Welcome to Rise & Roll, a bi-weekly newsletter that keeps you smart, savvy, and always in the loop on the latest in cannabis.

Here’s what we have on deck for today…

1. Breez finds sweet spot with cannabis mints

2. Hemp farmers face new cross-pollination risks

3. Kentucky kicks off medical cannabis program

Breez finds sweet spot with cannabis mints

In 2015, California dispensaries laughed at the idea of low-dose cannabis mints.

Then Breez turned precise-dose cannabis tablets into a winning formula by:

• Packing full-spectrum oil into a fraction of a gram

• Backing every product with a 100% satisfaction guarantee

• Dominating their niche with $1.4M in monthly capsule sales, reaching #2 in California and quickly climbing to #3 in Illinois's tincture market

In an industry racing to be everything to everyone, Breez's success shows the power of solving one problem exceptionally well.

Hemp farmers face new cross-pollination risks

Cross-pollination can destroy hemp crops by pushing THC levels above federal limits and ruining carefully bred strains.

A new Virginia Tech study maps this risk across the U.S. — finding that pollen spreads much further than other crops and travels differently based on season and time of day.

• The bad news? Fixed isolation distances won't reliably protect crops.

• The good news? Smart timing can help — nighttime conditions keep pollen closer to its source.

For operators, success means getting strategic: coordinate planting schedules with neighboring farms and consider cross-pollination insurance coverage.

Kentucky kicks off medical cannabis program

Kentucky just opened its doors to medical cannabis with a tight plan: 48 dispensary licenses awarded from over 4,000 retail applicants.

Here's the kicker:

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives warned Kentucky residents that joining the medical cannabis program means they can't own or buy guns under federal law.

Despite this federal hurdle, thousands are still jumping at business opportunities in this historically conservative state.

For entrepreneurs eyeing the Bluegrass State, the limited license structure could mean higher returns, even if it means navigating some unique regulatory hurdles.

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We’ll be back with another edition on Friday. See you then!

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