Botanicals

Illinois’ Social Equity License Applicants Get Their Day in Court

by Suzanne Cosgrove | Sep 14, 2020

Controversy over the application process for the state of Illinois’ 75 social equity licenses to open cannabis dispensaries found its way into court on Friday and is expected to be given a full hearing next Thursday, September 17. U.S. District Court Judge Jorge L....

Were Illinois’ Social Equity Applicants Burned?

by JLN Staff | Sep 11, 2020

Heated debate and a lawsuit quickly followed the release on September 3 of a list of 21 finalists for the state’s social equity cannabis dispensary licenses.

Chicago NORML: Social Equity Licenses Just the Start

by Suzanne Cosgrove | Aug 31, 2020

Stephen Simpson, executive secretary of the cannabis advocacy group Chicago NORML, spoke with John Lothian News about the group's social equity agenda and why the imminent awarding of 75 new dispensary licenses is just one item on a long checklist.

Hemp Prices: “I’ve Fallen and I Can’t Get Up”

by Thom Thompson | Aug 31, 2020

The August 2020 Hemp: Benchmarks and Analysis was published last week by our friends at PanXchange. Now, at the end of August the harvest of field grown industrial hemp has not only begun, but also some early harvested hemp targeted to the cannabidiol (CBD) market is...

Legal cannabis ups the ante for alternative payment systems

by Suzanne Cosgrove | Aug 21, 2020

Chicago entrepreneurs seek to bring cash-heavy retail industry into digital age

Hemp Prices Stagnate; Hempcrete Gets Debunked

by Thom Thompson | Jul 31, 2020

PanXchange’s July hemp benchmark report was published on Wednesday. If you have been following this space you will not be surprised to learn that hemp prices remain depressed.

Publicly Traded Cannabis Stocks See Volume, Volatility as Sector Matures

by Suzanne Cosgrove | Jul 28, 2020

Saleem Daya, analyst with Nasdaq IR Intelligence in Toronto, breaks down early 2020 trends in cannabis-related stocks for John Lothian News, and talks about active investors in the space and why some certain stock names have had greater appeal, both in the U.S. and...

“Super Proud” of Illinois’s Social Equity Cannabis Program

by Thom Thompson | Jul 28, 2020

“Everybody having what they need to succeed” defines “social equity,” according to Akele Parnell, an attorney with the Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights. With regard to the nascent Illinois cannabis industry, the question shouldn’t be “Is it working?” but...

Seeking a Laid-Back Business Venture? A Cannabis Dispensary May Not Be For You

by Suzanne Cosgrove | Jul 26, 2020

Opening and running an Illinois dispensary to sell legal cannabis products begins and ends with regulation, and failing to comply is fraught with peril, attorneys from FoxRothschild told participants in this weekend’s Sparklist Summit. “Disclose, disclose, disclose,”...

Cannabis Education Efforts Go Full Throttle Despite COVID-Related Roadblocks

by Suzanne Cosgrove | Jul 21, 2020

In an interview with Kerry Jordan, co-founder of the consultancy Supercritical, and Amanda Gettes, director of strategic initiatives at Chicago’s Olive Harvey College, JLN provides a midyear update on the state’s nascent cannabis industry

Cannabinoids: A Brief Excursion into Neuropharmacology

by Thom Thompson | Jul 17, 2020

One of the first things to learn about cannabis is that nobody knows much for sure about it; not about its botany, chemistry or uses. This article brings you a quick overview of a few biochemical aspects of cannabis for human consumption and use. Knowledge about...

Hemp Enters Growing Season Against Backdrop of Moribund Prices

by Thom Thompson | Jun 30, 2020

No one will be surprised to learn that the price of CBD-hemp has stayed in the basement, resisting any pull upward as the industry works through the 2019 crop inventory while new harvest beckons in the not too distant future. According to its June Hemp: Benchmarks and...

CBD Suffers from Hangover as Planting Season Begins

by Thom Thompson | Jun 1, 2020

The prices for unprocessed hemp for CBD (CBD biomass) and for distilled CBD have consolidated at low levels, according to May data reported by the PanXchange, holding at about 20 percent of last year’s peak prices posted shortly before the harvest started. Around...

State Rep. Kelly Cassidy: Illinois legislators take notice of strong cannabis revenues

by Suzanne Cosgrove | May 29, 2020

John Lothian News caught up with Illinois State Rep. Kelly Cassidy (D-Chicago) on Wednesday, May 27, just days after the finish of a special state legislative session. Amid talk of a budget deficit and pandemic-related business closures, the healthy revenue stream...

Update: SAFE Banking Act of 2019 Moves Forward With Heroes Act

by Suzanne Cosgrove | May 19, 2020

The Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act, legislation introduced by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and passed by the House late Friday, seeks to deliver an additional $3 trillion in aid to a wide range of individuals, businesses and municipalities hit by economic fallout from the coronavirus.