Marijuana 1.0 was all about the legalization drive, the dumping of billions of dollars of cash into the industry and mouthwatering mergers and consolidations-but it was a jockeying exercise in capacity expansion. Mentioned in today's commentary includes:  OrganiGram Holdings (OTCQX:OGRMF), Curaleaf Holdings (OTCPK:CURLF), Emerald Health Therapeutics (OTCQX:EMHTF), Auxly Cannabis Group Inc. (OTCQX:CBWTF), CannTrust Holdings Inc. (OTCMKTS:CNTTF)

Marijuana 2.0 could be just as big a deal-it's about the technological tweaks that will actually make this industry profitable. It involves Big Data, AI, automation and a host of other tech tweaks that will increase profitability and open up vast new markets in key verticals.

The Green Organic Dutchman Holdings Ltd. (the "Company" or "TGOD") (TSX: TGOD) (US: TGODF) is pleased to announce the launch of its brand new experiential patient and consumer website focused on delivering the absolute best online experience in the industry.

Health Canada has recalled two cannabis strains which were sold in three stores in Saskatchewan.

The recalls involve the 3.5 grams of Cherry Lime and Warlock Kush cannabis strains produced by Bonify Ltd. which is based out of Manitoba.

According to the alert, 52 units of product were sold at three cannabis retailers: Cannabis Co. in Regina, Spiritleaf in Moose Jaw, and The Pot Shack in Saskatoon. The affected cannabis products were sold between November 20 and November 30.

Although the national public health organization hasn’t received any complaints yet, it said the products do not meet some of the microbial and chemical contaminant limits set by federal cannabis regulations.

Nova Scotia's finance minister says she will be firing off another letter to Health Canada to register the province's concerns over a growing shortage of cannabis.

Karen Casey says Nova Scotia is getting only 35 to 40 per cent of the cannabis it needs to meet demand at government-run outlets and she wants to make that clear to the federal regulator after two previous letters.

Casey says one producer in Nova Scotia has been approved by Ottawa and two more are ready to go, so she's encouraging Health Canada to give them the approval they need.

She says there has been no need yet to close any of the 12 shops run by the Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation because of product shortages, but the situation is being monitored.

Even though this year's farm bill has been delayed, everyone is closely monitoring events lately as hemp and hemp-derived CBD is likely to become federally legal in the U.S. as early as next week. The CBD market, already generating annual revenues in the millions, is poised for another massive boost with the impending passing of the 2018 Farm Bill as investors expressed optimism. Effectively legalizing CBD, the market is projected to explode as obstacles are lessened or completely nixed, allowing companies to maximize their earnings potential with respect to CBD-based products. The Brightfield Group estimates the CBD market will be 40 times its current size in just four years.

Marijuana producer Aphria Inc. (APHA.TO 5.12%) has signed a letter of intent to supply a company in Paraguay with medical cannabis.

Under the agreement, Aphria will supply Insumos Medicos S.A., a pharmaceutical manufacturing, import and distribution company.

Aphria says Insumos will undertake the registration of the Canadian company's products in Paraguay and the appropriate licensing for the import of medical cannabis.

Paraguay will become the Ontario company's third market in Latin America, following Argentina and Colombia.

Aphria has been under pressure in recent days after short-sellers alleged the company bought assets in Colombia, Argentina and Jamaica at "vastly inflated prices."

One of the many wounds veterans can carry home with them from conflict is the toll stress and trauma takes on the human mind. While there are many medical uses for cannabis, one area in which it has been finding significant success is the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

“I was using [cannabis] for night terrors and night sweats,” Kevin Dunne, a non-commissioned officer in the Canadian Army. “I was dealing with for the last six years after coming back from Afghanistan, and then in six months I found that my dreams are different, my night sweats had stopped.

Dunne retired from the Canadian Forces in 2012 after 22 years in the service. He was taking nine different medications a day to treat his PTSD. When he slept, he was plagued with night terrors.

More research is needed to determine whether giving sick pets pot helps or hurts them, according to a Nova Scotia veterinarian who has seen an increase in the number of animals brought to his practice after consuming the drug.

Right now, it's illegal for a vet to prescribe cannabis products, although there's research underway that could change that. Canopy Growth Corp. has been given the green light by Health Canada to research the affect a compound in cannabis called CBD has on treating anxious animals.

While the THC in marijuana can get people high, CBD doesn't have the same psychoactive properties and is often consumed in oil form.

As Canada edged ever closer this year to making it legal for any adult to buy marijuana, Dr. Hance Clarke noticed a surprising phenomenon.

At his Toronto pain clinic, Clarke encountered more and more people eager for him to prescribe medical cannabis, though they could soon buy the drug without anyone’s approval. The trend has continued and today he estimates that 15 of every 20 of his patients seek pot as a treatment.

Logic suggests the newly legalized recreational weed business — which makes purchasing cannabis about as difficult as ordering a bestseller online — would render the rest of the market irrelevant.

Investors looking for exposure to the burgeoning U.S. cannabis sector may not have to go north much longer.

With lawmakers likely to vote to legalize hemp soon, cannabis company Vertical Cos. plans to spin off its hemp assets into a separate company called Vertical Wellness and list it on the Nasdaq. Other companies that extract cannabidiol, known as CBD, from hemp are poised to follow suit to other U.S. exchanges.

“We feel that with the farm bill passing, it opens up the pathway to a formal listing on a U.S. exchange like Nasdaq,” said Smoke Wallin, president of distribution, sales and marketing at the Agoura Hills, California-based Vertical. The company cultivates and sells cannabis products in four U.S. states.