Cannabis News

CEO of Medicinal Cannabis Authority calls for alignment in Pharmacy Bill

Published

1 day ago

January 8, 2026

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The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Medicinal Cannabis Authority participated in the initial consultations on Antigua and Barbuda’s new Pharmacy Act, stressing the need to resolve conflicts between existing pharmacy regulations and medicinal cannabis legislation.

Regis Burton explained that the presence in the Parliament building was necessary because of the overlaps between the work of the Pharmacy Act and the Medicinal Cannabis Authority (MCA), particularly as the current Pharmacy Regulations were last amended in 2012.

“I’m here representing the Medicinal Cannabis Authority, where there is some degree of overlap between what happens in the Pharmacy Act and the Pharmacy Regulations,” Burton said. The Director General emphasized the importance of incorporating the advances in cannabis science into updated pharmaceutical regulations, noting that the MCA is the central regulatory body for medicinal cannabis in the country.

“It is important that as the development of the pharmaceutical industry progresses, we also incorporate new knowledge, the new science of medicinal cannabis,” he said. “So I’m here today, as an industry professional, to make sure I can share some developments in the cannabis industry that maybe not too many people know about.”

Cannabis News

Bloemteknik receives £2.5 million investment

Published

5 hours ago

January 9, 2026

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Foresight Group has announced a £2.5m investment in Bloemteknik Limited, a Cardiff-based supplier of precision LED lighting systems for commercial greenhouses and vertical farms.

The investment was made through British Business Bank’s Wales Investment Fund and Foresight’s Growth VCTs. The Investment Fund for Wales was launched in November 2023 by the UK government-backed British Business Bank to promote the provision of seed funding to small and medium-sized businesses across Wales. Bloem’s investment was led by appointed fund managers, Foresight, who oversee the Fund’s equity investments of up to £5m.

The investment allows Bloem to scale its operations, strengthen its delivery capability and expand into new international markets. The partnership brings strategic support through board-level guidance, sector expertise and access to Foresight’s global network, helping Bloem build a strong, high-growth business rooted in South Wales.

James Fleet, CEO of Bloem, said: “Bringing GreenFingers to market simply wouldn’t have been possible without Foresight’s support. Their investment has allowed us to turn an ambitious concept into meaningful value for growers. GreenFingers creates a truly self-contained self-optimizing lighting ecosystem, with advanced algorithms to automatically adjust complementary LED spectrums in real-time to maintain consistent DLI in a balanced crop environment.”

Bethan Bannister, Chief Executive of National and Regional Investment Funds at the British Business Bank, said: “It is great to see how the Welsh Investment Fund is accelerating innovative businesses like Bloem’s to bring new products to market. Bloem’s development track record is impressive and with this funding supporting its strategic growth ambitions, we look forward to its success.”

Ashley Rogers, Investment Manager at Foresight, commented: “Bloem has shown strong early traction in a rapidly growing market with a differentiated product and an experienced team. We are excited to support their growth and innovation, especially as they expand into new geographies and continue to build their market-leading proposition.”

For more information:
Bloemteknik
Sophia House Cathedral Rd Cardiff CF11 9LJ, United Kingdom
+44 (0) 2920 660250
(email protected)
bloemteknik.com

Cannabis News

Massachusetts Hits $10 Billion Marijuana Sales Milestone, With Top Official Saying Consumption Lounges Will Bolster Industry In 2026

Published

6 hours ago

January 9, 2026

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Massachusetts hit a 2025 marijuana sales milestone of $1.65 billion a year for adult use, bringing the state’s total cannabis purchases to more than $10 billion since the launch of the recreational market, officials announced Thursday.

A top regulator also said the addition of social consumption halls could give the industry another boost in 2026, and President Donald Trump’s directive to federally regulate cannabis will create more research opportunities in the state.

The Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission (CCC) released the latest data on Thursday, saying officials are anticipating an even higher sales record this year as the state prepares. launching a new license category or social consumption venue.

By 2025, when recreational and medical sales are combined, the state could see about $1.8 billion in annual legal marijuana purchases. Overall, since 2018, there have been about $10.8 billion in combined sales of medical and recreational cannabis.

“Massachusetts’ cannabis industry continued to mature in 2025 as the number of cannabis businesses reached its highest point since adult-use sales began in 2018,” CCC President Shannon O’Brien said in a press release. “While gross sales remain high, the Commission will seek to remove regulatory barriers through the new Red Tape Commission in 2026, helping licensees stabilize and plan for the future as the industry continues to evolve.”

Travis Ahern, CCC Executive Director, he said Beyond the expansion of the social consumption arena, Trump’s order to move marijuana from Schedule I to III of the federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA) will bring benefits to the state.

“Commissioners and staff are working hard to prepare for a potential expansion of the social consumption industry and the possibility of new research opportunities should the federal government reschedule cannabis,” he said. “With critical changes on the horizon, the Commission continues to adapt its policies, protocols and oversight to continue building a safe, fair and efficient cannabis industry for Massachusetts.”

Marijuana merchants in Massachusetts registered a new annual record of 46.3 million transactions in 2025, the CCC said, up 3.4 million from the previous year.

In the background are Massachusetts election officials has organized a hearing to investigate a complaint challenging the signature collection process In support of the ballot initiative to roll back the state’s marijuana legalization law.

This came about two weeks after the Secretary of the Commonwealth Electoral Division confirmed the anti-cannabis campaign. it has collected enough signatures for the members of parliament to take action before potentially being put on the November ballot.

As detailed in the latest complaint, the campaign has been mired in controversy over allegedly deceptive signature-gathering tactics. Paid petitioners have been accused of using fake letters on other ballot measures, such as affordable housing and same-day voter registration.

The The state attorney general has confirmed that he has received complaints for that And a state association of marijuana companies urged voters to report them to local officials if they observe them Instances of “spoof mail” or other fraudulent solicitation tactics. The campaign has denied the allegations.

The office of Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell (D), that is He cleared the signature collection campaign in September—stressed to voters the importance of reading their summary, which should go at the top of the signature form, before signing any petition.

The Massachusetts legislature received the initiative for consideration Wednesday when the 2026 session began. Unless annulled, members of parliament have until May 5 to act on the proposal. If they decide not to pass it in the legislature, the campaign would have to go through another round of petitions and get at least 12,429 certified signatures by July 1 to get on the November ballot.

Meanwhile, the head of Massachusetts’ marijuana regulatory agency recently suggested measures to effectively recriminalize the sale of recreational cannabis. dangerous tax revenues being used to support substance abuse treatment efforts and other public programs.

Massachusetts lawmakers recently joined a bicameral conference committee to hammer out a deal. double the legal limit for possession of marijuana for adults and reviewing the regulatory framework for the state’s adult cannabis market.

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CCC has also launched a targeted online platform helping people find work, on-the-job training and networking opportunities in the state’s legal cannabis industry.

State legislators have also been pondering imposing stricter restrictions on intoxicating hemp-derived products and a plan allowing individual entities to control a greater number of cannabis establishments.

Also in Massachusetts Legislators working on state budgets butted heads with CCC officialswho said critical technology improvements can’t be made without more money from the legislature.

Massachusetts lawmakers also passed a bill establishing a pilot program for the regulated therapeutic use of psychedelics. And two committees Hearings to discuss additional measures related to psilocybin were held separately.

user photo Brian Shamblen.

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Cannabis News

US House Passes Bill Protecting State Medical Marijuana Laws And Rejecting Attempt To Block Trump’s Rescheduling Move

Published

1 day ago

January 8, 2026

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The US House of Representatives has passed a spending bill that would continue Protecting state medical marijuana programs from federal interference—Rejecting a provision he previously advanced to prevent the Justice Department from rescheduling cannabis.

After bicameral negotiations on the appropriations package, the House advanced it on a 397-28 vote Thursday, sending it to the Senate for consideration.

Advocates and industry players were encouraged after the House Appropriations Committee approved last year the removal of reconsideration language from the final agreement, as well as keeping a longstanding rider that prevented the DOJ from using its funds to interfere with state medical marijuana laws.

The legislation now advancing to the Senate covers fiscal year 2026 spending for Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies (CJS), Interior, Environment, and Energy and Water Development.

The move by President Donald Trump to Attorney General Pam Bondi from Schedule I to III of the Marijuana Controlled Substances Act (CSA).

Here is the language of the provision advanced by the House but left out of the final agreement:

“SEC. 607. Funds made available by this Act or otherwise made available may not be used to reschedule marijuana (as that term is defined in section 102 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 USC 802)) or to remove marijuana from the schedules established by section (802) of the Controlled Substances Act.”

GOP senators have it individually tried to block the administration from rescheduling cannabis As part of a stand-alone bill introduced in 2023, but that proposal was not heard or voted on.

Meanwhile, on Monday, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) said Marijuana redistricting appeals process ‘remains pending’ Despite Trump’s executive order.

The appropriations package passed by the House also includes a pilot that has been renewed annually since 2014 to block the Justice Department from using its funds to implement state medical marijuana laws.

However, for reasons that are unclear, the rider listing every state that would be protected omits Nebraska.

Here is the text of that provision:

“SEC. 531. None of the funds made available to the Department of Justice under this Act shall be used in Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire. Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming, or the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the United States Virgin Islands, or Puerto Rico, to authorize their use, distribution, or establishment of their own laws.”

Missing from the final version is an addition to that rider that the House had previously included, which would have allowed enhanced penalties for sales near schools and parks.

That provision specifically specified that the Justice Department could still enforce a section of the US Code that requires increased penalties for distributing cannabis within 1,000 feet of an elementary school, vocational school, university, playground or public housing.

However, a joint statement explaining the spending package also says that Congress “directs the proper enforcement of federal law, the Drug-Free School Zones Act (2 1 USC 860), to ensure that areas where young children are present, including schools and playgrounds, remain drug-free.”

This appears to be related to a Senate committee report released last year stating that the pilot to protect medical marijuana “does not expressly prevent” US attorneys from enforcing a federal statute that prohibits the sale or manufacture of controlled substances in “areas where young children are present, schools and playgrounds.”

The invoice It also maintains protections for state industrial hemp research programs under the 2014 Farm Bill:

“SEC. 530. None of the funds made available by this Act shall be used by the Department of Justice or the Drug Enforcement Administration in violation of Section 7606 (‘Legitimacy of Industrial Hemp Research’) of the Agriculture Act of 2014 (Public Law 113-79).

Advocates may welcome the exclusion of the reconsideration provision and the inclusion of medical marijuana protections in the CJS bill, but many cannabis advocates protested Trump’s signing of a separate credit measure in November. It includes provisions to ban most consumable hemp products.

However, when the president ordered marijuana reregulation last month, he also directed Congress to review that policy and ensure that people continue to have access to full-spectrum CBD products. A federal agency will also move to cover these products for certain Medicare and Medicaid patients.

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