Since co-founding the Green Organic Dutchman, a medical cannabis producer based in Ancaster, Ont., Jeannette VanderMarel says she has often found herself the only woman in a room full of men.

"There seems to be, at times, a bit of condescension," says VanderMarel, a former nurse who delved into the medical marijuana sector after losing her daughter in 2003 to Dravet syndrome, or uncontrollable seizure disorder.

Her experience as a woman in the young, fast-growing industry is not uncommon.

Women are under-represented in the boardrooms of corporate Canada, holding just 12 per cent of board seats at 677 TSX-listed companies analyzed by provincial regulators last year. But the disparity is larger in the medical marijuana business.

A number of employers have expressed “grave concerns” about potential spillover effects of legal marijuana in the workplace, a labour lawyer said at a panel for employers on cannabis use Wednesday.

“There are a lot of employers across the country who are saying this is going to be a groundswell of change in the way employees conduct themselves in the workplace,” Darryl Hiscocks of Torys LLP advised a room of employers curious about the impact of marijuana legalization expected a year from now.

He believes murkiness over marijuana use in the workplace will become a legal battleground.

Dr. Bronner’s, the soap company with the eccentric on-bottle messaging, really loves cannabis.

It’s not just that they’re one of the largest U.S. consumers of hemp oil, an ingredient derived from the non-drug version of the plant. The All-One also is a longtime advocate of recreational marijuana.

And that’s why the activist personal hygiene business just planted itself amid one of the most important debates of the legal marijuana industry: Who gets to decide what’s ethical and organic when it comes to cannabis?

“I feel like we’re in a good position to be able to assist and maybe help shape some of the standards for the cannabis industry,” said Les Szabo, director of constructive capital for Dr. Bronner’s.

MedReleaf Corp. fell 22 percent in its trading debut, the largest decline for a sizable Canadian IPO in 16 years, amid growing concern that pot stocks are overvalued.

Shares in the Markham, Ontario-based company -- trading under the ticker "LEAF" -- closed at C$7.40 in Toronto on Wednesday, giving it a valuation of C$669 million ($495 million). The drop is the biggest for a sizable Canadian IPO since Intier Automotive Inc. fell 34 percent in 2001, according to Bloomberg data.

MedReleaf’s Chief Executive Officer Neil Closner declined to comment on the share price but said being listed on the TSX will contribute to efforts to grow the business.

Salinas, California, the largest city in Monterey County, is known across the world as the “Salad Bowl of America.” A cultivation powerhouse for lettuce, spinach, broccoli, and tomatoes, this fertile valley grows the majority of salad greens for the country. With economic pressures inspiring change, some farmers in Salinas Valley are considering a diversification of their greens.

Salinas Valley is one of the most agriculturally rich valleys in America —  beyond greens, it is also known as the “Flower Basket of America,” because the climate and long growing season are perfect for the traditional flower industry. This moderate, warm climate is also what attracts cannabis growers from all over the coast to this abundant valley.

Bay Street’s first cannabis ETF hasn’t been spared recently as regulatory uncertainty weighs on the sector. And now Horizons ETF Management is aiming to assuage concerns.

Mark Noble, senior vice president and head of sales strategy at Horizons ETF Management, communicated via email that the entire marijuana sector is being hit, not just its Horizons Medical Marijuana Life Sciences ETF (HMMJ).

“The whole space is being hammered so you’re either in it for the long haul or you’re not in it at all,” he wrote.  

Colorado-based biotech company Next Frontier Biosciences (“NFB”) announced plans to launch a suite of purified cannabinoid products for the medical and adult-use marijuana markets in Colorado in the third quarter of 2017. NFB’s Verra Wellness line of products are scientifically formulated for accurate and consistent delivery of purified tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) in three different ratios via nasal mists and sublingual sprays. Verra Wellness will also offer a line of small batch topical salves designed to permeate skin and muscle tissue deeply without penetrating the blood stream or causing psychoactive effects.

Although Canadian licensed medical cannabis producers were under heavy pressure yesterday and the selloff showed no signs of slowing down, things can change quickly and that is exactly what happened for these companies.

We have been closely monitoring the recent sell-off and believe that it created a great buying opportunity for new and existing investors. Canadian licensed cannabis producers continue to remain one of the most attractive places to invest due to the upcoming legalization of recreational cannabis, the quality of companies within it, and the strength of the management team and the balance sheets.

We have highlighted three Canadian licensed medical cannabis producers that saw some of the most significant price movements yesterday.

A cannabis farm’s neighbor can sue them for smells and other nuisances that could harm their property values, a federal appeals court ruled Wednesday.

The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling revives a lawsuit between a Colorado horse farm and a neighboring marijuana-growing warehouse.

The horse farm’s owners, the Reillys, sued in 2015, claiming that the warehouse would diminish their land’s value by emitting “noxious odors” and attracting unsavory visitors. A federal district court dismissed the Reillys’ claim, and the warehouse opened in 2016.

MedReleaf Corp. ("MedReleaf") (TSX:LEAF) today announced the successful closing of its initial public offering and secondary offering of an aggregate of 10,600,000 common shares of MedReleaf at a price of $9.50 per common share (the "Offering Price") for aggregate gross proceeds of $100,700,000, with MedReleaf and certain shareholders (the "Selling Shareholders") receiving gross proceeds of $80,700,049 and $19,999,951, respectively.

The common shares will commence trading today on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol "LEAF".