LSD-Like Drug Awarded “Breakthrough Therapy” Status from FDA
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has awarded “breakthrough therapy” status to a drug similar to LSD called MM120 for generalized anxiety disorder. Breakthrough status is awarded when a drug shows significant promise for treatment, and it helps to accelerate the research and development process to fill an unmet need. The makers of MM120, Mind Medicine Inc. or MindMed, said in a press release that it plans to have an end-of-Phase-2 meeting with the FDA during the first half of this year and move to start Phase 3 clinical trials during the second half of 2024. The research indicates that a single dose of MM120 led to a substantial decrease in anxiety scores for patients 12 weeks after they took the drug, and 65 percent of research participants demonstrated a clinical response.
Over Half of U.S. Hemp Flower Comes from California
According to an analysis from MJBizDaily, over half of the hemp flower grown in the United States comes from California. In 2022, California led the country in acreage for hemp flower as well as production. The state was responsible for producing 56% of hemp for 2022. Data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Census of Agriculture report also indicated that Alameda County, CA harvested 5.5 million pounds of hemp flower in 2022, which is more than any other county in the United States. According to the USDA, in 2022 1,800 farms across the country produced 11 million pounds of hemp flower on a total of approximately 10,500 acres. Hemp farms are across the state of California, but for 2022, the majority of the state’s 6.3 million pounds of hemp flower came from three counties. Kentucky is the second largest producer of hemp in the U.S. for 2022, producing approximately 1.8 million pounds of hemp flower.
California’s Emerald Cup Event Postponed Until August
For the last 20 years, California has held its annual Emerald Cup celebration. The event is held in the northern part of the state to acknowledge sun-grown cannabis. The Emerald Cup was supposed to be in May this year, but organizers have postponed it until August. An email announcing the date change stated: “Due to a huge response, the 20th Anniversary of the Emerald Cup is expanding its programming to create the best attendee experience ever and postponing our Festival and Awards show from May 4th and 5th to the weekend of Aug 17th and 18th 2024.” The celebration was originally a small get-together of outlaw marijuana farmers in California’s notorious Emerald Triangle and was originally held in December after the harvest. However, the event has grown in popularity and seen some other changes during the era of legalization.
