Cannabis legalization has become a trending topic among many country's agendas as the medical applications continue to spread. Extensive clinical trials have reached conclusions that cannabis can be used effectively to a variety of medically diagnosed conditions such as cancer, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, multiple sclerosis, and epilepsy. However, many countries still do not see cannabis as an approved medicinal treatment despite positive data from studies. On the other hand, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Epidiolex, which is used to treat epilepsy among children. Epidiolex is the first cannabis-derived drug to ever be approved by the FDA.

This week Google updated its Play Store policy to restrict apps that "facilitate the sale of marijuana or marijuana product," even if the substance is legal in your area.

With the latest update to the Play Store policy, Android Police spotted Google stating that the platform will no longer allow marijuana delivery apps to be available on the digital store, "regardless of legality."

According to the company, apps that help users order or arrange the delivery and pick-up of marijuana and other products containing THC are no longer allowed on the Play Store. Two popular cannabis services affected by the policy change, Weedmaps and Ease, have not been removed by the platform, but their ordering functionalities will be disabled in order to comply with the new rules.

Cannabis is growing the U.S. and Canadian economies as the push for decriminalization moves forward. 

In fact, as American industries go, its 250,000+ employees far surpassed the 52,300 coal miners in the USA in 2018. That number is expected to grow to 330,000 by 2022, and cannabis lobbyist group the Marijuana Policy Project reportsnearly every state has some sort of pro-marijuana legislation at some stage of approval moving toward the 2020 election.

It’s no secret cannabis can be used as a treatment for a number of psychical and psychological conditions. The plant has been used for thousands of years throughout various cultures to manage ailments like joint pain, muscle inflammation, and insomnia. It’s hardly a surprise, then, that a number of athletes have turned to weed for post-game and -training relief.

As perceptions shift, research spikes, and legalization gains traction throughout a number of regions across North America, several professional athletic associations are also changing their tune. Where once a number of these regulatory organizations relegated weed to the "banned substances" list, now they are investing in cannabis research for player wellness.

Kevin Chen spent much of the last two years attending every cannabis-related conference he could find, trying to convince investors about the potential of a scientific development he had come up with in his student lab at Concordia University: Using yeast to create cannabinoids such as CBD, a compound now widely used in cannabis-based ingestibles and pharmaceuticals.

A month before legalization, Chen finally struck gold — Organigram Holdings, a New-Brunswick-based licensed producer agreed to invest $10 million in Hyasynth Bio, Chen’s Montreal-based startup.

Colleges are launching cannabis-centric courses to train the next generation of industry leaders.

About a year ago, the head of a cannabis company approached genetic technology expert John Lem with a problem; why did he have an adverse reaction from pot when everyone else who had smoked the same joint seemed fine?

So Lem set out to find whether there was a genetic explanation for the different ways people react to THC, and that's how his Toronto-based company Lobo Genetics was born.

"Looking into the science, we came to the conclusion that there is actually a genetic basis for someone's reaction to THC," said Lem.

Through a simple cheek swab, Lobo Genetics examines three genes to see how your body interacts with THC.

Green Growth links up with Abercrombie & Fitch to sell CBD-infused products 

TruTrace Technologies Inc. (TSXV: TTT; OTC: BKKSF) ("TruTrace" or the "Company") today announced that it has entered into a letter of intent dated April 30, 2019 (the "LOI") with Strainprint™ Technologies Ltd. ("Strainprint").

Under the terms of the LOI, the parties will work together to explore development and integration opportunities to utilize their mutual technologies in order to bring greater transparency and visibility to the legal cannabis industry.

“This is an industry where you hear stories about people working on next-level things… We’ve stripped it back to the basics,” says Keith Merker, CEO of WeedMD, an Ontario-based licensed producer and distributor of cannabis and cannabis oil. “We are growing lots of cannabis, and very good cannabis. Without cannabis, after all, there is no cannabis industry.”