Welcome to Senior Cannabis Digest. This week we look at a queso recipe that contains CBD, how to avoid that cough when smoking cannabis, an ETF that’s focused on cannabis stocks and more. Enjoy.
CBD and Edibles
CBD and queso, a dipping sauce of melted cheese and chopped chili peppers that’s a key ingredient in many Mexican dishes, go together, like chips and salsa—only with a little something extra.
So says Taylor Prewitt in an article she wrote for Texas Monthly. Hewitt describes tracking down a recipe she heard of that combines the classic queso from Trudy’s, a Tex-Mex restaurant that’s been an Austin institution since 1977, with a mood-altering extract from Austin-based hemp company Earlybird CBD.
According to Prewitt, the CBD queso dish was originally meant to be offered as a limited-edition special. However, the menu item has been “postponed,” according to Earlybird CMO Erik Culver. We suspect the fact that the practice of adding CBD to food is still under review by the FDA might have something to do with the postponement.
Undaunted, Prewitt forged ahead and decided to make her own version of the dish. Since the original recipe as provided by Earlybird, would yield five pounds of queso, Prewitt decided to trim down the recipe. Aided by her roommate, described as a knowledgeable queso consumer, Prewitt and her accomplice ladled the finished queso on chips, on tacos, and eventually succumbed to just digging into the CBD and molten cheese combo with a spoon. In her article she describes how she ended up shoveling hot cheese sauce into her mouth “past the point of satiation.”
Her CBD and queso fest, said Hewitt, left her with a “baby buzz characterized by a big grin and an easy laugh.” She added, “the high wasn’t too much or not enough. It was just right.”
To learn more—and for a copy of the recipe—we encourage you to read Taylor Prewitt’s very entertaining article in the September 30, 2021 issue of Texas Monthly. Special thanks to our friend Desiree Day for sending the article our way.
www.texasmonthly.com/food/cbd-queso-recipe-trudys/
Stats of the Week
This week’s first magic number, $997 million, provides ample evidence that if you legalize it, they will come. The $997 million—as in just shy of a billion—is the amount consumers in Illinois have spent on recreational cannabis so far this year—and there are three months left to 2021.
It’s not the first time we have covered sales figures in Illinois and we continue to find them intriguing, mostly because they demonstrate how quickly a new market for recreational cannabis can take off. In addition, as an article in MJ Biz Daily points out, the $997 million figure does not include the state’s medical marijuana sales figures, which we suspect are equally robust. While the state does not release medical marijuana sales figures, The Chicago Tribune recently reported that the number of patients signed up for medical cannabis grew by 30 percent in the past year.
To learn more, we suggest you read the article that appeared in the October 6, 2021 edition of MJBizdaily.com. Just click on the link that follows.
mjbizdaily.com/illinois-recreational-marijuana-sales-already-nearing-1-billion-for-2021/?
The other figure that caught our attention this week, also courtesy of MJ Biz Daily, was $13.2 million. According to Matt Lamers, that’s how much Canadian marijuana producer Tilray has paid its CEO Irwin Simon in cash bonuses so far this calendar year. Actually they paid him $16.7 million in Canadian dollars.
That’s on top of an already hefty salary and millions more in share-based awards, bringing his total compensation so far in 2021 to nearly $30 million—almost half of which was paid in cash.
We offer these figures just in case you are still wondering if this marijuana thing is really taking off.
You can learn much more by reading the article by Matt Lamers that appeared in the October 4, 2021 issue of MJ Biz Daily.com.
mjbizdaily.com/cannabis-firm-tilray-paid-ceo-irwin-simon-13-2-million-cash-bonuses-in-2021/?
Cannabis Smoke and Coughing
It happens in the best of families at the worst of times. You take a drag off of a marijuana cigarette, or some other smoking apparatus, and the result is a sudden violent coughing fit.
The good news is that it doesn’t have to be this way. Mike Adams, writing for The Fresh Toast, offers several tips on how to avoid the coughing that can accompany smoking cannabis, whether you are a novice or you already know your way around a bong.
The first move, says Adams—particularly if you are new to smoking cannabis—is to take smaller hits. Remember, it’s not a competition. We think you should approach the experience this way—less pain, more gain.
Second, Adams suggests it’s best to just inhale deeply after taking a hit, taking the smoke directly into your lungs. He says one of the more common mistakes a novice smoker will make is to hesitate before actually inhaling fully. This can trap the smoke in your throat which can trigger a coughing attack.
He also suggests that buying better cannabis products from a licensed dispensary, one where products are subject to testing and other regulations, can make a big difference when it comes to avoiding or controlling those coughing fits.
Adams also acknowledges that smoking isn’t for everyone. Perhaps, we surmise, that’s why God made edibles.
To learn more we encourage you to read Mike Adams’s article, “How To Stop Coughing So Hard From Marijuana Smoke.” Written for The Fresh Toast, it also appeared in the October 4, 2021 issue of Benzinga.
www.benzinga.com/markets/cannabis/21/10/14475754/how-to-stop-coughing-so-hard-from-marijuana-smoke?
News for Pet Lovers
Cannabis consumers who love dogs need to take special care with their edibles when around their canine companions. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals says that reports of marijuana toxicity in dogs have increased notably.
Tina Wismer, a veterinarian and senior director of the New York-based ASPCA Poison Control Center, recently told the Los Angeles Times that the national call volume for cases of cannabis ingestion by dogs jumped from 1,436 to 3,923 cases between 2017 and 2020.
According to Nina Zdinjak, who covered the story for Benzinga, it’s likely these numbers are just a small percentage of the total number of cases due to the fact these reports are voluntary. She notes that in California, for example, where adult-use cannabis became legal in 2016, call numbers jumped 276 percent between 2016 and 2020, and in Colorado, the numbers have grown eleven times since the state legalized cannabis in 2012.
Zdinjak also points out that if a dog ingests a THC-infused edible crafted for humans, who weigh several times more than dogs, the effects can be critical. What’s more, some of those treats may also contain other chemicals, not just THC.
Karl Jandrey, a professor of veterinary sciences at UC Davis, and Wismer of New York pointed out in the Los Angeles Times article that some of the standard symptoms of cannabis toxicity in dogs can include “unsteadiness on their feet, depression, dilated eyes, dribbling urine, sensitivity to touch and sound, slow heart rate and even low body temperature.” These signs tend to occur around 20 to 40 minutes after ingestion.
One dog owner told the paper that he knew something was amiss when his 12-pound Chihuahua-terrier mix named Bentley turned down a favorite treat—French fries.
Experts say if a dog owner has reason to suspect their pet has ingested cannabis they should call their veterinarian immediately.
You can learn much more by reading Nina Zdinjak‘s informative article in the October 1, 2021 issue of Benzinga.
Dispensary Etiquette
Whether it’s your first trip to a dispensary or you’ve been there more times than you can count, there are a few things you should know before you go to make your trip as seamless and rewarding as possible.
So says Mary Jane Gibson writing for Leafly. Here are a few of her tips.
• Make sure to bring a valid ID and if you are in a state that requires you to register for a medical marijuana program, bring your registration card.
• Do a little research before you go. Check the dispensary online menu, and select a few products that interest you. Also, try to have a succinct description of the kind of experience you are seeking. This will help the budtender guide your selection.
• Be respectful and don’t ask your budtender for tips on how to break the law, such as how you can mail a “special package” to your cousin in Sheboygan. Remember, the legal cannabis industry is highly regulated and dispensary workers are following the law to the letter. Don’t be a jerk and ask them how to get around it.
• Don’t forget, until the banking laws change, at a dispensary cash is king. Also, don’t haggle or ask for extras. It’s not Big Bob’s House of Carpets. If the dispensary is offering specials, those deals will usually be posted.
To learn more, we urge you to read Mary Jane Gibson’s entertaining and informative article in the September 28, 2021 issue of Leafly.
www.leafly.com/news/lifestyle/cringe-cannabis-customer-types?
Investor’s News and Notes
Investopedia describes an Exchange Traded Fund, or ETF, as “a basket of securities that trade on an exchange just like a stock does. ETFs can contain all types of investments including stocks, commodities, or bonds; some offer U.S.-only holdings, while others are international.”
It’s now possible to invest in ETFs that focus on the cannabis industry. According to Javier Hasse, reporting for Benzinga, one of the latest cannabis-focused ETFs is called the ETFMG 2x Daily Inverse Alternative Harvest ETF. Issued by ETF Managers Group LLC (ETFMG), it has started trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol MJIN.
The fund is said to be designed to provide investors with access to the global cannabis ecosystem so they can benefit directly from “widespread medicinal and recreational legalization initiatives.”
Sam Masucci, CEO and founder of ETFMG told Hasse, “We are a one-stop-shop for investors looking to capitalize on the global and U.S. cannabis sectors.”
MJIN is ETFMG’s fourth cannabis exchange-traded fund.
If you want to learn more we strongly urge you to read Javier Hasse’s article in the October 6, 2021 edition of Benzinga. Mr. Hasse continues to be one of the most insightful reporters on the cannabis beat, covering everything from cannabis culture to new products to investments.
Senior Cannabis Digest is compiled and edited by Joe Kohut and John Kohut. You can reach them at joe.kohut@gmail.com or at 347-528-8753.
