Marijuana - The Boston Globe

In a pandemic, Nobody thinks we should smoke more weed

Nobody is part of the libertarian Free State movement. He thinks government is too big and pretty much useless, and believes people should smoke more weed, which, in the middle of a pandemic, sounds pretty reasonable to me.

Americans want medical marijuana dispensaries deemed ‘essential’ amid coronavirus outbreak, poll finds
A majority of Americans believe that medical marijuana dispensaries should be kept open as “essential services” amid the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new poll.

Marijuana businesses are ineligible for coronavirus disaster relief, federal agency confirms

The federal Small Business Administration reiterated Monday that marijuana companies are not eligible for disaster relief loans to lessen the blow of the coronavirus outbreak.

Hemp must go on: UMaine to teach growers home cultivation

Connecticut residents strongly support legalizing marijuana, poll shows

across the country

In a recession, demand for pot is as inelastic as alcohol
Alcohol and cannabis are two things consumers can’t seem to go without, even in the midst of a global pandemic and a halted economy.

Marijuana industry is stepping up to help with coronavirus response, Colorado senator says

Mass. marijuana leaders protest Baker’s order to stop recreational sales during ‘stay-at-home’ advisory

Medical marijuana dispensaries in Massachusetts will be allowed to stay open, Governor Charlie Baker said Monday as he ordered all non-essential businesses to close by Tuesday.

The busiest pot shop in Massachusetts has halted recreational sales amid coronavirus outbreak

Is marijuana an ‘essential’ like milk or bread? Some states say yes

Over the past week, more than a dozen states have agreed that while “nonessential” stores had to close, pot shops and medical marijuana dispensaries could remain open.

Like toilet paper, panic buyers snap up pot

Cannabis may not be quite as essential as toilet paper, but consumers rushed to stock up nonetheless amid fears of widespread store closures.

Massachusetts marijuana companies, workers, patients bracing for the worst

Licensed marijuana firms are scaling back their operations amid the virus outbreak, leaving workers wondering about their pay.

Amid pandemic, cannabis commission closes offices, urges marijuana firms to take precautions

Massachusetts marijuana regulators are asking cannabis firms to step up their sanitization efforts.

Pot stores are open again even as the Netherlands locks down

Regional marijuana talks are helping coronavirus response, New York governor says

Recent surge in marijuana sales provides boost for cannabis stocks

boston's first pot shop

Boston’s first recreational marijuana store opens, more than 3 years after legalization

The grand opening of Pure Oasis in Dorchester marked a milestone in Massachusetts’ pioneering effort to use some of legalization’s windfall to rectify racial and social inequities.

Here's what you need to know if you plan to shop at Boston's first pot shop

Pure Oasis recommends that customers use public transportation if they can. There is limited street parking and a municipal parking lot nearby.

Boston pot shop co-owners say it's 'surreal' to finally be opening

The team at Pure Oasis in Dorchester’s Grove Hall community will welcome their first customers at 11 a.m. on Monday.

Key moments in Massachusetts marijuana history

From the 2016 ballot initiative to today, these milestones shaped the legal marijuana market in Massachusetts.

From police stops to marijuana executives: The long journey for owners of Boston’s first pot shop

Pure Oasis is Massachusetts’ first pot shop owned by people from communities targeted most by marijuana arrests.

Are recreational marijuana shops preparing to open in your town?
These maps show where prospective operators hope to set up shop to sell recreational marijuana, as well as the stores that have already opened.

‘My life came crashing down overnight’: How one Boston-area woman nearly died from vaping

A 33-year-old veterinary technician thought she could trust her dealer’s legitimate-looking vapes to help her relax and treat her migraines. Instead, she ended up hospitalized for two weeks.

FROM GLOBE OPINION: I nearly died from vaping, and you could tooFourth person dies in Massachusetts from vapingVaping kills 15-year-old in Texas, youngest vaping death reported yet

New England

Al Harrington isn’t just blowing smoke about cannabis business venture

In the five years following his NBA career, Al Harrington has developed a cannabis-based business designed to sell medically prescribed products, then funnel their profits into low-income communities

Boston’s first recreational marijuana store opens, more than 3 years after legalization

The grand opening of Pure Oasis in Dorchester marked a milestone in Massachusetts’ pioneering effort to use some of legalization’s windfall to rectify racial and social inequities.

Here’s what you need to know about Boston’s first pot shop

Asked Friday why it took nearly a year and a half for Boston to get a pot shop, Boston's mayor said: "I don’t think it took long."

From police stops to marijuana executives: The long journey for owners of Boston’s first pot shop

Pure Oasis is Massachusetts’ first pot shop owned by people from communities targeted most by marijuana arrests.

Boston’s first pot shop is set to open Monday

Boston’s first recreational marijuana shop is slated to open next week after state cannabis regulators gave the company its final sign-off Thursday.

This Week in Weed

10 predictions for the Massachusetts marijuana industry in 2020

Here’s what Globe cannabis reporter Dan Adams predicts will happen in the Massachusetts marijuana industry in 2020.

Nation

Americans want medical marijuana dispensaries deemed ‘essential’ amid coronavirus outbreak, poll finds

A majority of Americans believe that medical marijuana dispensaries should be kept open as “essential services” amid the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new poll.

World

New Mexico cannabis company exporting to Israel

Ultra Health is believed to be one of the first US companies to export medical marijuana to Israel.

The essential guide to buying and consuming pot in Massachusetts

These are the most common questions marijuana budtenders get asked

Your guide to shopping at Massachusetts’ recreational marijuana stores

The hidden titans of pot

Massachusetts legalized the sale of recreational marijuana with the ambition to be different — and better. But two years since the law went into effect, troubling signs loom. This three-part series uncovers stealth moves by large investors poised to dominate this nascent industry and outmaneuver regulators.

These companies test the limits — and brag about it

No firm is allowed to own or control more than three recreational marijuana stores. But two companies — Sea Hunter and Acreage — are testing the limits.

Inside one battle that could change the marijuana industry

The race to open Mattapan Square’s first pot shop raises questions about trust and who gets to cash in.

For sale in the pot industry: political influence

Marijuana may be the hot, new retail business in town, but it largely plays by the old political rules.

More coverage

Eight takeaways from the Spotlight series on the state’s burgeoning marijuana industry

Marijuana company’s expansion plans test Mass. law

Massachusetts marijuana regulators investigating whether companies violated license limits

Beyond Massachusetts, states struggle to limit marijuana behemoths

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The Daily Rip, written Monday through Friday, dives into the top marijuana headlines of the day, in New England and around the world.

Special Report

Welcome to Big Marijuana’s factory floor

Inside the headquarters of Canada's Canopy Growth Corp., the world’s largest marijuana company that critics call the "Walmart of Weed." (Video by Caitlin Healy/Globe Staff)

Inside the Walmart of Weed: From rural Canada, Big Marijuana seeks to dominate global market

Latest local headlines

Meet the new Boston Cannabis Board
Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh appoints five members to the Cannabis Board in an effort to quell worries of a lack of diversity. The Committee will issue recommendations on which marijuana companies should receive local licenses and advise Walsh’s office on cannabis regulation and policy.

EDITORIAL
Level the playing field in the marijuana industry
The Mass. Legislature should act fast to fund social equity loans for marijuana entrepreneurs and crack down on high-barrier host community agreements.

Cannabis-infused soda has now arrived in Massachusetts
Recreational marijuana consumers now have a new option in Massachusetts.

Legal marijuana in Maine expected to be in stores by June
The first legal sales of marijuana in Maine are expected in June as the state and municipalities work on issuing licenses.

Connecticut lawmakers hold hearing on marijuana legalization
Connecticut lawmakers held a public hearing Monday to discuss details of a new bill proposed by the governor that would legalize recreational marijuana in the state.

Public gets chance to testify on legalized marijuana bill in Connecticut
Connecticut lawmakers will hear from the public about the latest plan to possibly legalize the recreational use of marijuana for adults.

Union accuses Massachusetts marijuana firm of retaliating against organizers
Union officials say Mayflower Medicinals broke state law in trying to snuff out organization efforts by its workers.

Plan for special cannabis crimes unit in Maine sparks outrage
Maine plans to create a new division of the state Drug Enforcement Agency tasked with regulatory compliance as well as monitoring illegal activity that competes with state-licensed growers, processors, and retailers.

Local marijuana company to start selling farm-grown cannabis as its third store opens
A local marijuana company will debut its new farm-grown cannabis products this weekend amid the opening of its Chicopee store — its third dispensary in Massachusetts.

Amy Kennedy backs marijuana reform in congressional bid, despite husband’s anti-marijuana roots
Amid her campaign for Congress, Amy Kennedy, the wife of one of the most prominent voices advocating for keeping marijuana illegal, says she supports federally reclassifying cannabis from its current restrictive status.

Vermont House approves bill to legalize marijuana sales
The Vermont House of Representatives approved a bill Wednesday to legalize the sale of marijuana in the state.

Applications open for ‘jail-to-jobs’ marijuana pilot program at Roxbury Community College
The CultivatED program will choose 15 fellows for its small-scale, 12-week summer semester, slated to begin in early June.

Conn. pilot sent to prison for flying tons of pot cross country
A pilot from Connecticut has been sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison for his role in a marijuana trafficking operation that made millions of dollars by moving about two tons of pot across the country in a small plane, federal prosecutors said.

Bill to legalize marijuana sales heads to Vermont House floor following key committee vote
Another Vermont House committee approved a bill to legalize the sale of marijuana Monday, with a vote by the full chamber expected in the coming days.

State lawmaker demands answers on how marijuana taxes are spent
The questions coincide with the Globe reporting that the state has not spent marijuana revenue on many purposes prescribed in state law like public safety and aid for communities targeted by the war on drugs.

CannaBus, the traveling mock marijuana dispensary, pays a visit to Boston
Inside a busy convention hall, the CannaBus mock dispensary is a quiet retreat from the whirlwind of networking and business talk that surrounds the bus walls.

Cannabis commission aims to slash licensing wait times
To address one of the loudest and most frequent complaints from prospective cannabis entrepreneurs, marijuana regulators want to cut the wait time for a license in half in the next budget year, the chairman of the Cannabis Control Commission told state lawmakers Monday.

Pot investors beg executives for some humility at Boston cannabis conference
Humility is in short supply in the cannabis industry. Investors want that to change.

Amesbury pot shop opens for recreational marijuana sales
An Amesbury store opened for recreational marijuana sales this week, becoming Massachusetts’ 37th adult-use pot store.

Cambridge reverses stance, will consider pot applications
Cambridge will consider applications for recreational marijuana businesses after all.

Are recreational marijuana shops preparing to open in your town? Check our maps

Data released by the Cannabis Control Commission show where marijuana operators have set up shop and where they hope to.

All 2020 presidential candidates now support marijuana legalization efforts — even the Republicans

Bill Clinton “didn’t inhale” marijuana, and it was Obama’s “mistake,” but now all 12 official Democratic candidates told the Globe they support full nationwide legalization, Canada-style.