The completion of the Arrangement is subject to customary and negotiated closing conditions, including HEXO shareholder approval and court approval, and is expected to close in June 2023.

 

Irwin D. Simon, Tilray Brands’ Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, stated, “During the quarter, we continued to focus on our highest priorities: sustaining and growing the top-line across core markets and geographies while optimizing the platform to achieve positive free cash flow on an accelerated timeline. We are executing on both fronts and delivered revenue growth despite challenging market dynamics across Canada, Europe, and the U.S, as well as our 16th consecutive quarter of positive adjusted EBITDA.”

 

Mr. Simon continued, “Looking ahead, we are focused on being the leading, most diversified cannabis lifestyle and CPG company in the world. Our strategy to deliver on this vision is centered on pursuing targeted growth opportunities, as reflected in our opportunistic acquisitions of both Montauk Brewing Company and HEXO, which has made significant strides in driving operating efficiency and improving profitability while continuing to invest in industry-leading brands. We are incredibly excited about our combined prospects moving forward with HEXO and expect a seamless integration of HEXO’s business into our efficient, built-to-last platform. At the same time, we will continue our relentless focus on cost and operational efficiencies and strengthening our industry-leading balance sheet to deliver sustained, profitable growth and shareholder value.”

 

In news out of Germany, its government recently presented, what many have viewed as scaled-back plans to liberalise the country's rules on cannabis, including decriminalising possession of limited amounts and allowing members of nonprofit "cannabis clubs" to buy marijuana for recreational purposes.

 

The German government revised the plan following talks with the European Union's executive commission. Agriculture Minister Cem Ozdemir said EU law "sets us limits we must respect, but that I will also say we are pushing."

 

Lauterbach had cautioned all along that the government would only proceed with its original plan if it got the green light from the EU.

 

The proposed system would let German residents 18 and older join nonprofit "cannabis clubs" with a maximum of 500 members each, which would be allowed to grow cannabis for members' personal consumption. Individuals would be allowed to buy up to 25 grams per day, or up to 50 grams per month -- a figure that would be limited to 30 grams for adults under age 21.

 

Membership in multiple clubs wouldn't be allowed, and authorities could limit the number of clubs. The clubs' costs would be covered by membership fees, which would be staggered according to how much cannabis the members use.

 

The health minister argued that Germany's existing policies have failed. He said the government's aim is to offer greater safety, protect consumers against contaminated and toxic products, and reduce drug-related crime.

 

"We are not creating a problem," Lauterbach insisted. "We are trying to solve a problem."

 

He reiterated that Germany doesn't want to emulate the model of the neighbouring Netherlands, which combines decriminalisation with little market regulation.

 

The cannabis plan is one of several social reform projects that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's socially liberal three-party governing coalition agreed to embark on when it took office in December 2021.

 

As reported in the Star, out of Nova Scotia, Canada a six-year-old girl and her parents were at the Nova Scotia legislature Tuesday to lobby for the province to cover the cost of using cannabis oil to treat her seizures.

 

Kaylee and Nick Jones and their daughter Sophie were at the house of assembly to present a petition with 1,368 signatures in support of Nova Scotia covering the cost of CBD-based medicines for children with life-threatening conditions.

 

The little girl was born with a rare chromosome abnormality that causes epilepsy, ataxia, migraines, anxiety and low muscle tone.

 

Kaylee Jones, 29, says the family spends about $400 a month on the CBD oil — which she says has helped reduce her daughter’s seizures dramatically compared to conventional medications.

 

The mother said the money going to pay for the cannabis oil — which is known as Charlotte’s Angel and is produced by Nova Scotia-based Aqualitas — is roughly equivalent to the mortgage payment on their home.

 

“We’ve been sacrificing a lot of time and effort to fundraise,“ said Kaylee Jones. ”If we could have a solution, we wouldn’t have to worry about it. It would be a big financial burden off our shoulders and others.“

 

“I know that others are going into debt for this,“ she added. ”I think the government really needs to look at it.”

 

Researchers at Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children in 2018 reported reductions in seizures of children with Dravet syndrome, a rare genetic form of epilepsy, who received CBD oil with a small amount of THC.

 

Nova Scotia Health Minister Michelle Thompson says her department is awaiting the results of a review by Health Canada before approving funding of the medicine.

 

She said during an interview that while she’s aware there is “real-life evidence that emerges,” the department must take a standardised approach to approving medicines for funding.

 

“I think it’s important we have a consistent way in which we add things to the formulary and there is a very rigorous process. We have a responsibility to ensure the things we cover are evidence-based. We want to continue to follow that process,” she said.

 

Thompson said that if Health Canada provides an approval, “we’ll reconsider then.”

 

Kaylee Jones said Sophie’s previous regime of anti-seizure medications had negative side-effects that led to regular hospital visits in the first three years of her life. The CBD-based medicines have controlled the frequency and duration of her seizures, she said, to the point where she no longer needs trips by ambulance and has fewer migraines, less anxiety and more mobility.

 

Lastly, multiple news outlets have cited a recent study regarding THC potency conducted by researchers at the University of Northern Colorado which tested samples of cannabis sold at several Colorado dispensaries. Overall, they found that the product labels promised a potency higher than what was actually in the bags.

 

“I don’t believe what’s on the label,” said Mit McGlaughlin, one of the authors of the study and a professor of biological sciences at the University of Northern Colorado. “We just don’t have enough information for consumers about whether or not you can trust what’s being produced.”

 

To conduct the study, researchers bought 23 different samples of cannabis flowers from 10 dispensaries in Denver, Fort Collins and Garden City, Colo. They tested each sample to measure the concentration of THC, which stands for Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol.

In 18 of the 23 samples, which carried names including Sour Amnesia, Danky Kong and Colombian Gold ’72, the researchers found levels of potency below what was listed on the labels. Depending on the bag tested, some products contained 40 to 50 percent less THC than the labels promised. The amount of THC detected in the lab was, on average, 23 percent lower than the amount listed on the bags of cannabis.

 

“These results make clear that consumers are often purchasing cannabis that has a much lower THC potency than is advertised,” the authors of the study concluded.

 

It has been suggested by some researchers that there is not enough oversight of the dose of THC a person might get when buying marijuana, whether it is to be smoked, vaped or eaten. One reason for the lack of oversight is that cannabis remains illegal under federal law, meaning that standards related to retail and medical use vary by state.

 

“We have a hodgepodge of rules and regulations within each state,” said McGlaughlin. “It’s really hard to have to do that on a state-by-state basis.”

 

While this story is nothing new to the industry which has had issues with products being accurately labelled, even in Canada where there are federal guidelines or even in the medical market with regards to oils and tinctures, the problem does work to delegitimize the industry as a whole.

 

This also raises an interesting question regarding how THC works on the consumer as many early news stories and continued narratives surrounding the cannabis industry are focussed on the dangers of high THC cannabis.

 

If the THC was all lower than suggested, were these supposed “green outs” accurately reported and have the dangers surrounding high THC cannabis been misreported?

 

Many within the industry have discussed the “entourage effect” which is how THC, CBD and indeed all of the cannabinoids work together in tandem with the overall terpene content is what effects the overall “high” much more so than THC alone.

 

When discussing cannabis from a layman's perspective THC is often front and centre of every conversation.

 

Too much THC is dangerous, (supposedly).

 

Hemp with any traces of THC, isn’t considered hemp.

 

THC gets you “high”.

 

But in reality THC is just one of many components that create the overall effect from cannabis, both for the medicinal benefits and the overall psychotropic effect.

 

Many experts who work with the plant know that comparing cannabis to alcohol makes little to no sense when considering the overall effect created from the plant, how the plant can be utilised as a medicine, how the plant can be utilised as a textile, or how to regulate the plant. THC content is not similar to alcohol content, the same goes for how it is stored in our system.

 

Until regulators, consumers and media outlets wake up to this reality we will continue to see propaganda regarding either the dangers or the benefits of THC which unfortunately distracts from the amazing plant science being conducted on a massive scale. Cannabis affects the mind and body in a fundamentally different way than alcohol and so when we look at major steps the industry needs to take to evolve, moving away from the THC based model of advertising, consuming, growing and regulating is a necessary step.

 

Investor ideas reminds all listeners to read our disclaimers and disclosures on the Investorideas.com website and that this podcast is not an endorsement to buy products or services or securities. Investors are reminded all investment involves risk and possible loss of investment.

To hear more Investorideas.com podcasts visit: https://www.investorideas.com/Audio/.

The Investorideas.com podcasts are also available on iTunes ( Apple Podcasts) ,  Audible , Spotify, Tunein, Stitcher, Spreaker.com, iHeartRadio ,  Google Podcasts and most audio platforms available.

 

About Investorideas.com - News that Inspires Big Investing Ideas

Investorideas.com publishes breaking stock news, third party stock research , guest posts and original  articles and podcasts in leading stock sectors.  Learn about investing in stocks and get  investor ideas in cannabis, crypto, AI and IoT, mining, sports biotech, water, renewable energy, gaming and more. Investor Idea’s original branded content includes podcasts and columns : Crypto Corner , Play by Play sports and stock news , Investor Ideas Potcasts Cannabis News and Stocks on the Move podcast ,  Cleantech and Climate Change , Exploring Mining , Betting on Gaming Stocks Podcast and  the AI Eye Podcast.     

Disclaimer/Disclosure: Investorideas.com is a digital publisher of third party sourced news, articles and equity research as well as creates original content, including video, interviews and articles. Original content created by investorideas is protected by copyright laws other than syndication rights. Our site does not make recommendations for purchases or sale of stocks, services or products. Nothing on our sites should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell products or securities. All investing involves risk and possible losses. This site is currently compensated for news publication and distribution, social media and marketing, content creation and more. Disclosure is posted for each compensated news release, content published /created if required but otherwise the news was not compensated for and was published for the sole interest of our readers and followers. Contact management and IR of each company directly regarding specific questions. More disclaimer info: https://www.investorideas.com/About/Disclaimer.asp Learn more about publishing your news release and our other news services on the Investorideas.com newswire https://www.investorideas.com/News-Upload/ and tickertagstocknews.com

Global investors must adhere to regulations of each country. Please read Investorideas.com privacy policy: https://www.investorideas.com/About/Private_Policy.asp

 

Investor Ideas does not condone the use of cannabis except where permissible by law. Our site does not possess, distribute, or sell cannabis products.