Cannabis earnings season continues 🚀

“I do not think it’s going to go perfectly,” said Hilary Bricken, an attorney with Husch Blackwell who focuses on the hemp and cannabis industries. She can “appreciate the confidence” of young companies trying to forge a path, but “it’s still going to be a bumpy road.”

Bricken spoke to CNN Business for a deep-dive into the emerging market for intoxicating hemp drinks. It’s worth a read.

Organigram posts solid Q2 📈

Canadian cannabis firm Organigram reported $42 million total income on $103 million in revenue for the second quarter. It’s a big increase from $57 million during the same period last year. The company supplies cannabis markets in Germany, the UK, and Australia. The company recently entered the U.S. market with a hemp beverage. Full results here. 

Village Farms International reports earnings, privatizes fresh produce business 🌿

Canadian cannabis firm Village Farms International reported a $6.7 million loss on $77 million of total sales, a slight decline from the same quarter the year prior. Total Canadian cannabis sales for the quarter were $35 million, compared to US cannabis sales of $3.9 million. The company also said it will privatize its unprofitable fresh produce business, via a holding company backed by a joint venture of private investors including Sweat Equities. Village Farms will retain minority ownership of the business. 

Ascend Wellness reports a loss 📉

US cannabis company Ascend Wellness reported a $19.3 million net loss on $128 million of revenue, a 6% decline quarter-over-quarter. Full results here. 

iAnthus turns a profit — but no earnings per share 👀

US cannabis firm iAnthus posted a $5.1 million profit on $38.1 million of revenue for the first quarter of this year, a decrease of $3.4 million the same quarter a year prior. However, that profit resulted in zero earnings-per-share, a key metric for financial performance.

INSIGHTS
NYC category leaders

The cannabis market in New York City is hyper-competitive. So our friends at Lit Alerts have put together some key insights about nuances with the cannabis market in the City to help us understand what brands are leading the way, and where.

They’ve shared these insights exclusively with Cultivated readers.

Below are the category leaders — by units sold — across the City, broken down by product category and borough. Note that some familiar brands have strong presence across each borough, including ayrloom and Dank. By Definition.

To learn more about Lit Alerts and get a special offer only available to Cultivated readers, visit litalerts.com.

Bronx Category Leaders 🥇

Brooklyn Category Leaders 🥇

Manhattan Category Leaders 🥇

Queens Category Leaders 🥇

Cannabis testing lab flagged for multiple violations 🚨

Kaycha Labs, which holds licenses to test cannabis in seven states, was flagged by Arizona regulators for more than a dozen alleged “deficiencies,” including problems with the lab’s potency testing and pesticide and microbial detection methods, MJBiz reports. 

NC lawmakers agree on banning hemp from minors 👶

Legislators from  both parties in North Carolina are considering multiple bills concerning intoxicating hemp regulation. While there is disagreement over aspects of licensing and packaging, every version of the bill includes restricting hemp products from anyone under 21.  

Arizona cannabis sales continue to decline 📉

Fresh off the end of the state's second consecutive year of decline, Arizona cannabis sales in the first three months of 2025 saw a 13% decrease from the first quarter of 2024. The drops came from both adult-use and medical markets, where sales dropped by $27 million and $21 million, respectively. 

Texas House expands medical cannabis access 🤝

The Texas House of Representatives has given initial approval to a bipartisan bill that would significantly expand the state’s medical cannabis program, Marijuana Moment reports.

Former NY regulator Damian Fagon to lead Bronx Cannabis Hub 🗽

Former New York Office of Cannabis Management Chief Equity Officer Damian Fagon is now the new director of the Bronx Cannabis Hub, a nonprofit which works with social equity license applicants to help them navigate the process. Fagon resigned from the OCM last September after an investigation into allegations that he targeted enforcement against operators that criticized the agency. The investigation found no evidence that Fagon violated OCM rules. In November, Fagon joined Jeremy and Jay on Cultivated Live, watch here, in case you missed it.

Washington state sees rise in cannabis training as industry grows | OPB

Opening the opaque window around pot rules | The Globe and Mail

Why is Nebraska mulling changes to voter-approved medical cannabis laws? It's complicated | Nebraska Examiner