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Italy poised for referendum on legalization.
The #ReferendumCannabis campaign in Italy announced over the weekend that it had gathered more than 500,000 signatures, the required threshold. The group has until the end of the month to collect additional signatures. The referendum focuses on legalization for personal use, not the establishment of an industry.
Association of American Feed Control Officials publishes position paper on hemp.
As Cannabis Wire has reported, there is rising and intense interest in using hemp in animal feed, but research is lacking.
That was the focus of a new position paper released this week from the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO), which is urging research on hemp and hemp byproducts so that it can “formally define ingredients and provide standards for safe animal feed,” the Association announced.
“We understand the hemp industry is eager to enter the animal food market, but we are concerned that not enough research has been completed on these products. That’s why we are urging the hemp industry to conduct appropriate research and submit their results to us for review as a normal step in our ingredient approval process,” AAFCO executive director Susan M. Hays said in the announcement.
AAFCO also flagged the passage of state laws, and noted that it is “concerned that bringing hemp products to market through a state-by-state patchwork of laws, without the backing of in-depth research and a formal review process, will lead to inconsistent manufacturing methods, unsupported marketing claims across the country, and restriction of interstate and international markets.”
How cannabis unions could affect wages and standards.
Unionized cannabis workers could earn far more than non-unionized workers, according to a new Economic Policy Institute report released this week.
On average, those in retail could make nearly $3,000 more each year, those in processing could make nearly $9,000 more, and those in cultivation could make roughly $7,000 more, according to the report, titled Ensuring the High Road in Cannabis.
However, the report notes, while dozens of states have legalized cannabis for medical or adult use, only six “encourage or require the adoption of labor peace agreements” for licensed entities. These six states include: California, Illinois, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, and Virginia.
