Big US tobacco company buys stakes in Canadian cannabis growers, American hemp firm

Transactions mark the alcohol and tobacco industries’ initial attempts to capitalize on the rapidly growing marijuana industry – particularly in Canada
Marijuana Business Daily (US)
Friday, February 9, 2018

A publicly traded U.S. tobacco company has bought controlling stakes in two Canadian marijuana producers and invested in a North Carolina hemp grower, making what is believed to be the first foray by a significant tobacco business into the cannabis industry. Alliance One International, which trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol AOI, said it acquired a 75% equity position in Canada’s Island Garden and an 80% stake in Goldleaf Pharm. Terms of the transactions were not disclosed. The moves were first reported by New Cannabis Ventures.