Canadians involved in the legal cannabis industry are facing deep potholes on the road to entering the United States — and immigration lawyers say the federal government needs to help them navigate a way through.

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency sent tremors through the country’s burgeoning cannabis sector last week with word that legalization in Canada won’t change the fact that American laws treat marijuana as a banned substance, and industry insiders as drug traffickers.

Despite the fact that some jurisdictions in North America permit the use of medical and recreational marijuana, U.S. federal law continues to prohibit its sale, possession, production and distribution, an agency spokesperson said in a statement.

Albertans hoping to spark up in a cannabis cafe or lounge will have to wait until edible cannabis products are regulated, says the province.

In a statement, the province said while they await more information on an easy-to-eat pot product, they will be ready to regulate brick-and-mortar consumption sites at a later date.

Health Canada has set a prospective date of October 2019 for the sale of edible marijuana products.

Ward 3 Coun. Jyoti Gondek said a lack of government communication has caused issues that could have been prevented. “My thoughts haven’t changed much over the entire time we have been having this debate,” she said.

A team of former mushroom farmers and pharmacists lead by a veterinarian has built what they believe is one of the quickest-constructed, fully-licensed medicinal cannabis facilities in the country.

They've built what they call a world-class facility inside of a former automotive plant along the Thames River in Chatham, Ont.

"Our founders actually were able to grow large scale indoor grow of mushrooms which is a crop that is very hard to grow," said former veterinarian and current AgMedica Bioscience Inc. CEO Trevor Henry. 

"We think that made perfect sense to transition that technology from the mushroom grow into the cannabis grow."

In a boardroom at the Department of National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces headquarters in Ottawa, Christian Lizotte was ready to toss some balls.

He held a tray of black, red, and orange balls in one hand; on the table beside him rested a pair of black goggles similar to ski goggles. But this isn’t actually a game, and these goggles, when combined with certain activities, are meant to simulate the effects of being stoned on cannabis without actually consuming it.

Lizotte, a health promotion specialist at the armed forces, turns to his colleague, Laura O’Dell, and instructs her to catch only the black ones without the goggles or, so to speak, sober. “Clear?” he asked. “All right, let’s do this.”

There was a time when saying that sentence out loud would have gotten you laughed out of the room. But now it describes a product category that beer makers have got their sights set on. With alcoholic beverage sales more or less flat-lining, brewers are looking outside their traditional purview for increased sales. And it looks like cannabis-infused drinks are going to be a part of the new picture.

Recreational cannabis legalization is now less than a month away, but most Canadians still don't know how to get weed come Oct. 17.

A new survey by cannabis review and research site Lift & Co. found 58 per cent of Canadians don't know how or where they'll be able to buy legal marijuana.

The weed store rollout will look different in every province, which Lift & Co. CEO Matei Olaru thinks may account for why there are knowledge gaps across the country.

On September 17, 2018, multiple sources reported to BNN Bloomberg that Coca-Cola is in talks with Aurora Cannabis Inc. (TSX:ACB) to develop CBD-infused beverages, signifying the entry of yet another iconic brand into the industry. This follows Constellation Brands’ investment in Canopy Growth Corp in August 2018, and the rumored entry of Diageo into the Canadian cannabis space, also in August 2018. According to a report from the Hemp Business Journal, the U.S. consumer CBD market is expected to grow from $202M in 2015 to $2.1B in 2020, which presents a significant opportunity for companies to expand into rapidly-growing cannabis/hemp businesses.

With just a month left to go until recreational pot is legal across the country, here's what you need to know if you want to partake.

Where can I get some of that legal weed?

On Oct. 17, there will be just one B.C. Cannabis Store in the entire province. The government shop will be located in Kamloops at the Columbia Place Shopping Centre. There will also be online sales through the B.C. Liquor Distribution Branch.

What about all those private dispensaries in cities like Vancouver?

There's no indication these will be shut down right away. The province's new Community Safety Unit has pledged a crackdown, but only after more legal outlets are available.

With Canada's legalization of cannabis consumption quickly creeping up on the calendar, the nation's Armed Forces decided that it might be high time to figure out where and when those with access to small arms, artillery and combat aircraft should be allowed to take a toke.

Soldiers will be banned from smoking or otherwise consuming the drug up to eight hours before reporting for duty.

The ban on usage will kick in 28 days before any deployment for personnel serving on submarines, planes or helicopters, or for those piloting drones, conducting high-altitude parachute drops or engaging in air traffic control.

The Mohawk Council of Kahnawà:ke (MCK) in Quebec has said it is currently studying a partnership to establish a Health Canada licensed “state-of-the-art” medicinal cannabis greenhouse of at least 50,000-sq-ft, with an additional 20,000-sq-ft of post-harvesting space.

In a statement, the MCK said it is in discussions with Canopy Growth, Canada’s largest medicinal marijuana company, which would see Canopy Growth purchase up to 100% of the cannabis produced at the Kahnawà:ke facility. The partnership would mark Canopy Growth’s first First Nations partnership in the province.