NEW YORK – As the cannabis industry continues growing, associations about the plant’s use are rapidly beginning to change. Additionally, the way people consuming cannabis is also changing.

While not as grand, cannabis flower sales still account for a large portion of total overall sales for most regions. For instance, Colorado was one of the first regions to fully legalize adult-use cannabis and during the first year of legalization in 2014, the state reported that flower controlled 67% of all cannabis sales. By 2018, Colorado witnessed its flower sales dwindle to 44%.

However, during the same period, the market share of concentrates and extracts closed the gap, accounting for 31% of sales compared to 15% in 2014. And while the cannabis concentrate and extract market is rapidly becoming popular among consumers, other notable products such as tinctures, topicals, and edibles are also gaining a reputation.

Specifically, these products are becoming more popular within the CBD marketplace because consumers are seeking new, innovative health and wellness products and are often part of the anti-pharma trend. As such, CBD-based tinctures dominate the market, driving 25% of sales.

On the other hand, tinctures are slowly losing their market share as more consumer-friendly products enter the marketplace; topicals (17% of the market) and skincare & beauty products (8%) have quickly become popular among mass retailers, pushing them into mainstream markets and into the eyes of consumers. And according to data compiled by Brightfield Group, the U.S. hemp-derived CBD market is expected to reach $23.7 billion through 2023.

Many consumers set their sights on CBD after the U.S. passed the 2018 Farm Bill, which legalized hemp. To note, CBD is a compound derived from the hemp plant, which falls under the broader cannabis family. Similarly, marijuana is also under the cannabis family, but unlike hemp, marijuana induces psychoactive effects because of its main active compound: THC.

The passage of the Farm Bill also legalized the commercialization of CBD and shortly after, CBD products began to appear throughout retailers across the nation. At first, many people did not understand CBD and its effects, with most typically assuming that CBD had the same effects as THC.

The misconception ultimately led researchers to conduct a plethora of clinical trials to debunk the misinformation regarding CBD. And after these extensive clinical trials, researchers concluded that CBD does not stimulate psychotropic properties, but instead offers highly beneficial therapeutic effects.

Now, CBD is used to alleviate minor conditions such as headaches, but researchers have highlighted that CBD can also be used to treat symptoms associated with chronic medical conditions such as cancer.

Nevertheless, most consumers are generally trying CBD to alleviate minor conditions without going through the hassle of obtaining a prescription. And the growing popularity of these products led to innovative new offerings such as CBD chewing gum, shampoo, coffee, fitness nutrition and deodorant. As such, industry experts believe that these products will continue to be integrated into mainstream marketplaces, tapping deeper into consumer demands.

“It is certainly growing,” said Goldleaf Founder Charles McElroy. “Because CBD products boast no intoxicating effects and lots of medical potential, many people are getting involved all over the country, especially in states where cannabis is still illicit. It’s a good way to get your foot in the door in a growing industry. “While I know it to be a wonderful product, currently there’s a race to grab market share in a space quickly becoming oversaturated.”

Smart Decision Inc. earlier this month announced that it has signed a letter of intent with HempAmericana Inc., a visionary in the CBD space.

“We’re excited to have the opportunity to work with HempAmericana,” said Smart Decision CEO Adam Green said. “Their operations and CBD manufacturing process are both unique and truly impressive. HempAmericana’s CEO, Sal Rosillo, is a visionary in both the Cannabis and CBD space.”

Green said that CBDSmartDecision.com will be the first company that HempAmericana Inc. grants permission to recommend their product range on the affiliate level. He encourages potential customers to view their products on the CBDsmartdecision.com site: https://cbdsmartdecision.com.

Terms of the deal are not being disclosed at this time.

The growing awareness of cannabidiol or CBD’s health benefits has pushed the market into mainstream retail. CBD is known for its multi-faceted uses such as its ability to alleviate minor conditions like headaches.

However, CBD can also be used to treat serious symptoms associated with medical conditions such as cancer, epilepsy, and multiple sclerosis. Moreover, researchers have mentioned that CBD helps with quitting smoking and also mitigates the withdrawal symptoms.

Many see legalizing CBD as yet another step to potentially fully legalizing cannabis. According to data compiled by Technavio, the global CBD market is expected to accelerate at a CAGR of 31% during the forecast period from 2018 to 2022.

Smart Decision has researched and is developing algorithms for the consumer and business LED Lighting and CBD markets. With their patent-pending Smart Decision algorithms, the confusion of selecting the right product(s), whether for LED or CBD, will be significantly reduced. Ultimately, Smart Decision Inc. believes that selecting the right product the first time, dramatically cuts down on product returns and creates a positive purchasing experience for the consumer.

Colorado-based New Age Beverages Corp. is a healthy products company dedicated to inspiring and educating consumers to “live healthy.” New Age Beverages recently announced the approval by the Japanese Narcotics Control Division and the Japanese Ministry of Health for its CBD products in Japan and the company’s subsequent launch into the market effective immediately.

New Age is the first major company to gain approval by the Japanese Ministry of Health and Narcotics Control Division to sell its portfolio of CBD products in that nation. New Age created a separate, wholly-owned subsidiary in 2018 under which it commercializes all of its CBD-infused products, including its line of Marley CBD-Infused Beverages and its portfolio of ‘Nhanced creams, oils and roll-ons, and the forthcoming Noni+CBD product.

The products will be sold through more than 50,000 direct-to-consumer product consultants in Japan.

“We believe we have one of the highest quality CBD portfolios worldwide and have leveraged all of our scientific insights and research and development expertise to develop these superior performing and highly efficacious products,” said Fumiyuki Isami, New Age’s senior director in Japan. “We have been working intensively with the Japanese Narcotics Control Division and the Ministry of Health for the past eight months to meet all of their stringent testing and requirements.”

MedMen Enterprises Inc., founded in 2010, is North America’s premium cannabis retailer. MedMen recently announced the opening of two new locations in the state of Florida, in central Orlando and Tallahassee. The company now has seven operational stores in Florida, with five additional store openings in the state planned for the remainder of the calendar year. MedMen Enterprises is licensed for 35 retail locations in the state.

MedMen Buds, the company’s new loyalty program, will be available to all patients at these locations. In addition, MedMen’s fully owned and operated, same-day delivery platform, which currently services California and Nevada, will be available to Florida patients soon.

Together with loyalty and delivery, the company’s new store locations align with MedMen’s national retail strategy of providing an industry-leading, omni-channel experience to all consumers.

In addition to expanding its retail footprint, MedMen remains one of the lead supporters of the recently launched constitutional amendment campaign to bring safe, regulated and legal cannabis for adults 21 years and older in the state of Florida. The campaign committee “Make it Legal Florida” is chaired by MedMen’s own Vice President of Government Affairs Nick Hansen.

Emerald Health Therapeutics Inc. is a Canadian licensed producer of cannabis products focused on differentiated, value-added product development for medical and adult-use customers, supported by novel intellectual property, large-scale cultivation, extraction and softgel encapsulation, as well as unique marketing and distribution channels.

Emerald Health Therapeutics recently signed an agreement to become a new supplier to Stenocare A/S of medical cannabis for Denmark and Stenocare’s international markets. Since early September 2019, Emerald and Stenocare have worked closely together to pre-qualify Emerald’s products and production methods.

Stenocare and Emerald will now commence the work with the Danish Medicines Agency to have Emerald’s products ready and approved for the Danish Medical Cannabis Pilot Programme. The companies are aiming for product approval for CBD oil, THC oil and CBD+THC oil. The partnership is also intended to extend to Stenocare’s Irish subsidiary and to additional markets which are being evaluated.

“We respect Stenocare’s professionalism and their accomplishment in establishing leading distribution channels for medical cannabis in Denmark,” said Emerald CEO Riaz Bandali. “We also appreciate their trust in Emerald’s capability’s and standards as they transition to new preferred supplier relationships. As Emerald ramps up production at its two recently fully-licensed production facilities, we look forward to fulfilling our commitment to Stenocare and helping them to serve Danish patients.”

Terra Tech Corp. operates through multiple subsidiary businesses including: Blüm, IVXX Inc., Edible Garden, and MediFarm LLC. Terra Tech Corp and OneQor Pharmaceutical, a privately held, over-the-counter (OTC) pharmaceutical company focused on developing, patenting, and delivering proprietary, plant-derived formulations in order to provide consumers with safer, more effective OTC solutions.

Terra Tech recently announced that the two companies have entered into an agreement and plan of merger pursuant to which OneQor will merge with a wholly-owned subsidiary of Terra Tech in an all-stock transaction.

The combined company will focus principally on emerging pharmaceutical development opportunities for OneQor, while the operation of Terra Tech’s portfolio of THC and agricultural related assets is expected to continue in the short-term.

The combined company wants to be listed on a national securities exchange and intends to weigh several strategic options for the legacy Terra Tech business segments that may include a spin-off, special dividend, merger or potential sale among other accretive transactions.