Blum Holdings Inc (BLMH)

[GreenJeans]

Walgreens wants to talk weed
Published: Apr 30, 2016 9:48 a.m. ET
National pharmacy chain posts blog on medical marijuana

By Kathleen Burke Reporter

Walgreens WBA, -1.33% wants you to know the difference between a vaporizer and an edible — the marijuana kind.

In a post on the company’s “Stay Well” Tumblr blog, Dahlia Sultan, a pharmacy resident at the University of Illinois and Walgreens, wrote about the benefits of medical marijuana. (The post notes that Walgreens isn't a licensed provider of medical marijuana and advises customers to consult their doctor for information on cannabis.)

“Research has also shown marijuana provides pain relief in ways traditional medicines don’t,” Sultan wrote. “Medical marijuana can improve appetite and relieve nausea in those who have cancer and may help relieve symptoms such as muscle stiffness in people who have multiple sclerosis.” The article cites medical studies from the National Cancer Institute and the National Center for Biotechnology Information.

Few national brands have openly discussed legal cannabis, though that may change, experts say, as demand increases for it. Twenty-three states have legalized marijuana for medical use, and four states and the District of Columbia have legalized recreational cannabis. The legal marijuana industry is expected to grow significantly in the next few years — combined recreational and legal sales are predicted to be around $6.7 billion in 2016, up from $5.4 billion in 2015, according to ArcView Market Research, which tracks the legal marijuana industry

Others in the industry see a more altruistic motive behind Walgreens blog post. “It’s an honest, helpful piece,” says Alan Brochstein, founder of 420 Investor, an investor community for publicly traded marijuana companies. “It adds legitimacy to the whole medical cannabis market.” (In fact, Walgreen’s spokesman Jim Cohn said Sultan’s blog was written in response to questions from customers and doesn't take a stance on the issue of marijuana legalization.)

Nearly 60% of Americans support marijuana legalization, according to an October 2015 Gallup poll, with 71% of respondents ages 18 to 34 supporting legalization. “That’s the ideal customer base,” says Keith Humphreys, a psychiatry and behavioral sciences professor at Stanford University who specializes in federal drug policy. “If you’re thinking long-term and marijuana legalization support is strongest in that group, [discussing cannabis] helps cement those fundamental buying habits that extend through a lifetime.”

A number of states are slated to vote on legalization ballot initiatives in November, including Florida, Ohio and California, which is deciding on recreational legalization. If the California ballot initiative passes, the state would become one of the largest legal marijuana markets in the world. “I won’t be surprised if, after November, other companies get into [cannabis marketing],” Humphreys says.

While other companies, like Target TGT, -2.25% have been experiencing consumer backlash for speaking on national issues, Brochstein says Walgreens’ post on marijuana isn’t likely to make a lot of noise. “There is a loud minority out there [against legalization],” he says. “But there are plenty of surveys out there that show they’re in the vast minority.”

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/walgreens-wants-to-talk-weed-2016-04-29?siteid=yhoof2