Ontario Finance Minister says province's pot business to continue delivery despite ending service for private retailers 

It appears that Ontario's cannabis delivery service will remain in the hands of the province's own business. The Ontario Cannabis Store will be the sole provider of cannabis delivery, according to Rod Phillips, the province's finance minister. The provincial government said earlier this week that it plans to end delivery and curbside pickup services this month after granting private retailers the option to do so in April under an emergency order. "That roll-out of the retail footprint of cannabis is well underway," Phillips said in an interview with BNN Bloomberg Thursday.​ "Ontario Cannabis Store will do the mail order or internet portion of that and we're glad to see a robust retail network opening up in a safe way … We're seeing those stores open up and that product is going be available to Ontarians in various forms to the market or on the internet, as long as it's done safely."  

Hexo shares rise after starting shipments of medical pot to Israel 

Shares of Hexo rose by about six per cent on the TSX on Thursday after the company announced it has begun supplying the Israeli medical cannabis market. The Ottawa-based company said it shipped 493 kilograms of its products to Israel, where it has partnered with a local firm called Breath of Life International. The products are packaged in a 10-gram format and come with both English and Hebrew labelling, the company said in a statement. Jefferies analyst Owen Bennett said in a report that the announcement will help Hexo expand overseas at little cost and build international credibility. However, he added, it doesn't take away from the company's struggles in its domestic market.   

Pot firms dealing with rising insurance premiums amid mounting shareholder lawsuits

If there's another issue to weigh on the cannabis industry, it might be rising insurance premiums for directors and officers employed by pot companies. Reuters reports​ that premiums for D&O insurance are climbing amid mounting shareholder lawsuits that allege fraud and misinformation within the cannabis industry and its various players. The cannabis industry is already paying well above what non-cannabis companies pay for similar insurance products, with one lawyer claiming that there'll be a 50 per cent spike in new lawsuits holding directors liable for stock losses, Reuters said.  

Biden-led task force outlines cannabis policy ahead of November presidential election

If presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden wins this November’s election, will cannabis be finally made legal in the U.S.? It's unlikely, according to a criminal justice task force his campaign formed to set out official policy, Marijuana Moment reports. The task force proposes to decriminalize cannabis use and legalize marijuana for medical purposes at the federal level, while allowing U.S. states to make their own decisions about legalizing recreational use, the website reports. Members of the task force were reportedly unable to come to a consensus on whether Biden will support federal cannabis legalization.  
 

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