THE ISSUE OF MEDICAL marijuana goes beyond the legal landscape and has a larger social impact.

This is the view of attorney at law Maria Phillips, who was weighing in on a recent request by lawyer Douglas Trotman to the Ministry of Health to have a one-year prescription for marijuana, which was written by a doctor in Canada, filled in Barbados.

The drug is for his wife Kathy-Anne Trotman for palliative care after she was diagnosed and treated for breast cancer last year.

The use of marijuana is illegal in Barbados, and Phillips cautioned that there were social implications in implementing legislation that would seek to change this.

Hemp hearts, hemp nuts, or hemp seed has been keeping much of the world heart-healthy for hundreds of years. According to research conducted by the National Center of Biotechnology Information and funded by the Canadian Institutes for Health Research, in 2010, hemp seed has the potential to beneficially influence heart disease.

BELIZE CITY, Thurs. Feb. 18, 2016–Laws for the decriminalization of marijuana, for possession of up to 10 grams, are in the works. Amandala is reliably informed that after Cabinet gave its nod for the legal drafting, the Attorney General’s Ministry began working on amendments to the Criminal Code which would remove criminal penalties in the event that persons are found with marijuana within what would become the new limit.

Of note, though, is that Government is not moving to legalize marijuana use. Persons found with small quantities of marijuana would instead receive a fine through a sort of ticketing system. It is only in the event that the person fails to pay the fine that he or she would face incarceration.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture clarified its policy regarding the organic certification of industrial hemp production this week.

Oklahoma and Tennessee are two of the 14 states that have laws permitting industrial hemp cultivation under restricted conditions. Eight of them specifically permit its commercial cultivation. Another 20 states considered industrial hemp bills in 2015.

Although nonintoxicating and authorized by the 2014 Farm Bill for pilot programs under the supervision of law enforcement, the USDA states that “organic certification of industrial hemp production at this time is premature.”

Green Technology Solutions, Inc., together with its 3D printing partner, 6th Dimension Technologies, today announced it is seeking a suitable manufacturer for its 3D printed, child-proof cannabis containers.

American attitudes toward cannabis have changed a lot in forty years. In the early 1970s, Richard Nixon initiated the divisive “War on Drugs”, incarcerating substance users on an unprecedented scale. Today, the legal landscape has changed. Numerous objective studies have demonstrated the relative harmlessness of cannabis, as well as its positive medicinal properties. The psychoactive drug is now legal in the states of Colorado, Washington, Oregon, and Alaska, and is used both medicinally and recreationally.

Minister of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining, Hon. Phillip Paulwell, is encouraging Jamaicans to prepare to take advantage of the economic benefits to be derived from the ganja industry.

He said licences will shortly be issued to farmers for the legal cultivation of ganja, and plans are in place to expand research and development.

“In April to May of this year, we will be expanding that facility to enable full commercialisation for those of you who want to get into the thing properly and legally…,” Minister Paulwell said.

There has been quite an uptick in the discussion of BitCoin as an alternative to fill the banking need for cannabis.

I do not believe it is even a temporary solution to the problem.

Since Colorado created a “for profit” model for cannabis distribution, every aspect of this industry has been subject to invasive government oversight. “Seed-to-Sale tracking,” which I helped to develop, created a paradigm that uses technology to cover every movement of the plant on its way to market.

To add an alternate currency at the end of the transaction further muddles the legitimate sale of cannabis.

In an unprecedented move doctors in Colorado are treating a 2-month old baby with cannabis oil at Children's Hospital Colorado.

The Nunez family of Albuquerque, New Mexico travelled to Denver seeking treatment for their daughter, Amylea who was born in December and started suffering from seizures immediately after birth. She was diagnosed with a rare form of epilepsy.

According to a new report from ArcView Market Research, legal marijuana sales could grow by 30% per year through 2020.

Ready or not, legal marijuana could be coming to a state or city near you in the not-too-distant future.

Since 1996, we've witnessed an incredibly quick rate of expansion for marijuana at the state level. Beginning with California legalizing medical marijuana, 22 additional states, along with Washington, D.C., now allow for medical cannabis to be prescribed by physicians for specific ailments that vary by state.