Category: Marijuana

The last thing most business owners want is to be taxed and regulated, but hemp business owners are asking for just that — as a way to keep their industry alive. Hemp entrepreneurs came out Tuesday in favor of a proposal to license hemp sales, require testing and labeling of their products, prohibit products that look like well-known snack brands, and limit sales to those 21 and over. The bill also would impose taxes on the products. That proposal stands in contrast with a bill backed by the Cannabis Business Association of Illinois, which would prohibit sales of hemp-derived intoxicating […]

Cannabis company owners in Illinois welcomed the news Tuesday that the federal government is expected to reclassify marijuana as a drug with medicinal value and lower potential for abuse. The Associated Press reported that the Drug Enforcement Administration will move to reclassify marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III. Rather than continuing to classify cannabis with much stronger drugs like heroin and LSD, the move would put pot in the same class with certain prescription drugs like codeine, ketamine, steroids, and testosterone. The change will not be immediately noticeable to most consumers in Illinois, where medical and recreational use already […]

At a recent wedding reception in Chicago, guests gathered to toast the newlyweds at the bar. Glasses were lined up in front of them, but no alcohol was poured. Instead, marijuana vapor was pumped into the upside-down glasses, which were then lifted and inhaled in unison. “A lot of people were surprised,” bride Aja Heinlein said. “They didn’t even know that was something they could do.” In the new world of cannabis, consumption at private events like weddings, holiday parties and corporate events is becoming more common. The state law that legalized recreational use of marijuana for adults 21 and […]

Lawmakers joined the licensed cannabis industry Thursday in calling for a ban on intoxicating hemp products like Delta-8-THC, the retailers of which said would put them out of business. The Cannabis Business Association of Illinois, which represents large licensed marijuana companies, called for allowing regulated sales of non-intoxicating hemp products like CBD, but prohibiting sales of intoxicants until a committee can recommend how to proceed. Tiffany Ingram, executive director of the association, called syntehtically-derived cannabinoids like Delta-8 and THC-O  “Frankenstein weed.” Hemp is the same cannabis plant that makes marijuana, but by law is supposed to have less than .3% […]