An Unlikely Victim of the Cannabis Craze

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I’ve talked before about the possibility of the marijuana industry overtaking the alcohol industry. I’ve said that it could outpace cigarettes and tobacco, too.

marijuana plants

Source: Shutterstock

But what if I told you that marijuana could also become a replacement for vegetables?

It’s true … but not quite in the way that it sounds. Let me explain.

Prior to this year, cannabis in Canada could only be grown in indoor facilities such as greenhouses. But now, growers in that country are moving their operations outside. In June, Canopy Growth (NYSE:CGC), the biggest marijuana company on Earth, became the first to receive a license to cultivate in the great outdoors.

Where are these companies planting their cannabis seeds? On land that previously grew … vegetables. It makes sense when you think about it.

WeedMD (OTCMKTS:WDDMF), a licensed cannabis producer and distributor in Canada, recently said that it had planted 21,000 plants on 27 acres that were previously home to asparagus crops.

Sorry moms out there, although I’m sure your children — and some adults I know, too — will be thrilled at the thought of a few less asparagus spears on their plates.

Not to worry. Interest in marijuana is increasing around the world, and while I do expect cultivation to grow exponentially in the years ahead, I doubt it will have a major impact on your selection of vegetables.

And while you’re at the grocery store shopping for vegetables, you may want to keep an eye out for cannabis and CBD making their way into beverages. Arizona Beverage — the company behind Arizona Tea — signed a deal with Dixie Brands (OTCMKTS:DXBRF) to create a line of products that will begin with vape pens and gummies and eventually move into drinks like tea, lemonade, and sodas.

This is a big move for Arizona, which is trying to get a step up on its competition. The line of products will be launched in the U.S. first before expanding to Canada and Latin America. Other businesses like Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) and Molson Coors Brewing Company (NYSE:TAP) are developing marijuana-infused beverages in Canada, but they’re waiting for legalization in the United States before selling their products south of the border.

As you know, I think marijuana legalization is coming a lot sooner than most people think. It all adds up to a huge opportunity to multiply your money many times over … much like what internet stocks offered in 1994 or Bitcoin offered in 2015. The cannabis industry is set to grow so much over the next decade that it will turn out to be one of the biggest investments opportunities of your life — no matter when you were born.

Knocking Out Opioids … Literally

In related news, Liz Carmouche — who fought and lost to Ronda Rousey in the UFC’s first female fight in November 2012 — is preparing to square up against Valentina Shevchenko in the UFC’s main event Saturday night.

You may be wondering how cannabis and UFC (Ultimate Fight Club) go together. Carmouche is the connection.

One of my researchers heard her speak at the World Cannabis Congress in New York City last year. Carmouche is anti-drug, but she is all for hemp-based CBD and uses various products. After trying CBD while training in California, she found that she had fewer negative side effects when managing pain than when taking aspirin. She said she believes CBD has huge upside potential as a replacement for opioids — and I couldn’t agree more.

We definitely need something. According to the Centers for Disease Control, 130 people die in the United States every day because of opioids. And many turn from pills to heroin, causing those overdose rates to skyrocket.

But how many people overdose on natural CBD? Zero. There aren’t even any major side effects.

The passage of the 2018 U.S. Farm Bill legalized industrial hemp, so expect to see more research and education into whether CBD could largely replace opioids across the country.

That impact would be enormous. In 2016, the U.S. opioid market was valued at $23 billion. If even a portion of that shifts to alternatives in the next few years, most notably CBD, we’re talking about billions of dollars… and the potential for investors to make 2X, 3X, 5X, and even 10X their money.

Clearly, Carmouche’s CBD regimen is working. She is the oldest fighter in her division at age 35 and more than four years older than Shevchenko. To quote the famous line from When Harry Met Sally, “I’ll have what she’s having!”

In-Game Betting Makes it Into the NFL

I love this time of year when football is back in season. I played it in college (after which I could have used some CBD-based pain medicine), and it remains my favorite sport to this day.

Preseason started last night, and while exhibition games are mostly ho hum, this first one was worth paying attention to as live gaming made it into an NFL game for the first time.

The Washington Redskins partnered with NBC Sports Washington to provide the league’s first interactive, predictive-gaming telecast called “Predict the Game.” It was the first attempt at in-game betting, which is going to be huge.

Viewers who tuned into the game against the Cleveland Browns were able to bet on things like whether or not a team would score on its next possession, which player would make the most tackles, and which team would tally up the most rushing yards. It was free to play, and cash prizes of $1,000 were awarded each quarter.

The sports betting industry hasn’t taken off as quickly as I initially expected after it became up to individual states whether to make it legal. But I am as bullish as ever on the long-term outlook for sports betting stocks. This was a first attempt at it, and I believe the way sports are viewed will ultimately change dramatically in the years ahead. It will all be related to the potential to place many different wagers during the game — just like NBC’s and the Redskin’s “Predict the Game.”

One league source from the NFL had this to say about gambling on football: “The owners see this as the next horizon … They see this as the next biggest revenue stream after television contracts. They believe it will be worth billions to the league.”

I do, too. As well as every other league, not to mention casinos, betting apps and websites, and more. Sports betting isn’t getting as much attention as a lot of other major trends at the moment, but I would put it right up there with the themes I mentioned in the 10X Innovation Summit that have the potential to return massive profits.

Autonomy in the Big Apple

Self-driving cars have finally made their way into the Big Apple. You won’t see autonomous vehicles amid the hustle and bustle of downtown streets and Times Square, but in a small, 300-acre space called the Brooklyn Navy Yard, New York City’s first autonomous shuttle service has opened its doors.

Optimus Ride, a Boston-based MIT spinoff with a familiarly clever name, offers six electric vehicles that run on a short 1.1-mile route between the entrance to the Navy Yard and the New York City Ferry dock. Each car seats two safety drivers and has room for up to four passengers.

Of course, there are far larger scale self-driving tests taking place throughout the country. But this latest one in one of America’s major hubs is a another step toward what I call Transportation 2.0.

Transportation 2.0 has the ability to create a multi-trillion-dollar opportunity. This will lead to trillions of dollars in money sloshing around in the coming decades — and that is an investment opportunity you do not want to miss. Now is the time to get in for the biggest profits.

Matthew McCall is the founder and president of Penn Financial Group, an investment advisory firm, as well as the editor of Investment Opportunities and Early Stage Investor. He has dedicated his career to getting investors into the world’s biggest, most revolutionary trends BEFORE anyone else. The power of being “first” gave Matt’s readers the chance to bank +2,438% in Stamps.com (STMP), +1,523% in Ulta Beauty (ULTA), +1,044% in Tesla (TSLA), +611% in Liquefied Natural Gas Limited (LNGLY), +324% in Bitcoin Services (BTSC), just to name a few. If you’re interested in making triple-digit gains from the world’s biggest investment trends BEFORE anyone else, click here to learn more about Matt McCall and his investments strategy today.


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