A major player in the alcohol world is backing marijuana legalization, and it’s not shying away from sharing its position with those in power. The Wine and Spirits Wholesalers of America (WSWA) recently participated in a briefing on Capitol Hill to reiterate its stance that the feds should allow states to make their own decisions when it comes to legalization.
According to Marijuana Moment, WSWA “became the first major alcohol association to call for the end of federal cannabis prohibition” last July. Now, five months later, the organization has reportedly suggested to lawmakers that regulations similar to those already in place within the alcohol industry could also be created and implemented for legal marijuana. A photo of a handout from the meeting, which was provided to Marijuana Moment, presented an outline for the group’s ideal “regulatory structure.”
“When a state legalizes adult use of cannabis and establishes an acceptable level of regulation, the federal government should allow that market to function and give equitable treatment to businesses that operate within it,” reads the handout. “The regulatory structure should ensure product safety, discourage underage access, create an effective tax collection regime, and encourage innovation and choice for consumers, while at the same time eliminating diversion of cannabis to other states.”
Among the group’s list of recommended public safety regulations are an age requirement of 21-years, impaired driving standards, restrictions on common carrier delivery, and hours and days of sale that are the same as state alcohol laws.
Regarding industry practices, WSWA suggested no vertical integration (that’s when one company oversees two or more stages of production normally operated by different companies), tax collection, penalties for licensee violations that mirror the state’s alcohol code, and more. The association also called for quality control testing to ensure that products are traceable to the processors and producers.
Big Alcohol’s newfound support of cannabis shouldn’t be shocking. The infused beverage market is hypothesized to become its own, massive subgenre in the next several years. As the axiom goes: when you can’t beat ’em, join ’em–right?
As the alcohol and tobacco industries continue to wake up to the reality of cannabis legalization, it’s only a matter of time before other lobbyists and corporations become vocal about supporting it, too.
This is very good news. One of our allies in the fight against corrupt policies, professor David Nutt pf England has made it clear that some alcohol vendors in England are the reason why drugs like cannabis and MDMA are illegal and so heavily stigmatized by shady agencies. I have heard of some stupid beer vendors opposing legalization in America so I wondered how bad it was. Clearly, the entire war on drugs is from greed and corruption. The government has been banning and spreading misinformation about unpatentable drugs for some wicked and selfish people because world wide our governments are corrupt and they accept bribes. God is witness. Furthermore, so many poor people are hypocrites about drugs, both those who use them in excess thinking they are cool, and those who say sensational and disparaging things about them because they think that they are wise. We need a good truthful campaign against this evil and we are seeing it on some level from folks like you. Thank you very much.