WeedLife News Network

News Americas, NEW YORK, NY, Thurs. Feb. 17, 2022: Cannabis is quite a controversial matter for some people. While the opponents and supporters are struggling for and against the legalization of marijuana all over the country, cannabis businesses have their own fight. It is their struggle to survive among the niche competition. For this purpose, these enterprises are also actively using digital promotional tools. Is there any difference in promotion for a cannabis company and the one working in another field?

Yes, there is. But how have industry differences appeared? What are they? In this post, we are going to dwell on the most essential complications faced by cannabis businesses while they are trying to promote their websites on the Internet. Some of them have already understood the difficulty of the situation and have entrusted promotion to SEO experts for cannabis businesses, one of which is Mj Seo Agency.

Difficulties Faced by Cannabis Businesses

So, let us determine the most serious complications that interfere with the promotion of cannabis businesses. There are:

To try to win over the attention of the target audience, cannabis businesses need to overcome more obstacles than regular companies. Because of all this, cannabis is a trickier industry to work in. Optimization of the content on a site takes much more effort and requires a higher level of professionalism of specialists. Even with SEO tips for cannabis businesses, it is not an easy task. And it does not matter if your business is a product manufacturer, dispensary, farm, cultivator, e-commerce store, etc.

Restrictions from Search Engines

So, you have decided to select keywords for a blog post. You open Google Keyword Planner and input the word “cannabis”. It is a way the work on the content starts. However, here, the results of GKP show “No ideas satisfy current filters.” Does this mean that there is no data on cannabis on Google? Sounds unrealistic, doesn’t it?

JAMA publication demonstrates assessment validity, points to future research and real-world application.

Horsham, PA, Feb. 17, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --

Clinical Ink’s Technology Deployed for Groundbreaking Cannabis Research

JAMA publication demonstrates assessment validity, 
points to future research and real-world applications

HORSHAM, Pa.; Feb. 17, 2021 (Business Wire) – Clinical Ink, a global clinical technology company, is excited to announce our Chief Innovation Officer Joan Severson's collaboration on the recently published JAMA Psychiatry paper Driving Performance and Cannabis Users’ Perception of Safety: A Randomized Clinical Trial. Severson was part of the team led by Dr. Thomas Marcotte, Professor and Co-Director of the Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research, at the University of California San Diego.

As the legalization of cannabis expands in the U.S., it is increasingly pressing to effectively measure its effects on users’ health, behavior and community. While breathalyzer tests exist to measure alcohol consumption and the ability to safely drive, no equivalent testing has been developed for cannabis use. In this trial, the team deployed proprietary, digitized assessments from Clinical Ink’s BrainBaseline™ platform to help measure cannabis-related impairment while driving.  

This past summer, a little recognized thing occurred — one of the largest and most respected companies in the world quietly changed its policies in favor of cannabis. That company was Apple. As a result, they joined the ranks of Amazon as a global corporation advocating for policy reform that would open a federally legal, commercial cannabis industry in the United States.   

Unlike the big headlines we’ve seen recently from Amazon, Uber, the NFL, and other mainstream, institutional businesses, showing a positively changing attitude toward cannabis, Apple made no big-splash announcement that this had happened. Yet, this change came at a time of a shift in the cannabis paradigm for voters, policymakers, and the average American. 

The financial technology experts at Artis Intel are ahead of the curve in identifying the imperative to collaborate with tech leaders like Apple to update policy to reflect the mainstream adoption of cannabis. Co-Founder and CMO of Artis, Adair Lion shares, “As a fintech company on the cutting-edge of development in both cannabis and retail, Apple’s Policy changes are a monumental shift in the way our society does mobile transactions.”  

Then political leaders and Fortune 100 companies begin modifying policies and behavior to accommodate something that has been seen as fringe, elicit, or otherwise illegal, the hearts and minds of American start to change. It’s safe to say the tide is turning. 

CEM Corporation is pleased to announce AOAC INTERNATIONAL’s approval of the analytical method, “Heavy Metals in a Variety of Cannabis and Cannabis-Derived Products,” used for the analysis of toxic metals in cannabis and cannabis-containing products.

This First Action AOAC Official Method status represents a large step forward in cannabis testing. The method, OMA 2021.03, uses high throughput microwave digestion and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) to solubilize and analyze arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), mercury (Hg), lead (Pb), and other elements in cannabis products, including edibles, health and beauty products, and cannabis or hemp supplements.

The new method was rigorously reviewed by a panel of analytical science experts and is the first method approved by AOAC for heavy metals in cannabis. The accuracy and precision of the ICP-MS-based method met the AOAC Standard Method Performance Requirements for Determination of Heavy Metals in a Variety of Cannabis and Cannabis-Derived Products (SMPR 2020.001) for all elements of interest. OMA 2021.03 was developed to help cannabis labs determine total heavy metal content in their cannabis samples with simple and high throughput sample digestion and analysis instrumentation.

“The cannabis industry is still in its infancy and looks to experts in the fields of sample preparation and analysis to accurately determine contaminants in their products. CEM is proud to have combined efforts with our colleagues at Agilent to further the development of official methodology that will guide legislation and help cannabis labs."

About CEM

CEM Corporation, a private company based in Matthews, North Carolina, is a leading provider of laboratory instrumentation. The Company has subsidiaries in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Singapore, Germany, Italy, France, and Japan, as well as a global network of distributors. CEM designs and manufactures systems for life sciences, analytical laboratories and processing plants worldwide. The Company’s products are used in many industries including pharmaceutical, biotech, chemical and food processing, as well as academic research.

Charlotte's Web Holdings, Inc. ("Charlotte's Web" or the "Company"), the market leader in cannabidiol (CBD) hemp extract wellness products, shares the positive results from a randomized, controlled, clinical trial study which evaluated the effectiveness of hemp-derived CBD extracts. Charlotte's Web participated in the Radicle ACES (Advancing CBD Education and Science) study, conducted by Radicle Science, an independent health tech company validating health and wellness products. As part of a larger study, hundreds of participants from across the US used Charlotte's Web Original Formula for four weeks and were assessed for key health outcomes across five domains including general well-being, quality of life, sleep quality, feelings of daily stress or discomfort. Researchers conducted the study using standardized scientific methods and validated indices for measuring each outcome and tracked their progress repeatedly throughout the study.

"As a hemp company driven by sound science, we were encouraged by the Radicle Science study," Charlotte's Web President of CW Labs' Tim Orr said.

"Independent third-party research and reporting on the efficacy of hemp wellness products help build long term consumer trust and is an ongoing commitment of Charlotte's Web."

"We're applying modern science to prove or predict the effectiveness of CBD products used by tens of millions of Americans every day," said Jeff Chen, MD/MBA, Co-founder and CEO of Radicle Science.

"Our objective is to deliver accurate, transparent, and actionable insights to help create trust and transparency for the CBD industry."

At first glance, Yellow Acre Farms might look like a peaceful, serene, and chilled-out hemp farm deep in the heart of East Texas — and it is. But big advances in nanoemulsion technology are happening at this sustainably run operation, and while growing CBD-rich hemp flower with sustainable farming practices is a major focus, they've got their sights set on disrupting the Cannabis industry with their patent pending technology that's poised to redefine what's achievable in the marriage between Cannabis and consumer products.

Today, Yellow Acre Farms CEO, Adan Arriaga, announced the submission of an industry first, "METHOD FOR ADMINISTERING CANNABIS-DERIVED COMPOUNDS," to the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The technology, developed by YAF's R&D team, is capable of delivering various cannabis-derived compounds to the body with high bioavailability and extended duration of action via a variable molecule size nanoemulsion.

It's a mouthful, but for consumer product brands, it all translates to new possibilities in infusing cannabinoids and other cannabis compounds into longer-lasting liquid, solid, or other consumable forms. This means that consumers can expect new and better inclusion of Cannabis compounds into beverages, syrups, sprays, gummies, sublingual strips, candy, and gel capsules.

"To say that we're super excited here doesn't even begin to cover it," says Arriaga.

"We're ready to shake up the industry in ways we haven't seen before. We already know that variable molecule sizes will be the industry standard as more products seek to incorporate CBDa and CBGa with other cannabinoids into their beverages and edibles. We're poised to play a vital role in giving consumers more options to support their health and well-being."

Licensed to a Vancouver company, the goal is to employ technology that converts liquid solution to a gel to commercialize products in the form of a nasal spray.

Australia’s University of Queensland (U.Q.) and Canada’s PreveCeutical Medical Inc. have teamed up for what is being called a revolutionary change in how patients will take medical cannabis: a liquid that converts to a gel.

The Sol-Gel technology is thanks to the work of a team of researchers, led by Dr. Harendra Parekh, at the U.Q.’s School of Pharmacy, which explains the liquid solution converts to a gel upon contacting “internal membranes of the human body, such as the nose.”

Vancouver-headquartered PreveCeutical — which, along with its partners, researches and develops solutions that give consumers options for preventive and curative therapies — will have a chance to check out exactly what the technology can do.

It is the last option that seems of the greatest immediate interest when it comes to the Sol-Gel technology.

Cannabis brands and fans alike often run into having their account deleted, banned or suppressed in some fashion. With cannabis-specific platforms still not earning substantial memberships, the industry is left to scramble from platform to platform in an attempt to connect with enthusiasts, buyers, investors, media and other crucial members.

Most sources say one option appears to be the best for cannabis today. Still, alternative platforms and methods may be beneficial to building lasting connections.

Though metrics or methods to determine the most cannabis-friendly platform aren’t readily available, it appears LinkedIn is the most cannabis-friendly platform at the moment, according to anecdotal feedback from various sources.

She also highlighted Twitter Inc. for tolerating cannabis content but said its search feature connects the term cannabis with substance abuses messages.

“Linkedin does an excellent job removing negative stigmas surrounding the cannabis industry,” Karassev added.

On August 9, 2021, the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change sent shock waves through the financial markets and the world in general with the publication of its sixth assessment report.

The IPCC report, the most comprehensive of its nature since 2013, made it abundantly clear that much of the damage incurred by the global ecosystem will be irreversible, and the harm is accelerating at an alarming rate.

This has catalyzed investment funds and asset managers focusing on environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria to rethink their approach. Chris Meyer of Praxis Mutual Funds, a well-established socially responsible investment firm, said in a Bloomberg Law article that the report “changes the calculus. We will need to have a sharper focus. This report shows that investors are not moving quickly enough.”

Financial investment itself may not be able to curb the problem. However, what is certain is that fund managers focused on ESG criteria will pay extra attention to environmentally conscious companies and substantial sums of investment dollars will likely flow into those that commit to more aggressive ESG plans.

What is ESG and does it matter to cannabis companies?

ESG is a set of standards applied to a company’s operations that some firms use to analyze potential investments. In recent years, more and more investment firms have focused on ESG as a means of attracting investors. Investment firms also increasingly believe that companies exhibiting a commitment to ESG principals will be better situated to deliver outsized returns in the future.

 More and more states are beginning to implement legislation to regulate cannabis products. As sales of such products are becoming more prevalent, new and important regulations are expected to be implemented. One of the major concerns over cannabis abuse revolves around operating a vehicle while impaired. Generally, law enforcement officers may conduct field tests such as sobriety tests or even sample tests. However, sobriety tests can be inaccurate, while sample tests may not receive results for days or even weeks. As a result, companies within the cannabis marketspace began to develop the necessary technology for law enforcement agencies to use in crackdowns on drivers operating a vehicle while under the influence of marijuana. Cannabix Technologies Inc. (OTC: BLOZF) (CSE: BLO), OrganiGram Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: OGI), HEXO Corp. (NYSE: HEXO), Cronos Group Inc. (NASDAQ: CRON), Aurora Cannabis Inc. (NASDAQ: ACB)

Presently, the medical cannabis sector accounts for a majority of the market share, as progress is slowly being made in removing the stigmas associated with such products. Overall, the legal cannabis market is permeating throughout the U.S. states and is helping to create a multi-billion-dollar industry. While medical cannabis still dominates that broad cannabis marketplace, the growing awareness and legalization efforts are expected to further propel the overall industry forward. In 2020, legal cannabis sales in the U.S were up 46% from 2019, reaching a new record of USD 17.5 Billion, according to cannabinoid market research firm BDSA.

Cannabix Technologies Inc. (OTC: BLOZF) (CSE: BLO) just announced breaking news that,

"it is ramping up subject beta testing in a high-volume clinic in the Northwestern US and will ship an additional THC Breath Analyzer ("THCBA") unit to the site. The collaborating clinic has a robust drug testing operation and is one of the top drug testing providers to employers within its respective state. The Company also reports that it has shipped two THCBA devices to a biomedical clinic in southern Ontario for beta-testing.

The THCBA is a drug screening device for employers and other markets who are seeking a way to quickly (in less than 5 minutes), easily and non-invasively test for recent use of ∆9-tetrahydrocannabinol ("THC") - the psychoactive component of marijuana that causes impairment. The THCBA consists of a handheld device and protective case which houses a sterilization module, sample preparation stage, device recovery station and integrated battery charging system. Over the course of 2020 to present the Company has been relentlessly focused on building the THCBA from bench prototypes to the current hand-held portable version 3.0 system. Over recent months, this proof-of-concept system has been introduced into small scale beta-testing sites. The focus of the beta-testing has been to gather information on user and administrator experience, identifying cross-reactivity of other substances within a semi-controlled study population and to further collect data and train the device's machine learning database and sensitivity profile. Furthermore, feedback has been provided in areas of handling, connectivity, operating procedures and data management.

Unlicensed cannabis is not as strong as you may think it is. 

That's according to a recently published study by the New Brunswick Research and Productivity Council.

Researchers comparing samples of illicit and legal cannabis products found that the claims of potency for illicit products were significantly less accurate.  

The RPC's chief officer of science Diane Botelho said the study was taken on to find out whether there was any legitimacy to claims made about cannabis products on the illicit market being 'better'. 

"Our scientists have been curious for a number of years now as to whether or not illicit cannabis products were equivalent to legal cannabis products with respect to health and safety as well as potency claims," said Botelho. 

Emerald Valley Gardens, a small cannabis gardening shop near Springfield, is bustling with customers. At the register, owner Madeline Thomas answers questions about where to find the right pots or which brands to buy for first-time growers. Shelves are lined with nutrients and soil, and draped with leafy trailing plants. 

Thomas has been in the cannabis industry for more than 10 years, and says she loves the business. Over the course of the past two years, she says, her clientele skyrocketed during the COVID-19 pandemic because people had more time on their hands. 

“It’s been so cool,” she says. “We’ve seen people who haven’t ever grown a cannabis plant or ever had a vegetable garden come in here, which is great. They’re our favorite customers because they’re super enthusiastic.” 

According to the medical journal Journal of Addictive Diseases, medicinal cannabis use increased by 91 percent since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Some cannabis users in Eugene have taken to self-growing while stuck at home, which is a more environmentally friendly alternative to purchasing from a large-scale dispensary.

Cannabis consumes a lot of water and energy. Thomas says lighting is one of the most important elements when growing cannabis because the goal is to replicate an outdoor environment in a controlled grow room. Indoor marijuana growth needs complex high-powered lighting systems that require an abundance of energy for use — annually equating to 300 million running vehicles, a total of 1 percent of national energy consumption in the U.S. 

Hemp is easily one of the most valuable crops in the world today.

Not only does it produce the versatile healing compound cannabidiol (CBD) in larger doses than cannabis, but it also has several eco-friendly uses. Scientists around the world already recognize its potential in helping fight the seemingly uphill battle against climate change. It can be used to make a wide variety of things from construction materials to paper, cotton, food, and more but it has such a high value for both the economy as well as the ecosystem.

Here’s how hemp can help fight climate change.

Hemp absorbs massive amounts of carbon dioxide

Carbon dioxide (CO2) emitted by industrial processes especially fossil fuels and livestock are one of the main culprits behind greenhouse gasses that are causing global warming. While plants are great at absorbing CO2, hemp has been shown to be so much efficient in absorbing carbon dioxide compared to other trees and plants.

A 2010 scientific report revealed that each ton of hemp is able to absorb as much as 1.63 tons of carbon dioxide. In addition, it can trap the gas and will store it for as long as hemp is alive. Isn’t that incredible? It’s also just so much more feasible to use hemp because the plant is capable of growing 13 feet in just 100 days, while it takes other newly planted tree species decades to mature.

Weed control is a problem as old as agriculture itself, but two projects from a Cornell AgriTech researcher aim to cultivate new methods for zapping the pesky plants, benefiting organic apple and grape growers and hemp producers in New York state and around the country.

Lynn Sosnoskie, assistant professor in the School of Integrative Plant Science, is collaborating on a $2 million project to study electric weed control in perennial fruit crops. She is also leading a $325,000 weed management study for hemp. Both studies are multi-institution, multistate undertakings that aim to provide growers with evidence-based, location-specific recommendations to suppress weeds and maximize yields.

Both projects began in September, will run for three years and are funded by the USDA’s National Institute for Food and Agriculture.

For the apple and grape study, Sosnoskie and collaborators at Oregon State University and the University of California-Davis, will test the performance, safety and economic and environmental sustainability of electric weed control in organic production. The organic product market topped $60 billion in 2020, and the largest market segment is fresh fruit.

Due to the nature of apple, grape and other perennial fruit plantings, crop rotation and intensive soil disturbance are not viable strategies for weed control. Organic herbicides and mulches can be expensive. Those factors led Sosnoskie and her colleagues to consider a novel weed control tool: electricity. The devices they will be testing essentially electrocute weeds by sending a jolt of electricity through the plant, damaging the plant’s cells and chlorophyll.