- Cannabis researchers predict that global sales of the plant will reach $32 billion by 2022
- Canada’s recent nationwide legalization of adult uses of cannabis is fueling a spike in labor force opportunities, including a 266 percent increase in cannabis jobs
- Icon Exploration’s agreement with City View Green (CVG) is sowing the seeds of growth as the Canadian cannabis license applicant prepares a 40,000-square-foot cultivation facility
New job and wage statistics released just shy of Canada’s two-month anniversary for full-use cannabis legalization underscore the strength of the ‘weed’ industry, as well as the market potential of companies such as Icon Exploration Inc. (TSX.V: IEX.H) that are aiming to build the industry into a multi-billion-dollar juggernaut.
Icon Exploration is a recent entrant to the space, working to create a company focused on evaluating and potentially acquiring diverse targets in the cannabis industry. Still, the company’s leadership team includes individuals who have already gained experience in the fledgling industry, and the extraction expert working in the plant’s active cannabinoid ingredients is preparing to build brand ideas based on a craft honed in the state-driven industry south of Canada’s border.
Canada has emerged as a visionary nation, the second in the American hemisphere (and the first in the industrialized G7 consortium) to legalize recreational cannabinoid drug use, such as marijuana smoking and vaping, in addition to nascent medicinal and wellness uses (http://cnw.fm/KosO0). The lawmakers’ decision highlighted the growing popularity of what was once only a lowbrow joke-inducing relaxant among a much wider segment of society.
Indeed, the recent Statistics Canada labor force report (http://cnw.fm/iJn3B) indicates that the number of cannabis-related jobs grew by 266 percent between November 2017 and November 2018, and the jobs, on average, pay more than the national average. The report states that the average hourly wage for employees in cannabis-related jobs was $29.58, with the majority of them in the agriculture industry. Virtually all of the employees were working full time and had permanent positions, according to Statistics Canada data.
As Icon Exploration works to establish its foothold in the cannabis industry, global spending on the plant’s legalized cultivation continues to expand. Cannabis researchers at Arcview Market Research and BDS Analytics predict that worldwide sales will reach $32 billion by 2022, according to an interview cited by the Washington Times (http://cnw.fm/ZRV7y). Despite Canada’s early leadership, the vast majority of that spending is expected to come from the United States, with prohibition continuing to crumble, as noted by the report and a similar ArcView interview with the Los Angeles Times (http://cnw.fm/3awKB). The report adds that some analysts anticipate that U.S. sales will top $75 billion by 2030.
All of that is good news for Icon Exploration as it builds its portfolio in the cannabis space. The company recently entered a formal agreement with vertically integrated cannabis company City View Green (CVG), a Canadian governmental license applicant preparing a 40,000-square-foot cultivation facility near Toronto for pharmaceutical-grade cannabis as it awaits final approval of the license. An additional 4.3 acres at the site are reserved for the potential construction of another 125,000 square feet of cultivation and extraction facilities.
CVG’s plans include the production of high-quality edible products, distillates and water-soluble brands for the cannabidiol (CBD)-infused beverage market that is gaining heightened market attention since multi-national beverage maker Constellation Brands (NYSE: STZ) invested billions of dollars in Canopy Growth Corp. (NYSE: CGC) (TSX: WEED) for a share of its cannabis operations (http://cnw.fm/G9ic6).
For more information, visit the company’s website at www.IconExploration.net
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