Richard Branson to cannabis advocates: fight for legalization

The billionaire entrepreneur Richard Branson made an appearance this weekend at the New West Summit cannabis trade show in San Francisco. In front of a crowd of enthusiasts, he declared that he was in the mood for «a spliff or two», like most of the world.

«Why not?» asked the founder of the Virgin Group. Communicating via Skype, the ardent cannabis advocate explained that he had just spent 5 working for the Global Commission on Drug Policy, The International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) is a 22-member international organization working to develop ways of reducing the harm caused by drugs to societies and individuals. Alongside Kofi Annan, In addition to decriminalizing drugs, they call for worldwide legalization.

«It's the only way to bring out the problems that come with drugs that aren't regulated and whose supply is left in the hands of the mafias,» he says. «Our commission has worked hard on this. We've had successes and failures, and we're going to continue until we change governments» minds".

Branson's appearance at this two-day conference focusing on the emergence of a multi-billion dollar cannabis market underlines the importance of this industry in the making.

The weed industry is now worth more than $7 billion, with an annual growth rate of 29%, according to the latest figures from New Frontier, a cannabis-focused analysis group. The market is expected to exceed $20 billion by 2020.

This makes the cannabis industry one of the most promising and fastest-growing in the US. Investment in cannabis start-ups now exceeds $360 million. 4 years ago, it was just 7 million.

«We are seeing the emergence of brands that are growing from 300 to 400% a year, while concentrates are growing faster than weed, and edibles are not far behind,» explains Roy Bingham, whose company, BDS Analytics, tracks the cannabis market.

For the time being, no slowdown is foreseen. «We're at an inflection point. This year could be one of the most important for the cannabis industry,» confirms Keith McCarty, CEO of Eaze, a medical cannabis home delivery company. «The clichés surrounding cannabis consumption are shrinking so much that there's no shame in supporting the industry anymore because there's so much opportunity here.».

Richard Branson, who has invested in numerous companies such as the online petition site Change.org or the crowdfunding site Indiegogo, said that if he wasn't currently working on a commission to legalize drugs, he would certainly invest in legal cannabis.

«I would most definitely be in this industry. There's a huge potential with the possibility of doing a lot of good».