Good morning.
Happy Friday everyone. If you missed Jeremy’s chat with Politico’s Natalie Fertig and Shield Compliance’s Tony Repanich, you can watch it back here.
Let’s get to it.
This newsletter is 569 words or about a 5-minute read.
💡What’s the big deal?
OH, DEA
Acting DEA head is anti-cannabis
What happened: Derek Maltz, the acting head of the Drug Enforcement Agency, revealed some pretty backward views about cannabis in an interview last year.
The DEA is perhaps the most crucial agency for the prospects of cannabis reform under the Trump 2.0 Administration. So far, not so good.
What he said: “Marijuana is not the marijuana from the 70s or the 80s or the 90s. This is higher, pure-THC marijuana,” Maltz said.
“I’ve talked to doctors about this. It’s actually causing psychosis, schizophrenia, depression, anxiety—so it’s really a gateway drug for these kids that don’t know any better.”
Why it matters: Of course, the ‘gateway hypothesis’ has been widely debunked, and the jury is very much out on the mental health effects of cannabis use, regardless of what people on either side of the debate say.
There is evidence that frequent cannabis use in adolescence can lead to depression, anxiety, and other ailments — though cause and effect is still poorly understood by researchers.
If Trump taps Maltz as the permanent DEA pick, it’s a bad sign for the process to reclassify cannabis from the most restrictive Schedule I to the less restrictive Schedule III of the federal Controlled Substances Act.
You’ll remember the hearings were postponed for at least three months. We’ll see if Maltz is still in the job then.
-JB
📣 Quotable
“Pennsylvanians are buying cannabis, but now what’s happening is they’re paying taxes in other states,” Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, told reporters. “We need to change that. We need to be more competitive.”
Shapiro is pushing to legalize cannabis during the upcoming legislative session. He called for legalization during the budget process last year, but no bill made progress in the legislature.
🤝 Deals, launches, partnerships
Aurora launches German cannabis brand 🤝
Canadian cannabis company Aurora launched what it says is the first domestically grown medical cannabis brand in Germany. Read more.
The Cannabist expands Ric Flair partnership to New Jersey 🚀
The Cannabist company is expanding its partnership with Ric Flair Drip, a cannabis brand, to New Jersey. Read more.
⏩ Quick hits
Workers injured in an explosion at PharmaCann’s Maryland facility 👀
Two workers were injured in an explosion and fire at PharmaCann’s Streetsville, Maryland facility on Thursday, the AP reports. The cause of the explosion remains under investigation.
Poland bill would classify CBD as a narcotic 🥊
A new bill proposed by the Polish government would consider CBD an illegal narcotic.
📊 Stat of the day
Ninety-six percent of frequent cannabis consumers say they don’t trust the DEA to be an “unbiased proponent” of cannabis rescheduling, according to a new poll from NuggMD. Check out the full data here.
😜 One fun thing
Here’s an uncut look into one of California company GlassHouse Brands’ greenhouses from Graham Farrar on X. Looks like our weekend.
📰 What we’re reading
Peter Su: This is New York cannabis | The Rolling Stone
NFL legend Champ Bailey dishes on breaking stigma with cannabis, using while playing in league | Fox News
From micro-dose to macro-vision: the evolution of a THC drinks brand | Weed Drinks Guy
The future of cannabis | Mercury News