Good morning.
Tune in this morning at 10 AM Eastern for a Cultivated Live sit down with Josh Rosen and Obie Strickler from Grown Rogue. Tune in on YouTube » and LinkedIn » $GRUSF ( ▲ 2.45% )
A programming note: Jeremy will be off canoeing in Northern Ontario for the next few days, but you’ll be in good hands with Jay while he’s off for the long weekend. Of course, we’re about to find out if Jay’s Friday before Labor Day prediction on the rescheduling decision hits.
Let’s get to it.
-JB, JR
Today’s newsletter is 852 words or about a 7.5-minute read.
THIS NEWSLETTER MADE POSSIBLE BY:
💡 What’s the big deal?
LICENSES
Active cannabis licenses drop by 1,300, but some states grow
The total number of active cannabis licenses in the United States fell by 1,322 in the second quarter of 2026, to a total of 34,226, according to new data from CRB Monitor.
Much of that drop off was the result of New Mexico shifting how it records licenses from business-level to premise-level.
Meanwhile, Minnesota, New York and New Jersey all led in growth of new businesses, with 84, 61 and 32 new licenses, respectively.
The pipeline for future licenses continues to slowly contract from its height two years ago, when there were 5,654 approved or pending licenses in the second quarter of 2024. That total has dropped to 4,063 approved or pending in Q2 2026.
California continues to be the state with the highest number of active licenses, followed by Michigan in second and Oklahoma in third.
“The picture for U.S. operators is one of a market gradually resetting rather than collapsing — with very few new entrants coming in to replace those exiting.”
-ZH.
Disclosure: Zack also works at CRB Monitor.
📣 Quotables
Curaleaf’s bid for Aurora continues to heat up with the two companies again taking potshots at each other after Aurora’s board recommended against the deal.
“Our Board has unanimously recommended that shareholders reject the hostile bid by taking no action and not tendering their shares. We support this recommendation,,” Aurora Cannabis CEO Miguel Martin said in a statement on LinkedIn. “This is not the time to give away Aurora’s momentum.”
Martin also appeared on BNN to make his case. Curaleaf’s Boris Jordan fired back:
“Rather than working constructively to evaluate a proposal that delivers immediate value and a substantial premium, Aurora's Board has chosen to rely on hollow arguments that are contradicted by its own actions.”
Curaleaf says its $4-a-share bid is a 45% premium that Aurora's own board undercut by selling stock as low as $3.09. Aurora says the offer is a lowball for its EU-GMP medical platform, one that would leave shareholders with just 3.2% of the vote in the combined company.
The battle continues.
📊 Insights
LIT ALERTS
August 2026 New York Brand Power Rankings
The comparison between July and August 2026 New York Brand Power Rankins illustrates a New York market that is rapidly splitting into two distinct speed lanes.
At the very top, pioneer local brands maintain a tight grip on consumer habits through early brand trust and wide distribution. Meanwhile, directly beneath them, national powerhouses like Stiiizy and Jeeter are capitalizing on scale and brand equity to rapidly climb the ranks.
As we transition into the autumn months, the central question for New York operators becomes clear: can local craft leaders hold off the disciplined, highly capitalized expansion of national giants once they reach the Top 10 threshold?
⏩ Quick hits
California says legal cannabis market has generated $8.4 billion
California's regulated cannabis market has generated nearly $8.4 billion in tax revenue since 2018, including $261.7 million in Q2 2026 alone. The state's tax agency also seized $13.3 million in illicit cannabis and tobacco products from a Los Angeles County warehouse in August.
California signs bill cracking down on kid-friendly cannabis packaging
Gov. Newsom signed AB 2249, banning cannabis packaging that uses cartoons, mythological creatures, or candy imagery to appeal to anyone under 21. The rules take effect January 1, 2028, and direct DCC to build compliance tools to help businesses self-check their labels.
Oregon eyes cannabis tax hikes to plug road funding gap
A new ODOT analysis obtained by KATU lays out more than 50 funding options for the state's transportation system, including a 1% cannabis tax bump estimated to raise $17 million a year.
📹 In case you missed it
Yesterday, Gail Rand from grand consulting broke down her quarterly cannabis industry Gross Margin Index on Cultivated Live.
🚀 Deals, launches, partnerships
Curaleaf opened a new dispensary near Downtown Crossing in Boston on September 4, its latest Massachusetts location. $CURLF ( ▲ 2.25% )
🧪 Science & research
Cannabis ads that hint at better sex may shape use before it
College students who read cannabis ads as promising better sex were more likely to expect that benefit and say they'd use cannabis before sex, according to a study in Communication Research. Unlike alcohol, which has had industry guidelines against sex-tied marketing since the 1990s, cannabis has no comparable rules.