Toker-Cola, anyone? Food and drink companies eye up ‘cannabiz’ opportunities

With 2020’s ‘reeferendum’ on the horizon, all kinds of businesses – from the small and local to the massive and multinational – have their sights set on lucrative new opportunities. This story was originally published on RNZ alongside this Insight documentary On a suburban street in Auckland’s Grey Lynn, Karma Cola’s road-marking-yellow, corrugated-iron-clad headquarters, encloses whirring … Read more

It’s two years to the referendum and the weed debate is already insufferable

In a foreshadowing of the excruciating debate to come, FamilyFirst have gone head-to-head with an actual scientist on the issue of marijuana. But there’s an agenda on both sides, writes Don Rowe.  In one of the many not at all unhinged conversations in our Twitter mentions yesterday, FamilyFirstNZ went head to head with another user over … Read more

Meet the NZ ad guru who wants to fix weed’s PR problem

Paul Manning built one of NZ’s biggest ad agencies by transforming the image of businesses like the $2 Shop. Now he wants to do the same with cannabis. Don Rowe reports.  In a secret location somewhere south of Auckland’s CBD, New Zealand’s largest indoor cannabis operation is rising like a monolith from the earth. A concrete … Read more