Author: Benjamin M. Adams

[ad_1] A new report reveals the cities in Europe with the highest concentrations of cannabis and cocaine use, based on sewage surveys. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Dutch cities including Amsterdam and Rotterdam took home some of the top spots for the cities with the highest concentrations of cocaine and cannabis use, respectively, and ranked high in several other categories.  Spanning the course of a week during spring 2023, a team of researchers tested the water in sewage treatment plants in 88 cities in 24 European countries, NL Times reports. The study was conducted by researchers associated with the European Monitoring Center for…

[ad_1] The Utah Senate and House unanimously approved a bill that would establish a pilot program for hospitals to administer psilocybin and MDMA as alternative treatment, sending it to the governor. A bill introduced by Senate Majority Whip Kirk Cullimore (R) and House Speaker Pro Tempore James Dunnigan (R), earlier this month, Senate Bill 266, would create a pilot program to explore psilocybin and MDMA as alternative treatments in hospitals in Utah. The bill was sent to the desk of Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R) this week where it awaits his signature. Since hospitals and universities generally default to federal…

[ad_1] Minnesota’s Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) announced Tuesday that it will begin to crack down on the illegal sales of cannabis flower across Minnesota as the state’s adult-use market takes form. The Star-Tribune reports that the OCM entered into an agreement with the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) to add inspection capacity for illegal sales of cannabis flower. Minnesota is the 23rd state in the nation to legalize adult-use cannabis for people 21 and older. In doing so, the state also legalized the sale of hemp-derived cannabinoid consumer products, a unique provision, but selling raw cannabis flower is currently…

[ad_1] Connecticut’s Department of Consumer Protection (DCP) published a new dataset, showing the price per gram of “usable cannabis” sold in the state’s adult-use cannabis and medical marijuana markets, according to a March 11 press release.  The dataset’s category “usable cannabis” essentially means flower and includes raw flower in whole, ground, or pre-rolled form, without additional extracted materials. Currently, a gram of cannabis in California is hovering around $12 per gram, which is slightly up from years prior. The Register Citizen reports that the average price per gram of cannabis in Connecticut has increased steadily for months since October 2023,…

[ad_1] The hemp-derived fiber market is growing exponentially. The Business Research Company, a global market research and consulting firm located across the globe, updated its reports with latest data on hemp fiber for 2024 and projections up to 2033, and the projections look promising. The Business Research Company’s “Hemp Fiber Global Market Report 2024” was published on March 8 and provides a comprehensive source of information that covers every facet of the market. According to the TBRC’s market forecast, the hemp fiber market size is predicted to reach $50.38 billion in 2028 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of…

[ad_1] President Joe Biden issued his State of the Union address on Thursday, March 7, and among many topics, he said he’ll direct his Cabinet to consider reclassifying cannabis at the federal level. It’s the first time that a president of the United States addressed cannabis reform as part of his State of the Union address. “Keep building public trust, as I’ve been doing by taking executive action on police reform, and calling for it to be the law of the land, directing my Cabinet to review the federal classification of marijuana, and expunging thousands of convictions  for mere possession,…

[ad_1] Jason Harris founded Jerome Baker Designs Inc. (JBD) in Eugene, Oregon, in 1991. As a dyed-in-the-wool deadhead with THC pumping through his veins, he chose Jerry Garcia’s first name, Jerome, and a last name, Baker, to denote “baked” as his pseudonym, fearing repercussions from cops. Through the years, he elevated the form of functional glass art, incorporating innovations along the way, such as fuming glass with fine silver to create a mirror effect and manipulating blown glass into complex art. The JBD seal became a symbol of quality. But, despite his efforts to stay off the radar of police,…

[ad_1] Two recent conferences in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), located in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, celebrated advancing discussions about psychedelic-assisted therapy in the country, with notable speakers ranging from Rick Doblin, PhD of The Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) to Jesse Gould of Heroic Hearts Project, according to a March 6 press release. Discussions ranged on topics from MDMA-assisted therapy to ketamine, psilocybin, and more. The country’s strict intolerance of drugs is transforming, with recently reduced penalties and a growing number of efforts to introduce psychedelic-assisted therapy. Major changes are taking place in the country as drug laws…

[ad_1] Travis and Jason Kelce—probably the most famous brothers to play recently in the NFL—discussed how weed-related suspensions can haunt players for years to come in a recent podcast. But for Travis it changed the course of his career, sending him on a path as a tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs. In a recent podcast New Heights with Jason & Travis Kelce, they discussed the year-long suspension that haunted Travis after he tested positive for THC in 2010 while playing for when Travis played college football for the University of Cincinnati Bearcats. In 2013, the Dallas Cowboys passed…

[ad_1] The majority of Americans now live in a state that has legalized adult-use or medical cannabis, a new Pew Research Center analysis indicates. In addition, nearly 80% of U.S. residents also have at least one cannabis dispensary in their county. “According to our analysis, 74% of Americans live in a state where marijuana is legal for either recreational or medical use,” Caleb Keller, a communications assistant with Pew Research Center told High Times. “Our analysis finds that around three-quarters of all dispensaries in the country are in states that have legalized the recreational use of marijuana,” the Pew Research…

[ad_1] It’s open season for flagrant ads to sell illegal drugs like psilocybin, LSD, and other drugs, as Meta works to improve its algorithms to filter illegal content. Because content is being filtered by algorithms, not human beings, sometimes the wrong content—i.e. educational cannabis material—gets taken down while brazen ads to sell drugs remain up. Some journalists are fed up with the double standard. A Canadian reporter said he was able to get an ad for LSD approved on Facebook, leading a Meta employee to finally remove the ad after the reporter reached out for comment. The National Post reports…

[ad_1] A man who stormed the U.S. Capitol building on Jan. 6, 2021, and smoked weed on top of broken furniture in Sen. Jeffrey Merkley’s (D-Oregon) office was sentenced to 3.5 years in prison on Thursday.  The Department of Justice (DOJ) issued a press release on Leap Day, Feb. 29, describing the man’s sentences. Brandon Craig Fellows, 29, of Schenectady, New York, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Trevor N. McFadden to 37 months in prison, plus an additional five months for a contempt of court charge. In total, Fellows was sentenced to 42 months. Many people heeded the call…