Here’s the update on their annual shindig..
December 10, 2024 – The Cannabis Regulators Association (CANNRA), a non-partisan, non-profit association of government agencies involved in cannabis, cannabinoid, and hemp regulation, held their 4th Annual Member Meeting in San Diego, California from Dec. 2-5. The meeting was restricted to member government agencies and invited governments and included more than 260 regulators and government officials from 38 U.S. states, the District of Columbia, the Virgin Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands, Canada, the Netherlands, and Albania.
“Our member meeting is a core part of what we do at CANNRA and I’m heartened that it’s grown so much over the years,” said CANNRA Executive Director Dr. Gillian Schauer. “We were founded as an association that convenes, connects, educates, and supports governments in this space – and that’s exactly what this member meeting accomplished.”
“As the birthplace of modern cannabis culture and a cornerstone of the nation’s legal industry, California was honored to host CANNRA’s Annual Member Meeting to connect states and nations to drive the kind of collaboration that makes CANNRA’s work so vital,” said Director of the California Department of Cannabis Control and CANNRA Board Member Nicole Elliott.
The CANNRA Member Meeting included an in-person board meeting and a meeting with CANNRA Voting Members (a designee from each member U.S. jurisdiction). As part of that meeting, CANNRA members committed to pursue the development of a framework to expand existing international participation to eligible regulatory bodies from tribal and indigenous nations. CANNRA’s current international members include Canada, the Netherlands, Malta, and Albania.
“CANNRA’s growing and diverse membership is essential to carry out our regulatory work, navigate complexities, and identify areas for ongoing growth within our respective programs,” said CANNRA President Dominique Mendiola, who is the Senior Director of the Marijuana Enforcement Division in the Colorado Department of Revenue. “The expansion of CANNRA participation to include governments in international jurisdictions, including a forthcoming framework for tribal and indigenous government engagement represents a critical point in CANNRA’s growth that the board looks forward to helping implement,” she added.
Topics at the meeting included discussions about lab testing and product safety, product contamination, recalls and embargoes, use of quality management systems and GMP, cannabinoid hemp, lab testing of novel cannabinoids, measuring and addressing the illicit market, human trafficking in illicit markets and licensed spaces, equity in cannabis and hemp, insights from patients and clinicians for medical cannabis programs, enforcement of policies related to products that appeal to youth, analyzing and sharing data, international policy lessons learned, U.S. policy considerations for states, and balancing operational and regulatory duties. A link to the meeting agenda can be found here on the CANNRA website.
Annual Member Meeting
December 2-5, 2024
Loews Coronado Bay Hotel, San Diego, CA
Monday, December 2nd
Industry and Lab Tours (coordinated with the CA Department of Cannabis Control)
CANNRA Board Meeting
Tuesday, December 3rd
7:00 AM – 4:00 PM: Meeting Registration Check-In
7:30 AM – 9 AM: Breakfast
8:30 AM – 9:00 AM: Meeting Welcome and Opening Remarks
9:00 AM – 10:00 AM: CANNRA BOARD PLENARY: Federal policy issues in the U.S. and their potential impacts on states
10:00 AM – 10:30 AM: NETWORKING BREAK
10:30 AM – 11:30 AM: BREAKOUT PANELS
Breakout 1: Updates to and new approaches in seed to sale and traceability systems
Breakout 2: Advances in the use of cGMP for cannabis and hemp licensees
Breakout 3: State of the states: Cannabinoid Hemp Regulation Updates
11:30 AM – 12:30 PM: LUNCH AND COMMITTEE NETWORKING
12:30 PM – 1:45 PM: WORKSHOPS
Workshop 1: Chemistry for the non-chemist: breaking down the molecules and science to empower regulators
Workshop 2: How to assess and communicate about contamination in cannabis products
Workshop 3: Human Trafficking in illicit markets and licensed spaces: identification, intervention, and prosecution
2:00 PM – 3:00 PM: PLENARY PANEL: Legal Updates: Trends in Cannabis and Hemp Regulatory Litigation
3:00 PM – 3:30 PM: NETWORKING BREAK
3:30 PM – 4:30 PM: PLENARY PANEL: The State of Equity and Cannabis: Assessing why programs are needed and how they should evolve
4:30 PM – 5:00 PM: SPOTLIGHT: Ten years later: Lessons learned by adult use regulators in Colorado and Washington
6:00 PM – 9:00 PM: Welcome Reception
Wednesday, December 4th
7:00 AM – 10:00 AM: Meeting Registration Check-In
7:00 AM – 9:00 AM: Breakfast
9:00 AM – 9:45 AM: PLENARY PANEL: Approaches to identify, detect, and address potency inflation and other lab testing inaccuracies and compliance issues
9:45 AM – 10:30 AM: PLENARY PANEL: Product Safety: Mechanisms to support effective embargos and recalls
10:30 AM – 11:00 AM: NETWORKING BREAK
11:00 AM – 12:00 PM: BREAKOUT PANEL
Breakout 1: Structuring Medical Cannabis Programs: Lessons learned in what patients and clinicians want
Breakout 2: Strategies to implement and enforce policies related to cannabis products that appeal to youth
Breakout 3: International updates: Regulatory insights from and developments in international jurisdictions
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM: LUNCH
CANNRA Voting Member Meeting
1:00 PM – 2:15 PM: WORKSHOPS
Workshop 1: Achieving Organizational Balance: Approaches to Balance Operational Duties with Regulatory Duties
Workshop 2: Lab Testing approaches for detecting and dealing with novel cannabinoids and synthesized molecules
Workshop 3: Collecting, analyzing, and sharing data to facilitate and improve regulatory work
2:15 PM –2:45 PM: NETWORKING BREAK
2:45 PM – 3:45 PM: PLENARY PANEL: Measuring and addressing the illicit market, diversion, and legacy operators
3:45 PM – 4:30 PM: ALL HANDS DISCUSSION: Self-care for cannabis regulators: Peer to peer tips to avoid burn out
4:30 PM – 5:00 PM: CLOSING: CANNRA Board Take-Aways and Meeting Wrap Up
Thursday, December 5th
Industry and Lab Tours (coordinated with the CA Department of Cannabis Control)
Useful factsheets
