Cannabis and Crypto Laws Tremendously Varied Around the Globe

Will the fortunes of Aurora Cannabis (TSX:ACB)(NYSE:ACB) rise with activist investor Nelson Peltz joining the cannabis producer? It’s still early to tell whether the hiring will bring positive vibes, although Aurora is up 3.03% from last week’s closing.

Investors were shell shocked by the unified drop of cannabis stock prices in December. Many didn’t expect the share price of Aurora to sink below $7. It’s not a cryptocurrency but an industry leader in the promising cannabis space. Still, hopes remain high that Aurora will make amends in 2019.

The legal marijuana industry has come an exceptionally long way in a very short period. As recently as 2005, recreational cannabis was illegal everywhere, just a small handful of U.S. states were allowing medical marijuana to be prescribed by a physician, and a Gallup survey found that just one out of three Americans supported legalizing weed at the national level.

Provinces are waiting for the federal regulations on legal edibles to come into place no later than Oct. 17.

We spoke with Avery Bruenjes, the Retail Council of Canada’s policy analyst for government relations and regulatory affairs, who’s scheduled to address the Retail Cannabis Forum on Monday at the Toronto Congress Centre in Etobicoke, Ont.

Q. How do you define an edible?

A. Loosely, it’s a product that contains cannabis that is intended to be consumed as a food product or drink would be.

Q. Why did the government not deal with edibles last October when recreational weed became legal?

There's a pretty good chance that 10 years from now Aurora Cannabis (NYSE:ACB) and/or Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) will be worth a lot more, thanks to growth in the global cannabis market.

Aurora is already a top marijuana stock. Alcoholic beverage maker Constellation is sort of a marijuana stock as well by virtue of its 35% stake in Canopy Growth (NYSE:CGC).

Both Aurora and Constellation turned in dismal performances in 2018. So far this year, though, Aurora is on fire with its share price nearly doubling, while Constellation has eked out a small gain.

The man who founded Jelly Belly has released cannabis-infused jelly beans.

Last month, David Klein, founder of Jelly Belly, first announced the new product line.

The cannabidiol or CBD-infused candies will be available in 38 different flavors.

According to the company’s website, customers 18 years or older must send their own CBD along with a lab report to show their chemical is "compliant with laws in handling your product.".

The company will then tweak their original recipes to determine the correct amount of CBD in each bean.

Spectrum Confections states some vendors are already selling the beans for about US$2 each.

Aphria (NYSE:APHA) is on a roll. After a horrible performance in 2018, the Canadian marijuana stock is up nearly 80% so far this year. 

With Aphria's tremendous momentum, it only makes sense that some investors who might have been leery of the stock in the past are taking a closer look. If you're looking to potentially buy shares of Aphria, here are five things you should know first.

The marijuana industry is growing by leaps and bounds, and investors have taken notice. Arguably no industry has been stronger since the year began, or over the trailing three years, than cannabis. According to various Wall Street investment banks, this is an industry that has the potential to hit $50 billion to $75 billion in annual sales in roughly a decade.

Some marijuana stocks receive a lot of attention from investors. They tend to be the stocks of companies focusing on the Canadian marijuana market with ginormous market caps relative to their sales.

But there are some smaller stocks of companies that focus primarily on the U.S. market that also merit investors' attention. Three great marijuana stocks that you might be overlooking are Innovative Industrial Properties (NYSE:IIPR), KushCo Holdings (NASDAQOTH:KSHB), and Origin House(NASDAQOTH:ORHOF). Here's what makes these stocks stand out.

Last year was a breakthrough year for the legal cannabis industry. Having long been viewed as taboo, the passage of the Cannabis Act in June in our neighbor to the north, and the official legalization and sale of recreational marijuana in licensed dispensaries and online stores as of Oct. 17, 2018, in Canada, validated the industry as a legitimate business model.