Category: News This Week

Shares of Cronos Group soared more than 15 percent on May 5 after the Canadian cannabis company announced it plans to launch cannabidiol (CBD) in the United States within the next six to 12 months.

Following the announcement, Bank of America Merrill Lynch gave the stock a double upgrade—from “under-perform” to “buy”, with analyst Christopher Carey raising his price target to US$20 a share—nearly 40 percent above where shares settled on May 4.

Wall Street has postulated that the CBD market, currently worth $1 billion, could increase to as much as $16 billion by 2025.

In March, Cronos closed a deal with Altria Group, allowing Cronos access to Altria’s domestic farmer network, positioning the company to source hemp locally. Cronos will also be able to leverage Altria’s distribution arm, which includes 230,000 retail locations.

TachyonIQ, a software developer of image-processing algorithms, has released a new barcode scanning algorithm that omnidirectionally decodes the mandatory DotCode symbology of the EU Tobacco Products Directive.

The European tobacco industry has adopted systems for the traceability of products throughout the supply chain. By imprinting a unique DotCode barcode on tobacco product packaging, manufacturers and retailers are able to track and report product movement and help stop the illegal smuggling and counterfeiting of cigarettes and fine-cut products.

The DotCode barcode utilizes a 2D symbol that allows for lots of information to be embedded in a small space.

According to Thomas Rissmann, TachyonIQ’s sales manager of for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, the DotCode symbology was developed to allow for high-speed printing applications associated with product manufacturing.

“Our decoder has proven to be forgiving even in omnidirectional reading should clogged ink jets, line speed and other printing problems occur during manufacturing and packaging,” he says.

The TachyonIQ algorithm instantly and accurately decodes the DotCode symbols in spite of printing problems, shrink-wrap films, low contrast backgrounds, or even worn or damaged codes. The software is used worldwide in handheld scanners from Code Corp., often at the retail point-of-sale and in warehousing, distribution, and the manufacturing plant floor, thus enabling the track-and-trace systems to capture the data needed for the EU Directive.

To provide the most accurate and highest quality barcode decoding algorithms, TachyonIQ has added the DotCode symbology to its list of supported barcodes. The symbology decoder is included in TachyonIQ’s EdgeDecoder software developers kit, providing easy-to-implement capabilities to software engineers developing anti-counterfeiting and authentication solutions.

Cannabis stocks fell Monday, as investors digested the first reports from Friday’s U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulatory hearing on cannabis and its ingredients, according to MarketWatch.

The FDA conducted its first-ever hearing on cannabis and CBD on May 31, with more than 100 speakers offering views, including researchers, health professionals, advocates, manufacturers and opponents.

The FDA has warned companies that because it views CBD as a drug, it cannot be added to food or beverages or marketed as a dietary supplement in interstate commerce. But it has also said that given the strong public interest in CBD as a wellness aid, it will seek to help provide pathways to regulatory approval.

“[The hearing] highlighted the messy state of the industry, with widespread use of CBD products with minimal standardization, evidence for benefit and understanding of safety profile,” said Evercore ISI analyst Josh Schimmer.

The Beverly Hills City Council unanimously approved a ban on the retail sale of most tobacco products with an ordinance that is the first of its kind in the United States, reports The Los Angeles Times.

The tobacco sales ban is set to go into effect at the beginning in 2021 and will outlaw the retail sale of cigarettes, cigars, pipe tobacco, chewing tobacco and e-cigarettes sold in gas stations, convenience stores, pharmacies and grocery stores.

It includes an exemption for upscale cigar lounges and hotels in the city.

“I thought this was just truly a landmark moment for our city, for our community,” said Council Member Lili Bosse prior to the vote. According to Bosse, outlawing tobacco sales is consistent with Beverly Hills’ reputation as a healthy place. She expressed confidence other cities will follow suit with their own bans.

The council action was criticized by some retailers who argued the ban would shift sales of tobacco to nearby locations such as Los Angeles and West Hollywood and hurt small businesses in Beverly Hills. The National Association of Tobacco Outlets, which opposed the measure, claims tobacco sellers in Beverly Hills could see monthly income fall 25 to 45 percent due to the ban.

“Forbidding adult citizens from buying a legal product is a frontal attack on personal freedom,” said Guillaume Périgois, director of Forest EU. “Banning not only cigarettes but also chewing tobacco and electronic cigarettes shows this prohibition has little to do with protecting the health of nonsmokers and could actually backfire. Forcing people to drive ten more minutes to buy elsewhere in L.A. a product they enjoy doesn’t make any sense.”

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) hosted a hearing on cannabidiol (CBD) on May 31 to help it determine how to regulate the substance, reports the United Press International.

Acting FDA Commissioner Ned Sharpless has expressed doubts over the compound’s safety.

“There are real risks associated with [THC and CBD] and critical questions remain about the safety of their widespread use in foods and dietary supplements,” Sharpless was quoted as saying.

“While we have seen an explosion of interest in products containing CBD, there is still much that we don’t know. What if someone applies a topical CBD lotion, consumes a CBD beverage or candy and consumes some CBD oil? How much is too much?”

Industry representatives expressed concern about the nature of future regulation.

Christian Grantham, owner of Half Hill Farms, which produces and sells CBD oil in Kentucky, said that if the FDA decides to restrict sale of the compound it would really challenge his business.

“Our farm would not exist as it does today,” Grantham said. “I just have hopes about it that the FDA will see that just like herbs there is a benefit to keeping this in the hands of the people. This is a naturally occurring compound, after all.”

The Philippine senate has approved a proposal to increase the excise taxes on tobacco products, a measure President Rodigro Duterte characterized as urgent, reports PhilStar.

Passed with a vote of 20-0, Senate Bill 2233 seeks to increase the excise tax on cigarettes by PHP45 ($0.87) per pack effective Jan. 1, 2020; PHP50 per pack in January 2021; PHP55 per pack in January 2022 and PHP60 per pack effective Jan. 1, 2023.

If signed into law, it would be the eighth time tobacco taxes were adjusted since 2012.

Prior to its approval, several senators made amendments to the bill, including expanding the tax coverage to include heated tobacco products and vapor products. The bill also mandates the placement of text and graphic warnings on the heated tobacco and vapor products. Proceeds from the new taxes will mostly go to funding the Universal Health Care law.

Philippine World Health Organization representative Gundo Weiler said there was no rational argument for keeping the prices of cigarettes low. He said raising taxes to PHP60 per pack would save 460,000 lives annually.

North Korea is taking steps to restrict the import of foreign-made tobacco products, according to the Korean Central News Agency.

“This reminds us that the North Korean government is concerned about the high number of tobacco smokers, the likely high instance of lung cancer and other diseases associated with smoking, as well as what it considers to be an excessive reliance on foreign imports,” said Peter Ward, a North Korea specialist.

This news comes amid a broader public health campaign to curb cigarette consumption in North Korea, where 43.9 percent of men are estimated to smoke.

North Korea is home to multiple tobacco manufacturers, including the Naegohyang Tobacco Factory, which produces the 7.27, Chonji, and Gohyang brands.

A&R Carton Frankfurt is enhancing its offset printing line with cold foil capabilities.

In 2018, the company installed a Heidelberg offset line, which can print up to nine colors. Equipped with three varnish stations, the machine can produce high-end finishing effects.

“We are always looking into current and future demands to be able to deliver the best value in the packaging industry,” says Ruediger Theiss, plant manager at A&R Carton Frankfurt.

“The printing and finishing capabilities of this new Heidelberg line gives us great possibilities to create truly stunning solutions for premium packaging such as confectionery, tobacco and health and beauty.

“By adding the cold foil module in-line, we confirm our commitment to answer to our customers demand for brilliant, repulpable premium packaging.”

The inline cold foil applicator enables users to utilize cold foil, seven-color printing and three varnish stations in one run.

A&R Carton Frankfurt is part of AR Packaging.

Altria has acquired an 80 percent stake in the Swiss tobacco company Burger Soehne for $372 million, reports CNBC.

As part of the deal, Altria will provide global distribution for Burger Soehne’s oral nicotine pouches On. Once the all-cash transaction closes in the second half of the year, Burger Soehne’s businesses will become part of Altria’s newly formed subsidiary Helix Innovations.

The deal marks Altria’s latest attempt to diversify as its cigarette business shrinks. Altria has previously invested in cannabis through Cronos, took a stake in Juul, and will soon start selling IQOS in the U.S. through an agreement with Philip Morris International.

“This acquisition will add another non-combustible product to our portfolio in what we believe is a high-potential, rapidly-developing oral products category,” Altria CEO Howard Willard said in a statement.