Cannabis Industry Starting To Build Some Major Tailwinds
Trade To Black Podcast hosted by Anthony Varrell is back with another must-watch episode covering the biggest developments in the cannabis industry, hemp regulation, CBD policy, multi-state operators, and global cannabis expansion. First, Anthony is joined by Eric Berlin of Dentons to discuss the recent FDA filing for CBD, what it could mean for the future of CBD regulation in the United States. Next, Curaleaf CEO Boris Jordan joins the show to break down Curaleaf’s latest earnings, the company’s strategy for European growth, and his broader outlook on the cannabis industry.
Eric Berlin, a cannabis attorney at Dentons, joined first to discuss an op-ed he co-authored with NCIA chairman Adam Goers calling for a one-plant solution bridging the hemp and cannabis industries. Berlin was careful to frame the initiative not as a formal commission or a legislative drafting exercise, but as a structured effort to identify areas of agreement among stakeholders with widely divergent interests. He acknowledged deep animosity between state-licensed cannabis operators — who have navigated costly regulatory frameworks — and hemp companies that capitalized on an unintended loophole in the 2018 Farm Bill. Berlin also cautioned that a federal hemp extension is unlikely, and that the industry should prepare for the possibility that the only legislative movement before the November deadline may be narrow language supporting the administration’s Medicare CBD pilot program.
Boris Jordan, CEO of Curaleaf, then delivered a wide-ranging update on the company’s operations. He credited a genetics acquisition — Dark Heart, a legacy California cultivator — as quietly the most important deal Curaleaf has ever made, and described a multi-year effort to overhaul cultivation practices, expand strain variety, and relaunch the Select brand backed by genuine product quality. On Florida, Jordan said the delay of adult use legalization was not unwelcome, as it gives Curaleaf additional time to build out its retail footprint before a market transition. He described New York as performing strongly and on track to exceed $2 billion in annual run rate revenue by year end. On Europe, Jordan positioned Curaleaf as deliberately forgoing lower-margin market share in favor of profitability, flagging Turkey as a particularly exciting emerging market where the company holds the only international license.
Returning to the United States, Jordan stated unequivocally that rescheduling is a matter of when, not if, citing direct knowledge that urgency exists at both the DOJ and the White House. He closed by arguing forcefully that major MSO consolidation is no longer hypothetical but actively underway, estimating that merging two large operators could yield $200 million in synergies within twelve months — and suggesting that the eventual resolution of 280E tax liabilities would itself accelerate that consolidation.
From international expansion and capital allocation to market positioning and sector headwinds, this is a key interview for anyone following Curaleaf stock, cannabis earnings, global cannabis markets, and MSO strategy.
