Zurayda Mayet: 5 Pointers for Cannabis Businesses to Clarify in Times of Legal Uncertainty
The single biggest mistake cannabis businesses can make is thinking cannabis is legal. It is not. Despite many commercial opportunities in the sector, lawyer Zurayda Mayet (pictured here) warns there are real legal hazards, and highlights five points of action stakeholders should consider in positioning themselves in an uncertain market
Botswana Stakeholders Frustrated by Govt Delay in Promised Review of Exorbitant Licensing Fees
Botswana’s high cannabis and hemp licensing fees, published in January this year, have provoked sharp criticism from local stakeholders who feel intentionally locked out of the market. Now, months after promising to review the licensing structure, the Government remains silent as to how it intends incorporating local farmers into the new cannabis sector.
DA: KZN Should Set up Set up Hemp Processing Hubs to Build the Value Chain
The DA has called for the KwaZulu Natal government to pull out all the stops in developing the hemp value chain. MPL Hannah Lidgett says the hemp sector had the potential to create thousands of jobs and that the province should establish dedicated processing hubs for manufacture and export.
Global South Needs to Set Up its Own Cannabis Trade Networks to Avoid the Trap of Canna-Colonialism
Africa and other developing cannabis economies need to collaborate and create their own markets. They need to do this to avoid falling into the trap of canna-colonialism, whereby their regulatory systems are designed to serve European medical cannabis interests instead of their own.
University of Johannesburg’s Hemp Brick Prototype Could Change the National Housing Conversation
University of Johannesburg (UJ) researchers, in partnership with Canna-B-Africa, have designed a hemp brick specifically for sustainable mass housing. UJ says years of research have gone into developing a prototype that serves as an alternative to cement and hopes it will redefine the way South Africa builds houses.
Cheeba’s Birch: Accept That Govt Can’t Move the Industry Forward, It’s Up to Stakeholders to Show the Way
Cheeba Africa co-founder Trenton Birch says it’s crystal clear that government is struggling to move the dial forward on cannabis reform. He says that puts a load of responsibility onto private sector players to keep up the change momentum and lead the way.
Looking Ahead, Zimbabwe and Zambia Are Africa’s Best Bets for Becoming Hemp Powerhouses
Zimbabwe and Zambia are best-placed African countries for ramped-up hemp production because they have plenty of available land and water. Zimbabwe has the edge because of it has an international distribution hub. That’s the view of Cobasa founder and chairperson Henri de Villeneuve, speaking at the Cheeba Summit.
Prince: Sort Out Regulatory Confusion and Develop an African Model for the Value Chain
The key conundrum in the cannabis industry is that South Africans can legally use and possess cannabis privately but it is illegal to buy it. Until government sorts out this contradiction, there will be no meaningful cannabis reform. That was Farmers Weekly’s take-out of Gareth Prince’s keynote address at the recent Cheeba Summit.
Cape Town AgriPreneurs BSomebodySA Launches Platform to Connect Small-Scale Cannabis Farmers to Markets
Small-scale hemp farmers are set to benefit in a bold scheme launched by BSomebodySA which aims to connect food growers to buyers in a supplier development initiative with Freshmark. The initiative is significant in that it integrates cannabis growers into the mainstream agricultural economy.
Cannabis Pioneer Invegrow Snatches the Limelight at Malawi’s International Trade Fair
Pioneering Malawi cannabis company Invegrow has won the Best SME Exhibitor Award at Malawi’s premier agricultural show currently underway in Blantyre. The award comes through Standard Bank’s involvement in the Malawi International Trade Fair by sponsoring a new ‘business forum’.