Twitter on Wednesday became the first social media platform to allow cannabis companies to market their brands and products in the United States.
The company previously only allowed advertisements for hemp-derived topical CBD products, while other social media platforms were below Facebook, Instagram And Tick tock follow a “cannabis advertising policy” as cannabis remains illegal at the federal level.
However, more states in the United States are transitioning to allowing recreational cannabis sales, with 21 already on board.
Twitter said it will allow cannabis companies to advertise as long as they have the correct license, go through their permitting process, only target jurisdictions where they are licensed to operate, and most importantly, not target anyone under the age of 21.
“This is a pretty big win for legal cannabis marketers,” said Cresco Labs, a multi-state cannabis and medical marijuana company.
Most pot companies were quick to embrace the changes Twitter proposed. Trulieve Cannabis Corp already launched a multi-country campaign on the platform on Wednesday.
“This change speaks to the growing acceptance of cannabis as a mainstream wellness category, and we hope it will serve as a catalyst for other social media platforms to follow suit,” said Kate Lynch of Curaleaf, the largest in the United States operating cannabis companies States.
After surging in sales in the early stages of the pandemic, the U.S. cannabis industry has shown signs of slowing down in the face of regulatory and economic challenges, including falling prices and an illegal market that would poach its customers.
Curaleaf recently reduced its payroll by 10 percent, equivalent to less than 4 percent of its workforce, and shut down most of its operations in three states.
© Thomson Reuters 2023
