When a new industry is born, big corporations come knocking—it’s a fundamental law of the business universe. We’ve seen this happen most recently in the marijuana market, where pot stocks are partnering with big alcohol and beverage companies.

One of them could become the “Pepsi of pot”…

Which one, you ask? Well, one of the targets we’ve identified is Lexaria Bioscience Corp (OTCMKTS:LXRP, CNSX:LXX), a biotech company known for marijuana-infused drinks and snacks. It’s listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange.

Though Lexaria hasn’t closed a deal with a beverage giant (yet), industry pressures suggest the stock could be worth several times more than its current $1.78.

Five years ago, Yahoo Canada News did a series on the dying small towns of Canada. The stagnation was largely blamed on the exit of one industry or another from many of the places visited. One of the towns featured in that series was Smiths Falls, Ont., struggling to recover from the exit of chocolate maker Hershey’s in 2007. At the time, residents said tourism was the answer to the town’s economic woes. Little did they know the industry that would breath life back into Smiths Falls was cannabis.

The topic of Cannabis production came before delegates at the annual Fire Chiefs’ of BC Conference recently in Victoria.

Of particular concern was the personal production in residential buildings. “Currently local governments have no legislative authority to inspect these properties for safety compliance,” said FCABC President Phil Lemire. “With Cannabis soon to be regulated for sale in retail environments, there is no reason it should be grown in any residential buildings in B.C.”

BC’s Fire Chiefs resolved to continue working towards prohibition of personal production of Cannabis in residential buildings.

The Canadian cannabis stocks on our list trade at the strongest price/cash flow multiples in the sector

SmallCapPower | August 7, 2018: As a young industry, many cannabis producers are currently producing at a significant loss as they scale up production. Significant investments in increasing production and other infrastructure may pay off as companies begin to sell to the recreational market and recoup their costs. The five Canadian cannabis stocks we have discovered today have attractive price/cash flow multiples for the current fiscal year, suggesting that they represent better value than other stocks in the sector.

With the legalization of cannabis coming to Quebec in just two months, the provincial government launched a campaign aimed at educating the public about the nuances of pot law.

“This is an issue that has to be addressed and I think everybody across this province and across this country are waiting for something like that to happen,” said Health Minister Gaetan Barrette on Monday.

Among the issues addressed in the campaign, which will include television advertisements, is informing the public about who will be allowed to own, grow and sell pot once it’s been legalized.

What is projected to be one of Canada’s leading cannabis production and research facilities continues to overcome regulatory and zoning hurdles.

City council last week supported a rezoning application from agricultural to industrial designation for the Flowr Corporation project on two McCarthy Road lots, situated along the border of Lake Country and Kelowna.

And the company started a public hiring blitz last week to fill various positions in the cannabis cultivation, processing and research areas.

Flowr is operating an 84,000 sq.ft. space set aside for cultivation, processing and office space, and introduced designs to Kelowna council last week for an additional 50,000 sq.ft. research and development building component.

Five things to watch for in the Canadian business world in the coming week:

Manulife earnings

Manulife Financial releases second-quarter results on Wednesday. The financial services company recently partnered with Shoppers Drug Mart to offer enhanced medical marijuana insurance coverage.

Sari Starr recalls having to sneak around in order to smoke weed with her friends when she was growing up in Toronto in the mid-to-late ’90s.

Her parents were vehemently against drug use, and one of her biggest adolescent memories was the fear she felt when a police officer caught her smoking pot in a park.

Now living in cannabis-friendly California, Starr has become an ardent advocate of marijuana use, and believes the potent plant can revolutionize the health and wellness industry.

So she’s returning to her hometown at the end of the month to host the adult-only, weed-focused Cannabliss Retreat — a five-day celebration of the herb’s history, culture and ever-evolving future.

Though it may appear lofty, this detailed look at more than a dozen cannabis players suggests that 3 million kilograms of output is very doable.

This may very well go down in history as the most pivotal year for the legal cannabis industry. While numerous legalizations have been heralded before, we've never seen an industrialized country legalize recreational weed prior to Canada doing so. When sales officially kick off on Oct. 17, 2018, big money is expected to flow into the industry, with some analysts projecting in excess of $5 billion in sales being added once the industry is fully ramped up.

Why some industry insiders say growing indoors could affect insurance rates and home sales. On Oct. 17, many Canadians will have the legal right to cultivate small amounts of cannabis at home.

But just because something is legal doesn't mean it's without potential pitfalls. Here are some of the questions aspiring green thumbs will want to consider before potting pot plants indoors this fall.

Will it damage my home?

The governments of Manitoba and Quebec have pre-emptively banned home growing, but elsewhere across the country, households will soon be allowed to grow up to four cannabis plants at a time — a limit chosen by the federal government to minimize the health and safety risks of cultivation.