Jan. 22 marked one year since Arizona launched its first adult-use cannabis sales, and data from the state’s Department of Revenue shows that adult-use sales topped $520 million in 2021.
While the department has not yet finished tallying December’s sales figures, the Arizona dispensaries racked up $528,001,278 in adult-use sales last year, and the state brought in $44,533,436 in tax revenue.
“I believe that the level of sales is close to where we expected,” Demitri Downing, founder of the Arizona Marijuana Industry Trade Association, told KJZZ. “I think there’s individuals who would like them to be higher. Compared to other states, ... it’s about consistent with what other states show.”
The tax revenue generated by Arizona’s adult-use cannabis sales will be used to support state programs like community colleges, transportation and law enforcement, according to the news outlet.
When December’s sales figures are finalized, Arizona will have a combined total of over $1.3 billion in medical and adult-use cannabis sales for 2021.
Colorado Marijuana Enforcement Division Releases Licensee Demographic Data for January 2022
As of Jan. 1, 2022, the Division is reporting 16.9% minority owners,
exceeding its target goal of 16.8% by June 30, 2022.
DENVER, Colo. - January 24, 2022 - PRESS RELEASE - The Colorado Marijuana Enforcement Division (MED) released licensee demographic data for January 2022. The Division is committed to reporting information that allows the state and members of the public to understand the diversity landscape of Colorado’s Regulated Marijuana industry and measure progress on statewide social equity-related initiatives. The following tables provide additional insights into the demographics of Colorado’s commercial marijuana industry.
Regulated Marijuana License Demographic Information - January 1, 2022
Cannabis Cabinet Wildly Important Goal (WIG) FY 21-22: Promote equity, diversity, and inclusion in the marijuana industry, measured by an increase in minority-ownership of marijuana businesses from 15.2% to 16.8% by June 30, 2022.
Regulated Marijuana Business Owners
Licensee Measure
Baseline Data
As of January 1, 2022
GOAL By June 30, 2022
Percentage of Minority Owners
15.2%
16.9%
16.8%
As of Jan. 1, 2022, there are 50 approved Social Equity licensees (4 issued in December).
January 1, 2022 Race/Ethnicity Data:
Employee Licenses: Approximately 39% or 16,495 Employee licenses did not disclose or their race/ethnicity is unknown.
Owner Licenses: Approximately 12% or 226 Owner licenses did not disclose or their race/ethnicity is unknown.
Race/Ethnicity Data & Percentages By License Type (Excludes the “Undisclosed/Unknown” Licenses)
License Type
Asian
Black
Caucasian
Hispanic/Latino
Mixed Race
Native American
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
Total
Employee
371 (1.5%)
1,577 (6.2%)
16,828 (66.5%)
4,336 (17.1%)
1,705 (6.7%)
392 (1.6%)
79 (<1%)
25,288 (93.8%)
Owner
67 (4.0%)
48 (2.9%)
1,380 (83.1%)
132 (7.9%)
23 (1.4%)
8 (<1%)
3 (<1%)
1,661 (6.2%)
Grand Totals
438 (1.6%)
1,625 (6.0%)
18,208 (67.6%)
4,468 (16.6%)
1,728 (6.4%)
400 (1.5%)
82 (<1%)
26,949
Employee Licenses: Those who disclosed their race/ethnicity as Caucasian held 66.5% of Employee licenses, compared to 6.2% who disclosed themselves as Black, and 17.1% for those who disclosed themselves as Hispanic/Latino.
Owner Licenses: Those who disclosed themselves as Caucasian held 83.1% of owner licenses, compared to 2.9% for those who disclosed themselves as Black and 7.9% for Hispanic/Latino.
Overall Individual License Data
As of Jan. 1, 2022
January 1, 2022 Gender Data: 99% Response Rate.
Employee Licenses: Women hold approximately 39% of employee licenses.
Owner Licenses: Women hold about 19% of owner licenses.
Gender Data:
License Type
Female
Male
Non-Binary
Not Disclosed
Total
Employee
16,113
25,445
82
143
41,783
Owner
350
1,535
0
2
1,887
The Division began reporting aggregate demographic data in April 2021. For the full demographic data report, and to see reports from previous months, please visit the MED Demographic Data page here: https://sbg.colorado.gov/med/licensee-demographic-data
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Sugarmade Signs Binding LOI to Enter Rare Cannabinoid Market
The planned market entrance is through a license agreement for patented THC-V-rich chemovars.
NEW YORK, Jan. 24, 2022 – PRESS RELEASE –Sugarmade Inc., an emerging leader in the licensed cannabis sector, announced the signing of a binding letter of intent (the “LOI”) with GenCann Inc., the exclusive licensor for a set of cannabis chemovars particularly rich in the cannabinoid Tetrahydrocannabivarin (THC-V) (the “GenCann chemovars”).
Under the terms outlined in the LOI, Sugarmade and its licensed cannabis cultivator partners will be granted a five-year license to cultivate what the company believes to be some of the highest THC-V-containing strains in existence. Sugarmade and GenCann plan to begin clone production immediately upon the signing of the final agreement with a cultivation program beginning this spring in Lake County, Calif..
“While THC-V is sometimes referred to as a ‘rare cannabinoid,’ we believe the term no longer applies relative to our planned cultivation effort using GenCann’s chemovars,” Sugarmade CEO Jimmy Chan said. “The test results from certified California laboratories of these chemovars are certainly impressive, with THC-V yields in flower of up to 8 percent. We think the GenCann chemovars are a game-changer in the cannabinoid space. Sugarmade plans to make a substantial commitment to bring products based on THC-V to the California market and perhaps to other states in the future.”
The GenCann chemovars are covered by multiple issued U.S. patents, including patent numbers PP33212 for the plant called “V1,” patent number PP33211 for the plant called “V2” and patent number PP33210 for the plant called “V3.” All three of these chemovars contain abundant THC-V, with the V1 variety being especially distinguished by producing more THC-V than THC by percent weight. The V3 strain, also known as Skelator, will be the predominant strain utilized for spring cultivation due to its early finishing characteristics and its higher THC-V content, although the V1 and V2 varieties are also planned for Sugarmade’s cultivation effort.
Sugarmade plans to utilize the THC-V-rich biomass in a series of products it plans to introduce to the licensed California marketplace. The first of these will be THC-V-rich smokeable flower and THC-V-rich gummy candies. In the future, Sugarmade plans to also produce distillate and isolate products based on its cultivated biomass.
“The THC-V smoking and edibles consumption experience is very different compared to traditional cannabis,” Chan said. “Where legacy cannabis strains often produce a sedating effect, consumption of THC-V-rich products produces a pleasant and uplifting effect. It’s a remarkable experience, and we believe consumers will gravitate to it.”
In addition to seeking to supply the mainstream cannabis marketplace with THC-V products, Sugarmade also plans to seek pharmaceutical and nutraceutical partners for supply agreements as many of these companies are already stating their intentions to conduct trials or to produce products containing rare cannabinoids.
The cultivated THC-V cannabinoids from the GenCann chemovars differ significantly from the current generation of THC-V products presently available in the marketplace, most of which are converted via a chemical process from hemp-based isolates. This generation of products is also very expensive, often priced in the $50-per-gram range, and is typically not tested by certified laboratories.
Additionally, the cannabinoids produced by the GenCann chemovars differ from planned offerings by other companies that utilize genetically modified organisms, such as bacteria or yeast, to create cannabinoids outside of the cannabis plant varieties. All of the cannabinoids to be generated via the GenCann chemovars and Sugarmade’s cultivation will be produced from real cannabis plants that have been specifically bred for this purpose and grown in an outdoor setting.
Sugarmade and GenCann believe outdoor cultivation of THC-V-rich strains will yield higher desirable cannabinoid content due to optimal ultraviolet light levels inherent in natural sunlight.
Photo courtesy of Veritas
How Veritas Uses Limited-Edition Product Drops to Connect With Customers
The Colorado-based company’s limited-edition product releases include its unique Pheno Hunts, First Cut Strains and exclusive partnerships with retailers.
Veritas Fine Cannabis is always looking for new ways to engage with the end consumer, and this past year, the Colorado-based company has found success in a variety of limited-edition product drops.
The Veritas team likes to curate experiences, according to the company’s marketing director, Jordan Plunkett.
“That’s the thought process behind our new product lines and our new product drops,” Plunkett says. “We want to do something that goes above and beyond just giving someone a new product to try out. We want to tie that into an experience somehow, and we’ve done this in the past with previous product lines, such as our Pheno Hunts.”
While “pheno hunting,” or determining a cannabis cultivar’s best traits, is usually reserved for a company’s internal product development team, Veritas has given its customers the chance to try and vote for their favorite phenotype. The one with the most votes then becomes a permanent cultivar in Veritas’ genetic library.
“That [idea] derived from our gardeners coming to us and basically saying, ‘We have all these phenos and these incredible strains, and we don’t even … know where to choose from,’” Plunkett says. “We then came up with an idea to actually … get consumers engaged somehow.”
Veritas offers its customers a Pheno Hunt box that includes 1 gram each of three different phenotypes of the same cultivar, along with accessories like a grinder, a lighter and rolling papers. Consumers can then sample each phenotype and offer their honest opinions and feedback on which ones should have a place in Veritas’ genetic library, Plunkett says.
“It’s been a really successful and engaging way to really connect with our customers,” he says. “They seem to love it because it actually gives them a say so in what we do as a company. At the end of the day, they’re the ones actually enjoying our products, so we want to hear from them directly.”
Now, customers are anxiously waiting for the next Pheno Hunt to drop.
“We’ve really seen a huge number of growth, and we actually have people asking us when the next one is,” Plunkett says. “People are very familiar with it, they know about it, so I would definitely say our Pheno Hunts are probably our most successful limited-edition product line that we offer.”
Photos courtesy of Veritas
Veritas' First Cut product line gives customers a look at a cultivar that the company is growing for the first time.
Veritas also has a First Cut product line, which is offered more frequently than Pheno Hunts and gives customers a look at a cultivar that the company is growing for the first time.
As with the Pheno Hunt products, the First Cut line gives Veritas’ customers the ability to provide feedback on the cultivars and decide whether they should have a permanent spot in the company’s genetics library.
“People have absolutely loved the First Cut concept so far,” Plunkett says. “We’ve been doing it for a few years now, and … people like having … the opportunity to be a part of something when it comes to working with these big cannabis brands.”
Veritas also tries to find unique ways to connect with its retail partners by offering them exclusive, limited-edition product drops.
For example, the company recently partnered with Golden Meds to offer exclusive day and night boxes. The day box contains two of Veritas’ sativa-dominant cultivars from its Invigorate line, while the night box contains two indica-dominant cultivars from the company’s Alleviate line.
“With that, we’ve given the users an experience, and with the store, we’ve given them this exclusive product that’s only available to them,” Plunkett says.
Veritas has also partnered with Wolfpac Dispensaries to offer Cocoa Puffs as an exclusive cultivar available in 7-gram jars.
“That is not typically a product line that we carry, so that was a cool, limited-edition, exclusive drop that if you wanted to get Cocoa Puffs, you had to go to Wolfpac,” Plunkett says.
Sometimes, Veritas will tie an exclusive product drop to a prize or giveaway to drive new product lines. For the 2021 All-Star Game in Denver, for example, the company sold a commemorative can with three 1-gram pre-rolls and a baseball rally towel inside—and one lucky can also held two tickets to the game.
“You’re already going to enjoy the product itself—you’re already planning on purchasing our product anyway—but we’re giving the consumer that extra little nudge, that extra thing to incentivize them,” Plunkett says.
For the 2021 All-Star Game in Denver, Veritas sold a commemorative can with three 1-gram pre-rolls and a baseball rally towel inside—and one lucky can also held two tickets to the game.
Veritas evaluates the success of a limited-edition drop based on whether the products sell out. The company sets the drops at a certain quantity, and its goal is to sell out of that inventory as soon as possible.
For example, Veritas releases about 900 boxes for its Pheno Hunt promotion and typically sells out within a couple weeks.
“We consider that to be an absolute success and a win there,” Plunkett says.
The company also considers social media engagement when determining the success of a particular drop. Veritas never asks customers to post about the brand or its products, but if the company sees a lot of natural, organic conversation on social media about a particular drop, the team counts it as a successful promotion.
“We really determine our success based on what people just really, truly thought of the promo,” Plunkett says. “Obviously, we take a look at our sales data and our numbers and review all that stuff to make sure that we did it right and [where] we have room for improvement. … But our ultimate goal is to really just create an experience for the customer and have a positive little thing for them to try out.”
Veritas plans to collaborate with Native Roots to roll out a live resin vape cartridge that will be available starting Jan. 28.
Looking ahead, Veritas plans to collaborate with Native Roots to roll out a live resin vape cartridge. Beginning Jan. 28, Native Roots will be the exclusive retailer of the cartridge, which will feature custom packaging.
“We’ve given them our product, our flower, to be pressed and extracted into pens,” Plunkett says. “We’re planning on only starting with about 3,000 of these in the market, so we’re hoping that these take off and we’re very excited to see how they do and how people enjoy them.”
The overall goal of Veritas’ limited-edition product drops, Plunkett says, is to create an organic conversation with the company’s customers and allow them to weigh in on what they like—and what they don’t.
“The biggest thing we just try to do here is really just give the end consumer the ability to feel like they’re a part of something,” he says. “We love pushing the boundaries of what’s out there and what’s possible, and we like to try to do things that pave the way for others to even follow."
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South Dakota Issues First Three Medical Cannabis Dispensary Licenses
The licenses went to retailers in Wagner, Watertown and Keystone.
South Dakota has issued its first three medical cannabis dispensary licenses to retailers in Wagner, Watertown and Keystone, according to a South Dakota Public Broadcasting report.
The licenses went to Custom Touch in Wagner, Dakota Dispensaries in Watertown and Puffy’s in Keystone, according to the state’s website.
South Dakota must still license medical cannabis cultivators, manufacturers and testing facilities, and the Department of Health is continuing to process applications, South Dakota Public Broadcasting reported.
South Dakota lawmakers are currently considering several proposed bills on medical and adult-use cannabis during the 2022 legislative session, which kicked off Jan. 11.
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