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Oregon Bill Allowing Interstate Weed Exports Passes Senate Vote

”A bill that could eventually allow Oregon to import and export cannabis across state lines—and give the state’s pot industry a head start when national cannabis laws change in the future—passed a vote in the Oregon Senate Wednesday. It will now move on to the House floor.

Currently, Oregon’s legal weed market is a closed system: no pot is supposed to cross state lines, even into other states where it is legal. Senate Bill 582 would change that by giving Oregon’s government the go-ahead to work with other states to determine policies and regulations for cross-state cannabis imports and exports—that is, after federal laws governing cannabis catch up to state laws.

The bill, which passed the Senate 19-9 in a mostly party-line vote, has been touted as a potential solution to Oregon’s oversaturated pot market, and as a way to prevent growers from turning to the black market in order to make a profit.

But the bill won’t be a quick fix. Because the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) classifies cannabis as a Schedule 1 substance, it’s currently illegal to cross state lines with it. In fact, SB 582 includes the provision that it won’t go into effect until one of two things happen: Either federal law is changed to allow interstate cannabis trading, or the US Department of Justice issues guidance allowing it.

Read the full article at Portland Mercury

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Opium, Coffee and the Politics of Foreign Aid

“IT LOOKS like a fairly standard development project photo op: United States ambassador Mr. Scot Marciel, pushing a coffee seedling into the ground. The May 2018 image shows the diplomat, dressed in leather shoes and a white shirt, kneeling on the distinctive pinkish-red soil of Shan State, surrounded by curious-looking farmers, one of whom is capturing the moment with a smartphone camera.

Myanmar is the second-largest producer of opium globally, after Afghanistan. Although Myanmar produces significantly less than at its 1990s peak, when the Golden Triangle region was the global center of illicit drug production, the UN still estimates that 520 tonnes of opium were produced in 2018. The production and sale of opium generate billions of dollars in profits each year.

Little of it though ends up with the estimated 70,000 smallholder farmers in remote and inaccessible areas of the country who make their living from the latex obtained from the plant. The average income of a household in a poppy-growing village in southern Shan is less than US$3,000 a year, which is just enough to make ends meet. At the same time, there is a high degree of risk involved: police officers conduct regular campaigns to destroy poppy fields and farmers are occasionally prosecuted.

Many opium farmers have few alternatives, due to conflict and insecurity, lack of infrastructure, and the terrain and climactic conditions. But on the slopes of mountainous Shan State, you can cultivate surprisingly high-quality coffee. Such is the quality that its sale could generate income similar to that of opium cultivation, exciting development agencies that see it as a viable alternative crop.

This is what brought Marciel to Shan: the planting was staged in aid of a US Agency for International Development-financed project that is supporting coffee production in the region. It sounds like a positive development, but not everyone is happy.

“Like a conquistador ramming the Spanish flag into the soil of South America.” That’s how Mr. Jaime Eduardo Perez Mayorga describes the photo of the kneeling ambassador. The Colombian sits with rolled up sleeves at his desk, the sweat on his forehead making his short, black hair shine. Mayorga works for UNODC, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. What bothers him is that the place where the ambassador planted the coffee tree, in Hopong Township within the Pa-O Self-Administered Zone, is in the middle of his project area. With support from German and Finnish taxpayers, UNODC has been working there for 10 years.

Continue Reading at Frontier Mynmar

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How to get the health benefits of cannabis without getting high

“For many of us who came of age in the 1960s and 1970s, smoking pot (also called marijuana or cannabis) was an integral part of the social scene. But whether we never touched the stuff, gave it up decades ago or still maintain a relationship with the plant, many boomers today are eagerly exploring cannabis in its various forms to address a whole host of conditions, including chronic pain, anxiety, and insomnia.

Microdosing’ cannabis for medicinal benefits

Still, many people who could benefit from cannabis are reluctant to do so out of concern over “getting high.” This aversion to intoxication is one of the factors driving the meteoric popularity of hemp-based cannabidiol (CBD) products, which contain only trace amounts of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive compound in cannabis. Yet CBD alone is considered to be less effective for medicinal purposes without the presence of THC.

The good news is that it takes very little THC to safely achieve significant therapeutic effects. This is the rationale behind “microdosing,” an approach to using medicinal cannabis in very small doses to achieve medicinal benefits without the high.

Cannabis for acute and chronic conditions

Dr. Jordan Tishler, a cannabis physician and instructor of medicine at Harvard with a practice in Boston, also treats his patients for pain and other chronic conditions using very low doses of THC. For Tishler, the preferred mode of delivery for fast treatment of acute conditions, such as migraine headaches, is inhalation of very small quantities of vaporized flower — a part of the cannabis plant. Vaporization is achieved using a technologically sophisticated portable convection device, better known as a vaping device.

For chronic conditions that need ongoing maintenance, including amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, multiple sclerosis, and Parkinson’s disease, Tishler’s treatment plan may center around low-dose gummy chews.

Dr. Laurie Vollen, a cannabis physician in the San Francisco Bay Area, also recommends vaping very small, controlled quantities of a flower. But she cautions patients to avoid disposable vape pens, which can contain toxic chemicals and have not been proven clinically safe over long-term use. Vollen teaches her patients, whose average age is in the 70s, how to use a vaporizer in a special “Inhalation 101” course she developed.

Read more at Star Tribune

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CBD Oil vs. Hemp Oil: What’s the Difference in 2019?

”With marijuana usage rising as more U.S. states legalize the controversial but commercially available herb, a cottage industry has developed around the use of marijuana with various claims of healthy attributes on multiple medical fronts.

Officially, marijuana is deemed as Schedule I herbal substance by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, meaning the drug offers “no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse,” according to the federal government. That categorization was adjusted after the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, which included a provision that separated hemp from marijuana, as noted in the Controlled Subject Act.

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, “marijuana refers to the dried leaves, flowers, stems, and seeds from the hemp plant, Cannabis sativa. The plant contains the mind-altering chemical delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and other related compounds. Extracts can also be made from the cannabis plant.”

Virtually all of the health care products derived from the cannabis plant centers around two primary components – CBD (Cannabidiol) oil and hemp oil. Each is used and sold as natural health remedies and, even as they share certain characteristics, they have some important differences, too.

What Is CBD Oil?

CBD oil is derived from the Cannabis sativa plant and is known scientifically as cannabidiol. CBD is one of 120 known chemical compounds embedded in marijuana plants and differs from hemp in that it contains Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which is the primary psychoactive cannabinoid found in cannabis.

What Is Hemp Oil?

Hemp oil is also derived from Cannabis sativa, which contains the chemical element trans-delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the cannabis component that gives marijuana its psychosomatic kick. Hemp oil is extracted from the leaves, petals, and seeds from a hemp plant.

What both CBD oil and hemp oil do have in common is neither is linked to THC and therefore won’t provide that psychological “high” so often attributed to THC.

Instead, the human body manages cannabinoids through its endocannabinoid system, also known as ECS, which can process CBD and hemp oil through the body and is managed by the human brain, which uses cannabinoids to regulate the body’s physiological reactions to the herb, and help better manage key human elements like eating, sleeping, dealing with pains and illnesses, and improving mood.
Hemp
Continue Reading at The Street

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Magic Mushrooms Could Be Decriminalized in Denver

“Now that marijuana is legal for recreational and medical use in Colorado, a portion of the public has turned its attention to decriminalizing psilocybin in Denver, the hallucinogen/psychedelic known as “magic mushrooms.” Initiative 301 will appear on municipal ballots on May 7, alongside another initiative that would legalize urban camping. The psilocybin question asks voters whether they support a change to city code “that would make the personal use and personal possession of psilocybin mushrooms by person twenty-one (21) years of age and older the city’s lowest law-enforcement priority.”

In his 2018 book How To Change Your Mind, Michael Pollan—yes, he of the Omnivore’s Dilemma—explores whether science and the pharmaceutical industry can ever surmount psilocybin’s fraught countercultural history to examine it as a potential therapeutic treatment. Pollan’s book is lengthy, but a fascinating read for supporters and skeptics of psychedelics alike. I highly recommend it. He writes that since this mushroom’s discovery (by the West) in the mid-1950s, psilocybin has been shown by brain-imaging studies to create a “high-entropy brain,” in which “new connections spring up among regions that ordinarily kept mainly to themselves.” Researchers, led by Robin Carhartt-Harris of the Imperial College London, wrote in a 2014 paper that this temporary reconfiguring of the brain could potentially be useful in treating psychological disorders marked by mental rigidity such as addiction.

The Takeout

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Valerian Oil Market to be at Forefront by 2015 to 2021

“Valerian is a perennial flower that is native to the European and Asian region; now it is widely grown in h America for its medicinal properties. The scientific name of Valerian is Valeriana officials, and there are around 250 varieties of valerian cultivated globally. The history of valerian goes back to Ancient Greek and Roman times where it was widely used for its medicinal properties. Valeriana officinalis extract contains four distinct classes of phytochemical constituents that are volatile oils, sesquiterpenoids, valepotriates, and volatile pyridine alkaloids.

Valerian crop can be cultivated easily by direct seeding, transplanting, or by dividing the roots. It can be grown in a wide range of soils preferably moist, fertile, and well-drained loam. Belgium, France, Holland, Germany, Russia, China, and Eastern European countries are the major producer of valerian. Valerian root can be distilled into oils and ointments, or it can be dried for use in teas or capsules.

Valerian Oil Market Segmentation

Valerian oil market can be segmented by application, by function, and by regions. By application, the valerian oil market is segmented into pharmaceutical, personal care, and food & beverage. By function, the segment is further segmented into medicinal and aroma. Valerian oil market is further segmented by region as, Latin America, North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, and the Asia Pacific. In regional segments, Europe and North America dominated the market for valerian oil accounting for significant market share, whereas, Latin America and other developing markets such as Asia-Pacific and MEA possess the growth opportunities for valerian oil over the forecast period.

Valerian Oil Global Market Trends and Market Drivers:

The global valerian oil market size is growing exponentially with increasing applications in aromatherapy coupled with increasing demand for fragrances and flavors in food and personal care industry over the forecast period.

Valerian is an effective nervine that has calming, stimulating, and antispasmodic properties. Valerian oil provides a multitude of health benefits, such as it helps in preventing muscle cramps, uterine cramps, intestinal colic, protects skin infections, reduces wrinkles, treatment of insomnia and sleep disorders. It also helps in regulating blood pressure, which reduces risks associated with heart attacks, anxiety, and depressions eventually anticipating the growth of global valerian oil market over the coming years. It also helps in improving metabolic function, boosts energy levels in the body, alleviates menstrual pain, eliminating constipation and diarrhea, and cures gastrointestinal discomfort.

Growing consumer preference for natural products has led to the development of innovative applications in personal care and beauty products. Increasing disposable consumer income and rapid industrialization are other major factors driving the market growth.

Read more on New Daily Herald

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CBD Hype: Is this Hemp-plant Derivative Snake Oil or a Legit Remedy?

“hat’s if you believe the hype. Problems with aches and pains, inflammation, stress, unsatisfying sex and PMS? Try CBD.

It comes in many forms: skin creams, lotions, oils, tinctures, pills, and even powder or liquid food additive. You can get it nearly everywhere. Neighborhood coffee shops splash CBD in lattes. Amazon delivers it to your doorstep. Walgreens and CVS will stock it in stores nationwide.

And while marketers hype the hemp plant derivative cannabidiol as a natural remedy for just about anything they might imagine, their therapeutic claims are rarely supported by medical evidence that CBD is significantly better than a placebo.

When it comes to over-the-top claims, there are probably some people taking advantage,” said Jay Hartenbach, CEO of Medterra, one of the largest marketers of CBD. It’s important to “come back to the science.”

Nearly 7% of Americans are using CBD, a figure projected to grow to 10% of Americans by 2025, according to investment research firm Cowen & Co. The fast-growing market already generates as much as $2 billion in sales. That could grow to $16 billion by 2025, according to Cowen & Co.

The Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018, signed by President Donald Trump in December, loosened restrictions on the use of hemp products that contain less than .3 % THC. THC is the psychoactive component found in marijuana – the chemical that produces a high when smoked or ingested.

FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, whose last day was Friday, said early last week that he was concerned to hear major pharmacies and retail stores are selling CBD and said his agency will contact retailers and remind them that the agency’s role is to protect consumers from products that might put them at risk.

The FDA has approved the use of one cannabidiol drug, Epidiolex, to treat seizures from Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and Dravet syndrome, two rare kinds of epilepsy.

But research that has passed FDA muster is the exception in an industry that typically puts marketing ahead of science.

Read more on USA Today

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Rhode Island Sales of Medical Marijuana Hits New Highs

“Regulator Norman Birenbaum says Rhode Island’s three medical marijuana dispensaries are on pace to sell about $56 million worth of medicinal pot in fiscal 2019. The Providence Journal reports it is a 46.6 percent increase over sales in the fiscal year 2018.

The list of qualifying conditions to enter the medical marijuana program is short but broad, listing symptoms like severe pain or muscle spasms. Birenbaum says regulators remain concerned there are ways to ‘‘abuse the program.’’

Regulators predict they will collect over $5 million in taxes on medical marijuana in the current fiscal year.

Boston Globe

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Cannabis Oil Bill Hits Speed Bumps in Senate

“A bill to allow regulated production of medical oil derived from marijuana may be running into roadblocks in the Georgia Senate.

Though House Bill 324 passed the Georgia House of Representatives by an overwhelming margin – 123-40 – officials on the Senate side are considering vastly different options.

According to multiple sources, senators and Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan are looking at other options for providing access to cannabis oil. One of those options is setting up agreements with Colorado or other states so that the medical oil could be shipped from Colorado to Georgia for distribution to Georgia patients. The other is putting universities in charge of growing and producing oil.

HB 324, which followed recommendations made by the Joint Study Commission on Low THC Oil Access, would set up a system of 10 production licenses and 10 distribution licenses. Producers would be authorized to run two dispensaries each, and each distribution license holder could have up to 10 for a total of 60 retail dispensaries in the state.

State Sen. Matt Brass, R-Newnan, was co-chairman of the commission and is vice chairman of the Senate committee hearing the bill.

The cards state “Stop Georgia from Going to Pot” and say that the House of Representatives was “prodded by the pot lobby” to pass HB 324. It says the bill will allow the state government to “set up special ‘pot stores’ and choose who can grow marijuana” and that the plan is “an open invitation for corruption, crony capitalism and crime.”

Meanwhile, Wooten said frustration is growing about the lack of availability for Georgia patients who depend on the oil.

Troup County parent Dale Jackson, who served on the commission, testified about treating his nonverbal autistic son with the oil. Jackson said it’s frustrating because there is no consistent access to oil, they have to start from scratch every month because the batches of oil are never the same, Wooton said.

Read the full article at The Newnan Times-Herald

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First CBD Oil Shop In Fall River Ready For Opening Day

“FALL RIVER — After losing her daughter three years ago, Laura Eaton has found the motivation not only to go on, but to live well, and to start her own business helping people discover their own journey to wellness.

Janelle “Nelly” Eaton became locally famous for her courageous and graceful battle with cancer that ended on Nov. 21, 2015, at the age of 17. Since that time, her mom and family have continued the Nelly Strong Foundation to promote public education and awareness about natural healing for those with chronic and critical illnesses.

Troy City Wellness, a business specializing in CBD oil and other natural wellness products, will open on March 2 at 222 E. Main St. It is the first CBD oil shop in the city, though some others do sell CBD products.

Cannabidiol, or CBD, is a compound of the cannabis plant that alternative medicine practitioners, and some traditional health care professionals, believe may help people find relief from anxiety, pain, epilepsy, stress, skin conditions and more.

It is a full-spectrum organic product that is non-psychoactive, meaning it does not produce a “high.”

Eaton said she’s had an interest in CBD oil years before it became mainstream when she saw it help her daughter deal with the effects of her disease.

Continue Reading at South Coast Today

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CBD for cancer: Everything You Need To Know

”Cannabidiol, or CBD, is one of many cannabinoids in the cannabis plant gaining popularity in the world of natural medicine because it appears to offer the body many benefits. While there is some debate around the topic, some people suggest using CBD in the treatment of cancer.

Although it is too early to make any claims about CBD for cancer treatment, this compound may help manage symptoms that occur due to this disease or its treatment.

It is important to note that CBD is not the same as tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which is an active cannabinoid in cannabis that causes a “high” when a person smokes or ingests it. Researchers are also looking at the possibility of using CBD for treating anxiety and chronic pain.

Some people wonder about using cannabis or CBD to prevent cancer. The National Cancer Institute (NCI) reviewed numerous studies regarding the link between cannabis and cancer and found that the research has mixed results.

An older study of 64,855 men from the United States found that cannabis use did not increase the risk of tobacco-related cancers. However, this same study also found that male cannabis users who never smoked tobacco had an increased risk of prostate cancer.

On the other hand, the authors of a 2015 study found a promising relationship between cannabis and bladder cancer. After adjusting for several factors, they found that that cannabis users had a 45-percent lower risk of developing bladder cancer.

However, ingesting CBD extract does not expose the body to the same carcinogens as smoking marijuana. More long-term studies in humans are necessary to determine what role, if any, CBD has to play in the prevention of cancer.

In 2016, researchers noted that the use of cannabinoids shows promise in the fight against cancer. The authors found that cannabinoids seem to inhibit the growth of many different types of tumor cell in both test tubes and animal models.

Continue Reading at Medical News Today

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How Minnesota Can Fix Its Medical Marijuana Market

“New patients are leaving the program in droves, turning to the black market or prescription opioids because they cannot afford the processed pills and oils that are legal. Growers are losing millions because of a strict tax structure written into the law.

Lawmakers can fix this, but they might have to look beyond their home state for solutions. A slew of proposals at the State Capitol could save the manufacturers money and help them lower prices. Patients say they do not go far enough.

Minnesota’s medical cannabis program is widely seen as one of the most restrictive in the country; the costly drugs are not insured and only patients with one of 13 severe conditions can use them.

Is there a commitment to shed that reputation?

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz told the Pioneer Press that he would support legislative changes to the program, which he said is “very cumbersome” and “doesn’t work.”

“It felt like they did the bare minimum they could do just to kind of limp over,” Walz said, referring to the compromise that lawmakers and former Gov. Mark Dayton struck to legalize medical marijuana in 2014. “Now we’re stuck with a very minimal medicinal cannabis (program) that really is too expensive.”

The average patient shelled out $300 when he or she went to a dispensary, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health. In contrast, most patients who spoke to the Pioneer Press say they spend between $200 and $500 per month.

In August, Pennsylvania officials made a major change to the program. They legalized the marijuana plant for medicinal use, and prices began to drop. By Feb. 1, the average cost per patient on a trip to a dispensary had fallen to $130.

Read more at Twin Cities

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Arecanut Gets Its First GI Tag For ‘Sirsi Supari’

“For the first time in the arecanut sector, ‘Sirsi Supari’ grown in Uttara Kannada has received the Geographic Indication (GI) tag. It is cultivated in Yellapura, Siddapura and Sirsi taluks.

Totgars’ Cooperative Sale Society Ltd., Sirsi, is the registered proprietor of the GI.

The Registrar of Geographical Indications, under the Union government, Chennai issued the certificate to the society on March 4, 2019. Its GI number is 464.

This particular variety has a unique taste due to differences in chemical composition. The total average flavonoids content in it is around 90 whereas in others it is around 80.

The total carbohydrates in ‘Sirsi Supari’ are 23% to 26%, total arecoline is 0.11% to 0.13%, total tannin content is 14.5% to 17.5%.

Ravish Hegde, General Manager of the cooperative, told The Hindu that the process of obtaining the tag had begun in 2013. It took about six years to get it owing to scientific research proof to be submitted to prove its uniqueness.

Read the full article at The Hindu

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Home Grown Marijuana in New York: Will it be legal?

To David R. Clifford of Auburn, it just makes sense: If marijuana becomes legal for adult recreational use in New York, he says, consumers should be able to grow their own.

“I can grow my own tomatoes or herbs,” he said. “If I’m a beer drinker, I can grow my own hops and make some home brew. So why not let me grow my own cannabis?”

It may not happen. While New York lawmakers are considering legalizing marijuana for recreational use, the proposal offered by Gov. Andrew Cuomo earlier this year does not allow growing at home for non-medical use. Recreational users would have to buy their weed from a state-licensed retail outlet.

Versions of the legalization plans introduced in both the Assembly and Senate do appear to authorize up to six plants to be cultivated for private use. Those bills make no reference to limiting it for medical use.

Home-grown weed is just one of many details still to be worked out on New York’s path to legal recreational marijuana. Cuomo is hoping to have a law approved by April 1, in time for the upcoming state budget. Some lawmakers, including Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, think that timetable may be too fast.

At the heart of the recreational marijuana proposals are provisions allowing those over 21 to possess limited amounts of weed for personal use. The plans also deal with setting up retail outlets, authorizing taxes and addressing social issues, such as sealing the criminal records of those convicted of past marijuana offense.

Continue Reading at Syracuse.com

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Legal Weed in Illinois is Closer Than You Think

 

ILLINOIS- The landslide victory of J.B Pritzker in the November midterms may prove to be the catalyst for legal recreational Cannabis in Illinois.

State Rep. Kelly Cassidy, D-Chicago said one of the obstacles for Illinois to get it legalized had been Gov. Bruce Rauner, who opposed the move.

With Michigan leading the way for recreational marijuana in the midwest many Illinois legislators seem anxious to make Illinois next.

A 2016 Gallup poll found that 60% of Americans support full legalization, a drastic increase from 36% in 2005. Voters seem keen on the idea.

According to dea.gov:

“Schedule I drugs, substances, or chemicals are defined as drugs with no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.”

States wouldn’t have to spend so much money arresting, trying and imprisoning buyers and sellers as well as the huge tax revenue increases from marijuana sales.

According to potguide.com there are 55 medical marijuana dispensaries in Illinois. Several companies are banking on marijuana in Illinois, and they are poised to make moves once recreational is legalized.

WQAD8

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Can LSD and Magic Mushrooms Help Win Wars?

“Sanctioned psychedelic drug use as a medical or psychological treatment method is gaining ground as part of today’s hallucinogenic renaissance.

Recent scientific studies approved by the Food and Drug Administration have yielded positive cognitive results when administering “microdoses” of the drugs lysergic acid diethylamide, or LSD, and psilocybin, the alkaloid in hallucinogenic mushrooms.

But could this new wave of unorthodox treatment ever find its way into the ranks of the military? According to an article by Marine Maj. Emre Albayrak that was published in the February issue of the Marine Corps Gazette, it certainly should.

Microdosing, which refers to administering a minuscule quantity of the drug in order to avoid hallucinations or debilitating effects in the patient, is already being used by “scientists, Silicon Valley executives, biologists, biohackers, and others” to achieve a mental edge, Albayrak writes.

Administering in such doses has the potential to “significantly heighten alertness, creativity, and problem-solving.”

But an inability to process “superhuman” amounts of information in a community in which “one percent gains provide significant advantages” on the battlefield necessitates a better solution, Albayrak suggests.

Enter LSD and magic mushrooms.

“Like most hallucinogens, LSD mimics the effects of serotonin (a mood regulator),” the author says and activates enhanced mental acuity in the areas of learning and memory.

Additionally, the drug commonly referred to as “acid” can decrease blood circulation to the part of the brain that instigates periods of mind wandering.

Read the full article at Marine Times

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UN Opium Survey distorts the Facts, Says Think Tank

“YANGON — The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime has been accused of “distorting realities of the situation on the ground” in its latest Myanmar opium survey, in a report by the Transnational Institute, a think tank based in Amsterdam.

In the report, A distortion of reality: Drugs, conflict and the UNODC’s 2018 Myanmar Opium Survey, released on March 4, TNI takes issue with accusations the UN agency makes about armed ethnic groups.

They include the Kachin Independence Organisation, a political wing of the Kachin Independence Army, which issued an open letter to the UNODC on February 15 that rejected the survey’s findings and demanded a retraction.

It says the two main opium-growing areas in Kachin are at Sadung in Waingmaw Township bordering China, where cultivation takes place in areas under the nominal control of two Border Guard Force groups under Tatmadaw command, and in the tiger reserve in Tanai Township, which is also under ostensible government control.

TNI said its sources had confirmed that there was currently no substantial opium cultivation in areas controlled by the KIO, which has for several years carried out a strict anti-drugs campaign, including eradicating opium fields.

International organizations such as the UNODC need to be aware that inaccurate reporting is a high-risk activity that could have a negative effect on efforts to promote peace and political reform in Myanmar, the think tank said.

The links between drugs and conflict were a vital issue that needed to be discussed, transparently and openly, during political negotiations to achieve peace, it said. “This is a matter of concern for all Myanmar’s peoples.”

Continue Reading at Frontier Myanmar

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CBD Oil and Pets: Can It Relieve Anxiety And Pain?

“CBD oil is a non-intoxicating hemp extract that many pet owners are after to treat a variety of ailments. But veterinarians say there are some things to consider first.

Pain, arthritis and seizures are just some of the health problems that have more and more people turning to CBD for their pets.

North Carolina is one of 47 states where CBD is legal for human use. Physicians in those states can recommend CBD to their patients, and consumers can purchase it at retail locations.

Cannabis for pets is largely unregulated, so it’s difficult to know which CBD products are formulated responsibly.

Consumer Reports recommends looking for the seal from the National Animal Supplement Council, which can help identify quality products.

WRAL.com

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Is Auxly Cannabis a Buy?

Momentum continues to pick up for the marijuana industry. But not every marijuana stock is prospering.

Auxly Cannabis  (NASDAQOTH:CBWTF) lost more than half its value in 2018, making it one of the 10 worst-performing marijuana stocks of the year. So far in 2019, the stock is down close to 20% while the shares of many of its peers are soaring. But is Auxly now such a bargain that it’s a great pick for long-term investors to buy?

THE GOOD

Auxly’s share price hasn’t reflected the tremendous potential the company has. But that potential exists nonetheless.

Estimates vary about just how big the global marijuana market could be. However, projections of $100 billion or more within the next decade don’t appear to be unrealistic. Auxly itself estimates that the total market could be close to $50 billion by 2024. The company doesn’t have to be a big player in a market of that size to be enormously successful.

Auxly offers one key advantage to investors that most marijuana stocks don’t: diversification across the cannabis supply chain. The company’s revenue streaming partnerships, joint ventures, equity investments, and subsidiaries make Auxly a player in the upstream cultivation, midstream extraction and processing, and downstream distribution and sales segments of the cannabis industry.

THE BAD

Despite its impressive efforts in wheeling and dealing, Auxly has yet to make even a cent of profit. In the third quarter of 2018, the company posted a loss totaling nearly 4.6 million Canadian dollars, or around $3.5 million.

Auxly’s problem isn’t just that it’s spending a lot of money (which it is); the company simply isn’t making much revenue, either. In Q3, Auxly’s revenue totaled a measly CA$512,000 — roughly $385,000.

The primary issue for Auxly is that most of its upstream partners are still ramping up their production capacity. They can’t sell what they can’t produce.

Read the full article at The Motley Fool

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Could Mushrooms Be The Next Drug To Be Decriminalised?

“Marijuana and magic mushrooms. One’s a plant, one’s a fungi, both are illegal – for now.

But psychedelic drug reform is already happening in the US. The city of Denver, which has already legalized recreational cannabis, is preparing to vote on whether to decriminalize magic mushrooms in May.

With New Zealand moving towards a referendum on our cannabis laws, News-hub spoke to Victoria University drug use expert Dr Fiona Hutton about whether or not we need to take a look at our laws on mushrooms.

Magic mushrooms (or shrooms) contain psilocybin, which is converted in the body to the psychedelic substance psilocin. They’re classified as Class A, meaning they come with the strongest penalties if you get caught with them.

Possession is a maximum of six months in prison – while the maximum penalty for supply is life in prison.

In medical trials, patients reported improvements in anxiety and depression. Other studies found psilocybin could help users kick their drug, alcohol, and nicotine addictions.

In the US, drug researchers, including Johns Hopkins University researcher Dr Matthew Johnson, said they were worried about the risk of bad trips and how people with psychotic disorders could be affected.

According to the 2017 annual Global Drug Survey, which relies on self-reported drug use, the rate of users who needed emergency medical care after using mushrooms was three times lower that of cannabis.

And research by UK drug expert Prof Nutt found that mushrooms were statistically the least dangerous out of 20 drugs, including alcohol, tobacco, cannabis and LSD.

Read the full article at Newshub