Karma Koala Podcast

Once Cannabis Tourism Is A Thing It’s Effectively Something We Don’t Talk About” A few weeks back i noticed a post about cannabis tourism on Linked In. It got me thinking and i wrote an edtorial in the weekly Cannabis Law Report Newsletter with some thoughts. (See below) Thomas came back to me via Linked In disagreeing with my analysis so I invited him on to the Karma Koala podcast to clarify his and the CCTA’s view on what cannabis tourism is. Both on home ground in Canada and in other jurisdictions. The conversation is illuminating and it appears from the conversation that Thomas sees the notion of “Cannabis Tourism” as more of a means to an end in Canada and that in the final summation it is a way of explaining to both central and provincial government(s) that although “legal”, cannabis, is not as yet integrated into the wider Canadian economy, especially the hospitality industry and the agricultural sector. Should the cannabis sector reflect the alcohol industry? Should it be available at music concerts, sports stadiums and restaurants? We discuss these issues and more. We also discuss thought on other jurisdictions with different cultural mores, political systems and yes cultures. How should cannabis be presented, is cannabis tourism even within the realms of reality Have a listen to Thomas and see what you think. ⁠https://cannabislaw.report/karma-koala-podcast-345-thomas-oneill-canadian-cannabis-tourism-alliance-ccta-when-is-cannabis-tourism-not-tourism-or-is-it/⁠

Good as always to speak to Bob and especially as we are only 48 hours away from mid terms, only 40 days and nights in the desert (or thereabouts) from the lemminglike hemp cliff. We also chat quickly about what’s happening in Europe and a few other places around the world As always great catch up 2027. We need more clarity in the US, watch what happens in Brazil & Europe. Thanks Bob https://cannabislaw.report/karma-koala-podcast-344-bob-hoban-massachusetts-8-the-mid-terms-mcconnell-the-hemp-cliff-around-the-world-too/

First up, apologies for a couple of shaky internet drop outs Jason got in touch with some insights about the current state of the corporate cannabis market in the US. We talk about public vs private. The Rise of the Quiet MSO – The biggest trend says Jason Licensing Deals Royalty Models How are companies dealing with DC and the state legislatures ? California – over regulation. Local politics & regulations in California Distressed assets market Competition in the market A big thanks to Jason for spreading a bit of light and especially on the quiet achievers. ⁠https://cannabislaw.report/karma-koala-podcast-343-jason-wisniewski-fbfk-law-firm-california-whats-happening-in-the-corporate-cannabis-market-throughout-the-us/⁠

First up apologies for a couple of drop outs in the conversation. Indonesia – Ghana connection was a little patchy when we spoke – the rain has arrived in Jakarta! Dickson outlines what the Ghanaian government has legislated for. So far only two licenses have been issued, there are more on the way, but should they even be issued if the pathways haven’t been created to take product to market. He also highlights the series of complicated licensing issues that have been introduced and the fact that control lies with the Ministry of Interior not Health of Agriculture ! We discuss his work with the association and the launch of a new lawyers body to explore futher and move debates and analysis of the market forward. Now the Nigerians are getting in touch with him to find out how they are approaching things in Ghana Are we about to see a West Africa cannabis giant awaken. I wouldn’t get too excited but people like Dickson are asking the questions and suggesting solutions to manage administration. Thanks for taking time to talk to the Koalas ⁠https://cannabislaw.report/karma-koala-podcast-342-dickson-tweneboa-koduah-esq-barrister-at-law-and-solicitor-of-the-supreme-court-of-ghana-acting-for-legal-counsel-to-the-chamber-of-cannabis-industry/⁠

I came across Chris' latest findings via a report in the Independent this week in which he talks in the main about Spice related products but can also be applied to most "illegal" drugs synthetic or otherwise. TikTok returns 'no violation' decision on 95% of reports of UK-facing accounts advertising drugs, study finds Bath study finds that TikTok's in-app reporting system fails to act on most reports made against accounts advertising illegal drugs for sale to UK users. The vast majority of TikTok accounts identified by researchers as connecting drug sellers with potential buyers in the UK remained publicly accessible 14 days after being reported for suspected breaches of the platform’s rules on illegal drugs, according to a new study led by the University of Bath. The findings raise questions about how effectively social media platforms respond to reports of illegal activity and whether the safeguards envisaged under the Online Safety Act are working in practice. Chris's report makes for a great discussion and my apologies to Chris for rabbiting on a bit much but he has hit the nail on the head on a number of fronts, the rise of synthetics and the mega speed that they are being manufactured, marketed and sold in markets around the world with the major platforms, it appears, doing as little as possible to control the trade on their marketplaces whilst the politicians would rather.. Learn more at https://cannabislaw.report/karma-koala-podcast-341-professor-christopher-r-pudney-university-of-bath-uk-tiktok-returns-no-violation-decision-on-95-of-reports-of-uk-facing-accounts-advertising-drugs/

Karma Koala Podcast 340: Harold C. Smith, Ph.D. Founder and CEO Cannametrix , “The development of quantitative methods that determine full and broad spectrum cannabis products’ potencies relative to key cellular biomarkers” Over the years i’ve had many discussions on the podcast and many of them end up with the conclusion that testing (driving, medical, safety etc) and education operate in this space with a lot of guesswork rather than science. In terms of policy this has been a disaster. It’s people like Dr Smith who are beginning to combine knowledge, science and tech (yes including AI) to provide solutions to these issues that we still understand so little about. As he says.. Is this just malarky or something introduced to the cannabis indusrty by a scientist at the end of his days? No….. This is how all pharmaceutical drugs from Tylenol to everything else are looked at and it is a 3 legged stool, first chemical purity, then, what is the composition, the biological target that he drug acts on with high affinity and finally the third thing …..is it at that dose where it is maximally effective or is it toxic? And so…. those three things are what drive all drug discovery across the globe … Cannabis. has gone into regulations for fees and taxes and has ignored this, in fact most people want it to not happen because they are concerned that this will cost money. Learn more at https://cannabislaw.report/karma-koala-podcast-340-harold-c-smith-ph-d-founder-and-ceo-cannametrix-the-development-of-quantitative-methods-that-determine-full-and-broad-spectrum-cannabis-products-potencies-rela/

Having worked in the Maltese legislature and the for ARUC (The Authority for the Responsible Use of Cannabis) Karen is more than well placed to explain both how the regulatory system works and the reasons that Malta decided to approach cannabis use in this fashion. Rather than the US let's have "equity cannabis" as an afterthought to the always pressing question "How do we make lots of money" the Maltese have thought through the issues carefully and, like any model, it's not perfect but it does seem to be, in the main succeeding. If the likes of Australia and the UK are really interested in adult use cannabis there are plenty of elements in the Maltese system that make a lot of sense. Learn more ⁠https://cannabislaw.report/karma-koala-podcast-339-karen-mamo-maltas-regulated-cannabis-a-human-rights-inspired-model-founded-on-harm-reduction-principles/⁠

I thought it was time to have a quick chat with Rod as hemp races towards this latest deadline. If anybody has an insight it’s Rod. Have a close listen to what he says whatever side of the fence you fall. And yes we end up at One Plant as we should. Learn more at https://cannabislaw.report/karma-koala-podcast-338-rod-kight-the-hemp-train-is-getting-very-close-to-the-11-december-final-stop-whats-next-for-hemp/

It’s time to catch up with Brett & Marleen to see how the Mpondoland Plug Project is going a year + since we last spoke on the podcast. They are connecting rural communities to the new South African cannabis club scene under the law as it now stands in South Africa. There aren’t many projects like this in Africa or around the world for that matter so the model they are working on should be of interest to anyone looking to do things a little differently. Yes not controlling the means of production but rather guiding and being guided is harder but it already sounds as though it is more rewarding. If I’m in the US or Canada and Mpondoland sun grown cannabis was on offer at my local dispensary rather than fake Durban Poioson or blueberry this, bannana caramel that, I know what i’d be spending my hard earned cash on. https://cannabislaw.report/karma-koala-podcast-337-brett-pollack-marleen-theunissen-mpondoland-plug-project-connecting-rural-communities-into-south-africas-nascent-cannabis-market-under-law/

I speak to Chris about his book "The African Roots of Marijuana" and what he learnt from the research. The effects of colonialization and conservative Islam on attitudes towards cannabis from the 19th century through to mid 20th century and the subsequent internationalization of cannabis prohibition. As always with the cannabis plant there's layers of culture, complexity and diversity that we will be unravelling for many years to come. The big question. How do African nations create the structures for themselves and their people's future?

Business, or for that matter life, in the US doesn’t operate without credit reports. Cannabis needs it desperately so it’s good to see somebody taking the issue seriously. Kraig Fox I am the Founder and CEO of REKLAIM Credit Solutions, a commercial credit rating and reporting agency built specifically for the regulated cannabis industry. Cannabis runs on trade credit, but companies throughout the supply chain have historically extended millions of dollars in unsecured terms without access to the commercial credit intelligence available in virtually every other major industry. REKLAIM is being built to change that. We combine cannabis-specific accounts receivable and payment history, public records, regulatory data and predictive analytics to help businesses evaluate commercial credit risk before extending terms — including credit scores, suggested credit limits, credit reports and ongoing monitoring. My interest in the problem comes from both sides of the table. I have spent more than a decade as an investor, advisor and operator in cannabis and more than 30 years building, operating, financing and consolidating businesses. Earlier in my career I helped build companies that became part of iHeartMedia, Live Nation and Core Media. I subsequently held senior leadership and investment roles at Guggenheim Partners and Eldridge Industries and served as President and CEO of High Times. Across that career I have overseen more than 100 M&A transactions representing more than $10 billion in aggregate transaction value through six public-company platforms. More at https://cannabislaw.report/karma-koala-podcast-335-kraig-fox-reklaim-and-credit-reporting-for-cannabis-in-the-us-we-cant-keep-up-with-thd-phone-calls/

As the Curaleaf hostile gets ever more heated I thought let's get Avis up in the tree with the Koalas as he has a better sense of feeling about these things than most of the rest of us. First up, Avis alerted me to the fact that today Boris has invited all Aurora shareholders to this webcast to lay out his plans. Aurora shareholders can register for the live webcast hosted by Curaleaf Chairman and CEO Boris Jordan at grow.curaleaf . Webcast Details Date: Thursday, September 17, 2026 (Note: The user query mentioned September 18, but official releases specify September 17). Time: 10:30 a.m. ET Host: Boris Jordan, Chairman and CEO of Curaleaf Target Audience: Aurora Cannabis shareholders Offer Context The Bid: Curaleaf made an unsolicited offer to acquire Aurora Cannabis structured as 80% stock and 20% cash. Tender Deadline: Aurora shareholders must tender their shares before December 1, 2026. Action Required: Shareholders wishing to accept the offer should contact their broker or log in to their brokerage account to tender their shares. We also touch on some of the other bigger known names in the game in the US. Trulieve, Cookies, Glasshouse and also how at Siva he is now working with private companies and capital to create and build businesses who are looking at the long term. https://cannabislaw.report/karma-koala-podcast-333-avis-bulbulyan-siva-ca-the-curaleaf-aurora-hostile-takeover-it-is-a-smart-play-off-a-week-target-and-in-the-end-a-european-medical-market-play/

New titles about cannabis keep on coming and when i found out about.. Ganja Matters: Empire & the Pursuits of Cannabis in British India. I knew i had to speak to Dr. Utathya Chattopadhyaya. Learn More https://cannabislaw.report/karma-koala-podcast-333-dr-utathya-chattopadhyaya-assistant-professor-of-history-at-uni-of-california-santa-barbara-author-of-ganja-matters-empire-the-pursuits-of-cannabis-in-british-india/

To paraphrase the Lizard King The west is the best The west is the best Get here and we’ll do the rest The blue bus is calling us The blue bus is calling us Driver, where you taking us? It’s time for Steve to move from DC and embrace California’s somewhat more accepting. (if slow) understanding of the future of medical cannabis. Although, as always, the politicians were a little behind the 8 ball. “This is not medicine, this is a Cheech and Chong show.” General Barry McCaffrey (US Drug Czar) We discuss 1996 California Proposition 215 The birth of Harborside Harborside Health Center was founded in Oakland, California, in 2006 by cannabis activists and industry veterans Steve DeAngelo and Dress Wedding (along with Steve’s brother, Andrew DeAngelo) Founding and Early Innovation First Licenses: Harborside was granted one of the first six medical cannabis licenses issued in the United States. Industry Standards: It became the first dispensary in the country to require rigorous product testing for purity, potency, and pesticide-free quality, setting a gold standard for the modern legal market. Holistic Model: Operating originally as a non-profit, Harborside focused heavily on patient care, offering free holistic health services, counseling, and education for seniors, veterans, and families. At its peak, it was widely considered the largest and most influential cannabis dispensary in the world. Media Spotlight: The dispensary gained global fame as the central subject of the Discovery Channel reality television series Weed Wars in 2011. Steve also talks about run ins with the IRS as various agencies all pounded on the door for their pound of flesh Also see https://www.clm.com/code-%C2%A7280e-planning-observations-harborside-case-hinges-on-definition-of-consists-of/ https://www.taxnotes.com/research/federal/court-documents/court-opinions-and-orders/ninth-circuit-affirms-tax-court-on-dispensarys-inventory-costs/52h0c https://www.congress.gov/crs-product/R46709 https://cannabislaw.report/karma-koala-podcast-332-the-deangelo-chronicles-part-7-the-west-is-the-best/

I spoke to Same last year about the policy work he is doing with multiple jurisdictions in the Caribbean. He has now published the report "From the Code Noir to GACP/GMP: Cannabis and the New Colonial Economy" The Caribbean is dismantling prohibition. The harder task is ensuring that legal cannabis does not reproduce an older economic order in which the South grows the commodity while standards, capital, certification and value are controlled elsewhere. I n May 2026, France's National Assembly adopted at first reading a bill providing for the repeal of the Code Noir, the 1685 edict that helped organise slavery in France's American colonies. The measure is not yet final and remains in the parliamentary process. One detail of the debate, however, is revealing. The text uses the language of abrogation. An amendment proposed replacing that word with annulment. The distinction is not merely semantic. Abrogation removes a rule from the legal order. Nullity goes further by challenging its legal validity at the root. France used that stronger logic after the fall of the Vichy regime, including for measures that established or applied discrimination based on Jewish status. The amendment on the Code Noir was withdrawn, and the text retained the language of abrogation. [1][2][3] There is no moral or legal equivalence between the Code Noir and modern cannabis standards such as Good Agricultural and Collection Practice or Good Manufacturing Practice. GACP and GMP are quality systems. The Code Noir belonged to a legal order of slavery. Nor is there a direct legal genealogy connecting them. The comparison is narrower and more useful. A society can remove a rule without necessarily dismantling the economic structures and relationships of power that developed around it. That question matters for cannabis reform. Caribbean governments are gradually removing prohibition, creating regulators and writing the rules of legal markets. But ending criminalisation does not decide who will own the industry that replaces it, who will define quality, who will finance compliance or where the highest-value parts of the value chain will sit. The plant can become legal while its value chain remains externally controlled. That is the new colonial question. We speak about the work he is doing with regulators throughout the region as well as the report and his websites including the International Society of Cannabis Same is a prominent commentator and strategist who tracks the development of legal cannabis frameworks, market infrastructure, and regulatory rollouts across the region https://cannabislaw.report/karma-koala-podcast-331-same-francis-the-caribbean-new-report-from-the-code-noir-to-gacp-gmp-cannabis-and-the-new-colonial-economy/