Cannabis has been having an amazingly good run in America despite Washington lagging behind the will of the people. Consider the facts. Twenty-seven states have followed California’s 1996 lead and regulated medical marijuana. Eight states have agreed to legalize non-medical use, and counting.
During his Reno, Nevada campaign stop Donald Trump said, “Marijuana is such a big thing … I think medical should happen – right? Don’t we agree? I think so. And then I really believe we should leave it up to the states.” Thus far, the President has stayed faithful to his campaign promises.
And so he should, given public opinion in favor of national marijuana decriminalization. Consider the facts. In 1995, just 25% approved the idea. In 2016 that had grown to 60% which is the highest ever. More and more state governments are climbing on the tax bonanza.
According to the Motley Fool, Colorado scooped $135 million in 2015 in respect of licensing revenue and tax. This is relatively small, compared to the $1 billion California expects to make from recreational and medical sales, and this sure beats the goose that laid the golden eggs.
Companies in the medical and non-medical supply chain are set to grow, creating jobs and pouring money into local business communities. The lucky few with discretionary money are investing in cannabis stocks. Hot favorites now include companies Medical Marijuana (testing and research services), and GW Pharmaceuticals that extracts new cannabinoid strains to control persistent evils like childhood epilepsy.
The attractive start-up marijuana stocks worth considering as investments are:
- Those producing tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)-rich foods and beverages
- Those providing cloud-based ordering and point-of-sale systems
- Those developing breathalyzers for marijuana law enforcement
- Those delivering consulting services for a variety of pot businesses
- Those providing marketing advice and services to marijuana newbies
- Those supplying innovative lighting products for indoor agriculture
- Those developing and hiring out cultivation facilities and open land
- Those breaking the banking embargo by providing financial services
There are indeed a wealth of business and investment opportunities around the marijuana honeypot. Motley Fool points out a second common denominator – all are losing money and there are few signs the cash will start flowing the other way soon.
In a sense, American marijuana is following the Silicon Valley pattern. A few people are going to lose their money. Some that persist are going to become wealthy. These are going to be the ones that did their due diligence and followed this up by taking sage advice. We are reaching the point where it is time to get in, or stay out.