Tobacco maker confirms interest in cannabis business Tobacco maker confirms interest in cannabis business
The cannabis industry received a new form of validation this past week after the multibillion dollar tobacco maker behind Marlboro cigarettes, Philip Morris International (NYSE: PM ), signaled it is intrigued by the potential of entering the cannabis space.
Despite the admission of interest, the tobacco company stopped short of announcing any plans or potential strategy when it comes to a market entry.
“We are doing all this work and will determine one day what avenues to pursue,” Philip Morris CEO Andre Calantzopoulos told Bloomberg News . “But our priority is what we’re doing with our smoke-free products, and that’s where I would stay on cannabis.”
The cannabis space has seen support come in various forms from big-name tobacco and alcohol makers as vice industries set their eyes on a market that was worth US$21 billion globally in 2020 .
Fellow tobacco company Altria Group (NYSE: MO ) holds an investment in Canadian cannabis producer Cronos Group (NASDAQ: CRON ,TSX:CRON), while British American Tobacco (BAT) (NYSE: BTI ,LSE:BATS) recently secured a product partnership with Organigram Holdings (NASDAQ: OGI ,TSX:OGI).