Cannabis for the Win

June 19, 2017
Matt Walstatter
Compliance and Regulations, News & Insights
2 Comments

The war to end cannabis prohibition rages on. Although we mark new progress daily, much work remains in the effort to liberate this particular plant. But the battle of ideas is over. On behalf of cannabis, I am formally declaring…

Legalization and normalization – A personal perspective

In my last column for CBE (https://cbetotal.wpengine.com/2017/05/when-abnormal-is-the-norm/), I wrote about the normalization of cannabis as it relates to operating a business in the cannabis industry. Today I want to address the same topic from a much more personal perspective. I…

When abnormal is the norm

May 22, 2017
Matt Walstatter
Compliance and Regulations, The Buck Stops Here
1 Comment

Sometimes working in cannabis leaves me feeling like I’m through the looking glass. It’s not just that my job is federally illegal, or that we now offer receipts for cannabis after generations of lurking in the shadows. Often the strangest…

New national poll results: Cannabis approval in U.S. at all-time high

Cannabis is hot! It’s sexy and exciting. There is constant news coverage of cannabis, so it must be important. We hear numbers like there was more than $6 billion in legal retail cannabis sales last year, so it’s clearly big business.…

Congressional Cannabis

In my last column, I reviewed the Trump administration’s treatment of cannabis. I would love to say that we discussed the administration’s cannabis policy, but that would imply that such a policy exists. What we saw instead was an incoherent…

Federal Cannabis Shenanigans

By Matt Walstatter The election of 2016 should have given cannabis proponents great cause to celebrate. Initiatives legalizing recreational cannabis prevailed in four of the five states where they were on the ballot. Medical cannabis triumphed in all four states…

Oregon Cannabis Association Lobby Day

March 21, 2017
Matt Walstatter
Oregon
1 Comment

By Matt Walstatter Once a year during the legislative session, members of the Oregon Cannabis Association (OCA) descend on the state capital in Salem for a lobby day. This is our opportunity to engage with lawmakers, discuss pending legislation and share…

Ch-Ch-Ch-CH-Changes

By Matt Walstatter One of the things we’re most proud of at Pure Green, my dispensary in Portland, Oregon, is our employee retention. When we celebrated our third anniversary last month, we still had four out of six original employees.…

Merchant Services in the Cannabis Industry

By Matt Walstatter When people ask me what it’s like to run a cannabis business, I often tell them that it’s a lot like running with ankle weights. We do all of the same things as any other business, but…

Converting from Medical to Recreational in the Retail Cannabis Space

January 11, 2017
Matt Walstatter
Retail
1 Comment

Oregon officially launched its OLCC-regulated recreational cannabis program last fall, and while some Oregon Liquor Control Commission (OLCC) licensees are new businesses, many have converted from the medical program. With most states enacting medical programs for years before adult use…

My Cannabis Holiday Wish List

2016 was a roller coaster year for Oregon’s cannabis community. We won some battles and suffered some major setbacks. We saw several new versions of the regulatory framework that governs our work. We nearly lost extracts and edibles in the…

Are You Kidding Me? Oregon’s Lab Testing Fiasco Continues

On October 1, the Oregon implemented new rules governing the laboratory analysis of cannabis products. The state had already mandated that all products be tested for potency, pesticide residue, water content, microbiological activity and (where applicable) residual solvents. The October…

Cannabis Wins, America Loses

The 2016 election has come and gone, and were it not for the election of one Donald J. Trump to the presidency, the headline would be the overwhelming victories of medical and recreational cannabis throughout the U.S. Four out of…

Oregon Laboratory Blues…What a Mess: Part 2

During October, I have been covering the changes to Oregon’s legal, regulated cannabis system. We discussed the slow rollout of the recreational system, as well as some significant changes to the medical rules. But the most disruptive change, the…

New Medical Rules in Oregon…What a Mess!

By Matt Walstatter My last article in CBE focused on the launch of Oregon’s Liquor Control Commission's (OLCC) regulated recreational cannabis system, which has proceeded in fits and starts. The Oregon Health Authority (OHA) simultaneously implemented new rules for the…

Cannabis for the Win

Legalization and normalization – A personal perspective

When abnormal is the norm

New national poll results: Cannabis approval in U.S. at all-time high

Congressional Cannabis

Federal Cannabis Shenanigans

Ch-Ch-Ch-CH-Changes

Merchant Services in the Cannabis Industry

Converting from Medical to Recreational in the Retail Cannabis Space

Are You Kidding Me? Oregon’s Lab Testing Fiasco Continues

Cannabis Wins, America Loses

Oregon Laboratory Blues…What a Mess: Part 2

New Medical Rules in Oregon…What a Mess!

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