The Bengal Bite is moving to Wednesdays | The Bengal Bite 🐯

This Week's Bite:

• Bunch of weed at 20% THC: For better or worse, high levels of THC have become a proxy for quality in many cannabis consumer’s minds. For cannabis to fetch a “premium,” or in some markets even “medium,” price it must usually be 20% or more. So, to a grower, a THC test that shows under 20% can significantly threaten margins by forcing them to discount inventory.
  
  Economists would call the 20% THC line in the sand a “sharp nonlinearity in the payoff function for competitors” which is sometimes a “key feature” in things that are “ripe for corruption.” Not unlike when researchers looking at conscription records from France in the 1800s found a “puzzling” amount of French men measuring under 1.57 meters tall when the minimum conscription height happened to be 1.57 meters. 
  
  It shouldn’t be a surprise then that a recent study of Washington and Nevada lab results show an “unusual spike” in the occurrence of dried cannabis products listed as having just over 20% THC. After looking through the data, the study authors realized why this was the case: “The average THC results were higher for the labs who had their licenses suspended. But also, there’s just not the same bunching around 20% for the largest (more trustworthy) labs... The plant doesn’t care if it’s got 19.8% or 20.2% THC, but consumers seem to care and you see that in the testing results for the labs who had their licenses suspended, but not for (the other labs).” (Stratcann)

• Crypto comes to cannabis: Not content to be involved in just one industry with meme potential, cannabis art company Califari and cannabis private equity firm Merida Capital Holdings have formed a joint venture to create a platform that will combine cannabis and non-fungible tokens, or NFTs. Consumers will have the opportunity to purchase an NFT that will give them ownership (or at least a sense of ownership) of some of the most recognized strains in the cannabis market including Grand Daddy Purple, Sour Diesel, and Northern Lights. (Forbes)

• NY set to build an inclusive cannabis industry (maybe): The Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act (MRTA) sets the stage for a more social equity-focused cannabis legalization process than has been seen in many states. Not only can you now smoke anywhere you can smoke tobacco, but tax revenues and licenses are generally being directed to communities historically impacted by the War on Drugs. In an attempt to keep larger operators at bay, the laws ban vertical integration in most cases. But, some notable exceptions have been written into the law for existing medical cannabis operators, nine of which are vertically integrated, multi-state operators - a potentially significant advantage for the incumbents, especially those that spent significant amounts to purchase those NY medical cannabis licenses. (Harris Bricken Law Blog | Axios)

• Just a Lil’ 4/20 celebration: Grammy award-winning rapper, singer, songwriter, record executive, entrepreneur, and actor Lil’ Wayne has staked out his spot in California’s cannabis cultural landscape by signing a 5-year deal to host awesome 4/20 parties at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum with its landmark torch. In a sign that we still have a bit to go before the COVID-19 pandemic has passed, this year’s 4/20 will only offer the opportunity to buy tickets for the inaugural “Uproar” event that will be taking place in August. (Forbes)

Lil Wayne's Uproar at the Torch comes to the L.A. Coliseum on August 13, 2021. 
ARTIST RENDERING COURTESY OF GKUA.

• Too busy for cannabis: In an interview with The San Francisco Chronicle, Vice President Kamala Harris was asked about cannabis policy and said “we haven’t yet taken that on” despite campaign promises to push for reforms like decriminalization and expunging prior marijuana records. “Honestly, right now, we’ve been focused on getting people food, helping them stay in their apartments or in their homes, getting kids back to school, getting shots into arms,” she said. “That has been all-consuming.” Luckily for us in the industry, our main man Schumer still has us on his mind. (Marijuana Moment)