Today's Pickup: Medical Cannabis Firm Begins Next-Day Deliveries As COVID-19 Stokes Demand


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Canadian medical cannabis producer Aleafia Health, Inc. (OTC:ALEAF) began next-day home deliveries to patients on April 7 as demand surges during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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"People are feeling more stressed and using a lot more of our medicine," Aleafia CEO Geoffrey Benic told FreightWaves. "We're having a big spike in sales." 

Demand for both medical and legal recreational cannabis products has surged during the pandemic. Distributors and final-mile providers have struggled to keep up with demand.

The final mile service importantly allows Aleafia's core customers – adults 50 to 75 years old, many with underlying medical conditions – to minimize trips outside their homes and reduce exposure to COVID-19.

"A lot of folks hunkered down, and many are vulnerable," Benic said.

Aleafia recruited a team of owner-operators to handle the deliveries with utility vans. Initially, the service will cover southern Ontario's Golden Horseshoe region, which includes the Greater Toronto Area. 

The service also represents a fully integrated seed-to-customer supply chain. As a result, Aleafia says shipments are only touched once.

Tuesday marked a soft launch for the service. The company expects a full rollout next week.

Did you know:

Port Laredo regained its spot as the U.S. No.1 hub for international trade in February. 

Quotable: 

"Across the board, products that aren't considered essential aren't shipping." 

– Dave Cox, president of Polaris Transportation Group, on the decline of cross-border freight volumes between the U.S. and Canada


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In other news:

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India's Azadpur Mandi, the largest wholesale produce market in Asia, will allow only one truck per vendor to promote social distancing. (Economic Times

Final thoughts:

Aleafia also plans to offer deliveries of other essentials such as groceries and hand sanitizer for its elderly customers.

"We want to do everything we can to help out most vulnerable patients," Alefia CEO Benic said.

Hammer down, everyone!

Leer en Español: Marihuana y COVID-19: 3 Maneras de Compartir Cannabis sin Transmitir el Coronavirus

Image: Aleafia Health


Crypto Whales Are Loading Up — Are You?

New research shows the biggest crypto buyers are back. And this time? They could hold for the possibility that Bitcoin will surpass $100,000 in 2024. You don’t want to miss the next massive crypto bull run like we saw in 2020 and 2021. To know exactly what’s going on and what to buy… Get Access To Benzinga’s Best Crypto Research and Investments For Only $1.


Posted In: CannabisGovernmentNewsMarketsCoronavirusCovid-19Freightwaves