California Wakes Up On November 9, 2016

Canada is also treating cannabis as an essential service in most provinces. There are exceptions, however, In Ontario, all 52 operating cannabis retail stores were forced to close after failing to be included in the provincial government’s updated list of essential services. This move has been met with some controversy, as liquor stores remain on the province’s list of essential services.

John Lem, a genetic technology expert, was approached by the head of a cannabis firm asking him to explain why he had adverse effects from cannabis while everyone else didn’t. Lem took matters into his own hands to investigate the genetic reasons behind this, and the result was Lobo Genetics.

This licensing round seeks to tackle the persistent issue of unlicensed operators, including various "weed-gifting" shops that have operated throughout the city. These establishments varied from legitimate retail stores that provided cannabis products as gifts after the purchase of other items to out-of-state operators establishing temporary shops to distribute illicit market products without following any gifting protocol.