Expect institutional investors to move into pot industry: Linton

The coming year won’t just be about pot stores in Ontario and legal pot cookies. It also might be the time that institutional investors eyeing the cannabis industry finally take the plunge in the nascent sector. As several pot companies have forged billion-dollar ties with beverage and tobacco giants, institutional support is rising, according to Canopy Growth CEO Bruce Linton in an interview with BNN Bloomberg. But any big bets are likely to go toward cannabis firms that demonstrate strong corporate governance practices, Linton added.

Medical pioneer sees potential in synthetic cannabis drug

Medical marijuana is still in its early days, but a pioneering immunologist says cannabis could form the basis for a new class of drugs to treat pain and other conditions. Marc Feldmann, whose major breakthrough helped develop drugs to treat rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease and other conditions, is exploring the synthetic cannabis market to develop new medical uses to treat pain and other conditions. Feldmann is looking to raise $100 million with a Toronto-based company to conduct the research and trials necessary to get a cannabis-based drug to market. 

U.S. Farm Bill closer to becoming law 

The new U.S. Farm Bill is one step closer from reaching the finish line as the Senate voted in its favour. The farm bill is expected to cost US$867 billion over 10 years and would also remove industrial hemp from the U.S. government's list of controlled substances. The move would allow hemp, which contains the non-psychoactive CBD chemical as an agricultural commodity and eligible for crop insurance.

New York Governor may introduce plan to legalize pot 

Will the Empire State be next to legalize cannabis? It’s possible, with the New York Post reporting that aides of Governor Andrew Cuomo will soon introduce a plan for legalizing recreational marijuana, maybe even as part of his next executive budget. Legalizing recreational marijuana in New York state is worth about US$3.1 billion and could generate millions of dollars in taxes that could be earmarked for infrastructure or other social programs, according to a recent study.  
 

DAILY BUZZ

"It’s just around the corner."
- Aurora Cannabis CEO Terry Booth on seeing legal medical and adult-use cannabis open up across the U.S. . 
 

Cannabis Canada is BNN Bloomberg’s in-depth series exploring the stunning formation of the entirely new – and controversial – Canadian recreational marijuana industry. Read more from the special series here and subscribe to our Cannabis Canada newsletter to have the latest marijuana news delivered directly to your inbox every day.