France seeks suppliers for its extended medical cannabis experiment.
Way back in 2019, Cannabis Wire reported that the country would embark on a medical cannabis pilot program, however, its rollout was delayed by Covid. When the pilot finally launched, in early 2021, it was set to run for two years. However, the government decided to extend it for one year.
To that end, last week, the government put out a request for bids for “the supply of cannabis-based medicines to pharmacies for internal use and pharmacies as part of the additional year of experimentation with cannabis for medical use.”
They are seeking five product types, including: CBD dominant oil (high concentration); CBD dominant oil (low concentration); CBD/THC oil; THC dominant oil; and “dried flowering tops.”
The companies awarded the initial contracts, back in 2021, include some of the world’s largest, like Tilray and Aurora.
Meanwhile, the pilot program monitoring committee continues to meet, and its latest was held this month. Topics included Chron’s and spasticity, among other potential uses.
Mass. surpasses $4 billion in gross sales.
The Cannabis Control Commission announced that the state’s cannabis industry has topped $4 billion in gross sales. The data came from the state’s mandatory seed-to-sale tracking system.
“Consumers’ demand for tested, quality cannabis products remains strong since Massachusetts became the first East Coast state to open adult-use stores in 2018 and delivery service in 2021,” Commission Executive Director Shawn Collins said in a statement. “As new jurisdictions come online, I am confident that licensees in the Commonwealth will maintain the competitive edge by demonstrating to peers what it takes to operate a safe, effective, and equitable cannabis industry.”
Akerna sells.
Akerna, a seed-to-sale software company, will sell its software to POSaBIT for $4 million. This includes: MJ Platform, Leaf Data Systems and Ample Organics. Akerna will then merge with a bitcoin mining company called Gryphon Digital Mining.
In case you missed it, last week Dutchie announced a lawsuit against Akerna to “ensure a fair playing field for technology platforms that support the cannabis industry” in Pennsylvania, adding that Akerna won’t “open up” its point seed-to-sale tracking data.
It’s unclear how this sale/merger announcement will affect the suit or Akerna’s state contracts.
“Alongside many others in the cannabis industry, we have faced challenges and changes in the market,” said Akerna founder Jessica Billingsley in a LinkedIn post.
