Tag: cannabis

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Twitter to begin allowing cannabis companies to advertise freely

Elon Musk thinks 4/20 is funny.

This makes it not much of a surprise to hear that Twitter will begin allowing cannabis companies to advertise freely on the platform, as confirmed in a recent press release.

This guideline change comes after Twitter became the first major platform to allow cannabis advertisements earlier this year. Previously, the company was prohibited from showing weed products in its ads or promoting the sale of any cannabis products. They could, however, link ads to websites selling the products.

The press release goes on to say that companies “may also continue responsibly linking to their owned and operated web pages and e-commerce experiences for CBD, THC, and cannabis-related products and services.” The site also made changes for medical licensees and opened up additional recreational markets.

Twitter may now have a leg up on other sites like Google and Meta that still prohibit ads related to cannabis and cannabis-related products.

Musk is no stranger to cannabis culture, both by indulging himself on Joe Rogan’s podcast (although we’re pretty sure that was a one-time thing) or through multiple jokes throughout his many companies.

The CEO even set 4/20 as the date to remove legacy blue checks for users on Twitter and test the launch of SpaceX’s Starship and Super Heavy rocket.

It looks like cannabis ads on Twitter may be the greenest Musk sees after the CEO lost billions in his net worth after a hectic 24 hours this month.

Source: Twitter Via: Wion

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Mobile Syrup

British Columbians can now order cannabis for delivery through Uber Eats

Starting on April 18th, Uber Eats Canada will offer cannabis for delivery in British Columbia, just six months after allowing deliveries in Ontario.

A new partnership between Uber Eats Canada and Leafly will allow BC residents of legal age (19+) to place orders for local and licensed cannabis retailers through the Uber Eats app.

The move signals the company’s expansion for cannabis deliveries after allowing Ontario to do the same in October of 2022.

The process of ordering cannabis through Uber Eats is made simple and features just a few steps. Users will have to confirm their age to find a supported shop and place an order from a shop within a distance. The order will be delivered by a licensed cannabis retailer’s provincially certified staff, and once it arrives, the customer’s age and sobriety will be verified as required.

A list of the current participating cannabis retailers for Uber Eats in Vancouver can be found below:

  • Sea to Sky
  • Original Farm Cannabis
  • AR Cannabis
  • North Shore Cannabis
  • 4Twenty Cannabis
  • Queensborough Cannabis
  • Leisure For Cannabis

Ideally, Uber Eats will continue to spread cannabis delivery options across the country not that it’s available in Ontario and British Columbia. Maybe the company will also pick up on the potential combination of delivering munchies alongside cannabis via special offers?

Uber Eats is available on iOS and Android.

Via: iPhone in Canada

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Mobile Syrup

Skullcandy release limited edition cannabis themed earbuds

Audio company Skullcandy has released its limited edition Grind Haze True Wireless Earbuds in an effort to, as the name suggests, celebrate cannabis culture.

Inspired by the Indica-dominant Purple Haze strain (and maybe the Jimi Hendrix track,) the earbuds feature a silvery sage green colourway with subtle purple and orange highlights that look exactly what you’d expect your local budtender to be wearing when listening to tunes.

The rustic look is accented by a soft and fuzzy textured feel and a smoked grey charging case.

Functionality-wise, the earbuds house features such as the brand’s Skull-iQ technology that allows users to hands-free voice commands to change songs, answer calls and more. They also boast compatibility with the Skullcandy app for updates, personalizable audio settings and a 40-hour battery life with the included charging case.

The Grind HAZE True Wireless Earbuds are available now, just in time for April 20th, and can be purchased on Skullcandy’s website for around $124.29 after tax.

Image credit: Skullcandy

Source: Skullcandy

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Mobile Syrup

Uber Eats can now bring Torontonians weed and munchies

We’ve come a long way from buying weed from a guy in a 1994 Honda Civic in the parking lot of No Frills.

Toronto residents can now order cannabis products directly to their door via Uber Eats. This is the first time marijuana has been available to order in the province through a third-party delivery service. At launch, three cannabis retailers will be available on Uber Eats: Hidden Leaf Cannabis, Minerva Cannabis and Shivaa’s Rose.

“We are partnering with industry leaders like Leafly to help retailers offer safe, convenient options for people in Toronto to purchase legal cannabis for delivery to their homes, which will help combat the illegal market and help reduce impaired driving,” said Lola Kassim, the general manager of Uber Eats Canada in a statement.

To make the order, Uber Eats app users need to select the ‘Cannabis’ category. After selecting a retailer, a warning that you must be of legal age appears, followed by a menu of different marijuana products. After selecting your weed, the process is similar to a standard Uber Eats order. You’re notified when the retailer accepts your order and are given an estimated delivery time. And, of course, when the order arrives, the delivery person verifies the buyer’s age.

It’s unclear how much of a cut Uber takes of cannabis sales made through its app. The service typically earns a 20 to 30 percent commission on restaurant orders. The app also offers deliveries of products from Indigo Books, Dollarama, the Body Shop and several grocery stores.

According to a press release focused on the announcement, nearly 57 percent of cannabis purchases in Ontario between the start of January and the end of March were purchased through legal channels, leaving a large swath of weed still coming from the black market.

However, the results of this Statistics Canada survey are likely a little skewed given that those who purchase weed from illicit sources probably aren’t fond of telling the government about their illegal weed-purchasing habits.

This partnership with Uber Eats is an attempt by Ontario’s government to push back against the illicit marijuana market with a faster and more convenient delivery option than what the Ontario Cannabis Store (OCS) currently offers.

Uber Eats is available on iOS and Android.

Source: PR Newswire

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Mobile Syrup

OCS says weed shops to receive deliveries following cyberattack

Ontario’s Cannabis Store (OCS), the provincial government-run retailer that operates its own store and also sells marijuana products to pot shops in the province, says that deliveries will soon start making their way to pot shops.

The OCS announced on Monday, August 15th, that one of its third-party logistics partners suffered a cyberattack, forcing the company to cap the number of cannabis products retailers can order to 30 packs per product and to delay orders. The cyberattack on Domain Logistics occurred on August 5th.

The OCS says that a third-party forensic investigation determined that no customer data was compromised by the cyberattack.

This limitation resulted in several weed stores across the province to be without pot deliveries for roughly a week. According to The Canadian Press, the OCS has told pot shops that delivery hours will be extended and that the order size limitation aims to ensure standard delivery sizes and timing return as quickly as possible.

“Our focus is now on working our way through the backlog of wholesale orders and getting trucks on the road delivering to Ontario’s authorized retailers who count on us,” said OCS CEO David Lobo in a statement.

The OCS says that deliveries should start arriving in the next few days.

Source: The Canadian Press (City News)

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Canadian-made cannabis growing device company Grobo declares bankruptcy

Grobo is dead.

According to several reports and a Linkedin post from Bjorn Dawson, the company’s CEO and co-founder, Waterloo-based cannabis growing device startup Grobo has gone out of business after declaring bankruptcy in early January.

The Business Development Bank of Canada now owns the company’s assets and it’s unclear what the future holds for current Grobo users.

As of right now, the servers powering the company’s automated growth system remain online, however. That said, there are reports of Grobo Grow Box 2nd-generation buyers not receiving their devices and being forced to perform chargebacks on their credit cards. Grobo sold its grow devices in the U.S. and Canada.

Grobo’s ‘AllGrowers’ online forum community also recently briefly went offline before being revived by a group of dedicated users. Further, all Grobo products are out of stock on the company’s website.

I tested out a Grobo for a few months a couple of years ago and was very impressed with the experience, though I cited its high price tag as a significant barrier. The original Grobo launched for $3,214, though the company eventually started selling cheaper alternatives. There was the Click & Grow-like $99 USD (about $123 CAD) Grobo Start and the $1,999 USD (roughly $2,502) Grobo Grow Box Gen 2, which required assembly, unlike the original version of the Grobo

Despite a significant amount of hype and even an appearance on Dragons’ Den, it’s likely that with the legalization of cannabis across Canada, the need for an all-in-one, at-home growing devices like the Grobo dropped dramatically amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Source: Reddit ‘Kaleidoscope1618,’ (1) ‘Bupperz’

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UBC study indicates more Canadians are driving high following cannabis legalization

A study from the University of British Columbia (UBC) published in the New England Journal of Medicine (via Complex) indicates that more Canadians are driving after using cannabis than before it was legalized.

Researchers analyzed blood samples from 4,339 moderately injured drivers treated at four B.C. trauma centres between 2013 and 2020. They detected THC in the blood of twice as many injured drivers following legalization. Specifically, 3.8 percent of drivers had blood THC concentrations above the Canadian legal driving limit of 2 nanograms/ml before legalization. After, that percentage rose to 8.6.

Moreover, the proportion of drivers with higher concentrations of THC (above five nanograms/ml) rose from 1.1 percent to 3.5 percent after legalization.

“It’s concerning that we’re seeing such a dramatic increase,” said Dr. Jeffrey Brubacher, associate professor in UBC’s department of emergency medicine and the primary researcher of the study. “There are serious risks associated with driving after cannabis use. Our findings suggest more is needed to deter this dangerous behaviour in light of legalization.”

Interestingly, the study found that the most significant increase was among drivers over the age of 50. Further, the study didn’t find any substantial changes in drivers testing positive for alcohol, either independently or in combination with THC.

Dr. Brubacher said that he hopes policymakers will use the findings to create public information campaigns and enforcement measures to encourage drivers, especially older ones, not to use cannabis and drive.

According to UBC, blood THC levels typically peak at upwards of 100 nanograms/ml within 15 minutes of smoking cannabis. However, those levels can drop to less than two nanograms/ml within four hours after smoking. When ingesting edible forms of THC, levels can drop similarly after eight hours.

With that in mind, Dr. Brubacher cautioned that THC in the blood doesn’t always indicate a collision was caused by impairment. In a previous study, Dr. Brubacher and his team found little evidence showing THC concentrations below five nanograms/ml increase the risk of motor vehicle accidents, while levels above that do increase the risk.

“Detecting cannabis, especially at low concentrations, doesn’t necessarily mean a driver is impaired. But the risk is real with higher THC levels, which is why it’s so important that we continue to assess and respond to the impact that legalization is having on road safety,” Dr. Brubacher said.

Next, Dr. Brubacher’s team will expand research to fifteen trauma centres across Canada to investigate the prevalence of cannabis, alcohol and other impairing substances in injured drivers. The team hopes to shed more light on the issues of impaired driving and help guide national and provincial traffic policy.

Those interested can read the full study here.

Source: New England Journal of Medicine Via: UBC, Complex

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Mobile Syrup

Uber Eats now offers cannabis products

Ontario residents can now place a pickup order for their favourite cannabis products from Tokyo Smoke through the Uber Eats app.

The two organizations entered a partnership that went into effect Monday. Uber Eats users can now access a new, dedicated, section on the app that allows them to select products from the Tokyo Smokes flower collection and a range of accessories. The retailer has 56 locations across the province, according to its website. All orders are completed within an hour of being placed.

“We are partnering with industry leaders like Tokyo Smoke to offer safe, convenient options for people in Ontario to purchase legal cannabis,” Lola Kassim, general manager of Uber Eats Canada, said in a press release.”By combining a streamlined ordering process through the Uber Eats app with Tokyo Smoke’s in-person pickup service, we’re creating a new end-to-end experience for responsible cannabis ordering across the province.”

The underground illegal cannabis market continues to be an issue in Canada, and the companies say a partnership like this can help combat that. According to Stats Canada, the underground market accounts for 40 percent of all nonmedical cannabis sales.

Here’s how it works:

Step 1: Log onto the Uber Eats apps and select the cannabis category or search for Tokyo Smoke. A warning will come up asking the user to confirm their age.

Step 2: Once the age is confirmed, users will be able to select what products they would like to place for pick up.

Step 3: Place your order and head over to the selected store where an employee will check identification and fulfill the order.

Uber Eats’ app is available on iOS and Android.

Source: Uber Eats

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Mobile Syrup

Ontario will permanently allow privately-owned cannabis shops to offer delivery, pickup options

The Ontario government says it will allow private cannabis shops to offer delivery and curbside pickup.

This comes as part of a bill introduced in the legislature that aims to reduce the rules surrounding private cannabis sellers in the province. Cannabis stores in Ontario have been allowed to offer delivery and pick up during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Previously, only the province’s Ontario Cannabis Store (OCS) was able to offer delivery.

Government officials say that making these options permanent will allow cannabis stores to maintain physical distancing and other public health measures.

This proposed legislation also includes fast-tracking of applications for patio spaces and bettering the virtual government portals.

Source: The Canadian Press 

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Study finds algorithm can use smartphone sensor data to detect cannabis use

Researchers from Rutgers University in New Jersey say they can use smartphone data and machine learning to detect cannabis intoxication.

The project started as a proof-of-concept way to passively detect cannabis use rather than rely on existing testing measures like blood, urine or saliva tests. The researchers published their findings in the Drug and Alcohol Dependence journal (via CTV News).

The study involved an experiment with 57 young adults who reported using cannabis at least twice a week. Researchers asked participants to complete three surveys a day over 30 days. The survey asked about how high participants felt at a given time, when they had last used cannabis and the quantity consumed. Participants reported a total of 451 episodes of cannabis use.

Additionally, researchers asked participants to download a smartphone app that analyzed GPS data, phone logs, accelerometer data and other smartphone sensor data and usage statistics.

The researchers found that when looking at the time of day, a machine learning algorithm could detect an episode of cannabis use with 60 percent accuracy. With just the smartphone data, the algorithm had an accuracy of 67 percent.

But with both time-of-day data and sensor data combined, the algorithm accurately predicted cannabis use with 90 percent accuracy.

The researchers said that GPS and accelerometer sensor data were the most important in detecting cannabis use — the study found that participants didn’t travel as far while high, while the accelerometer could be used to measure body movements.

While certainly interesting results, there could be potential concerns with applying the algorithm in real-world scenarios. For example, bias in the algorithm (unintentional or otherwise) could skew results. Another problem could be the accuracy — 90 percent is impressive, but if you fall in the 10 percent where the algorithm gets it wrong, that could cause problems.

The researchers say that this is the first study to examine how smartphone sensors could help detect cannabis intoxication. However, some of the researchers were involved in a similar 2018 study that investigated if smartphone data could be used to detect heavy drinking episodes.

Source: Drug and Alcohol Dependence Via: CTV News