• EV battery market set to triple to $67.7 billion by 2022
• Asian dominance in Li-ion batteries prompting pushback in Europe and North America
• Large battery manufacturing projects now underway by Tesla in North America and Northvolt in Europe

Asian dominance of lithium battery manufacture is causing concern. That disquiet became even more acute after Bosch announced in March 2018 that it had abandoned plans to make batteries for electric vehicles (EVs), highlighting the challenges faced by North American and European manufacturers as they seek to retain market share. The German industrial giant said that it would cost too much “to reach its target of creating 200 gigawatt-hours of manufacturing capacity a year,” output capacity estimated at around one-fifth of the EV and stationary storage markets by 2030. Reuters labelled the move “a blow to European politicians and car manufacturers who have called for companies to band together to create a regional battery cell producer to compete with Asian players such as Samsung and Panasonic.” Not everyone is throwing in the towel, however. There are plans afoot in Sweden to build what would be Europe’s largest lithium-ion battery factory. Major customers that close would certainly be good fortune for QMC Quantum Minerals Corp. (OTC: QMCQF) (TSX.V: QMC) (FSE: 3LQ). The junior exploration company is proposing to re-open the historic Irgon lithium mine located within the Cat Lake-Winnipeg River pegmatite field of Manitoba, Canada.

Asian hegemony of lithium battery manufacture is complete. The top five producers, who together claim 63 percent of the global market, are either Chinese, Japanese or South Korean. After Q1 2018 sales, Panasonic Sanyo of Japan remains top dog with a market share of 21.1 percent. Second is Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited of China with 14.4 percent, and LG Chem of South Korea is in third place with 10.6 percent. BYD Auto of China (11 percent) and South Korea’s Samsung (5.6 percent) grab the fourth and fifth spots, respectively (http://ibn.fm/JK4WT).

Yet, the global lithium-ion battery market is really only now developing and is projected to grow to $67.7 billion by 2022, three times its present size (http://ibn.fm/4qHDl). Naturally, much of this growth will be fueled by rising demand for EVs. In 2016, the automotive sector’s share in the lithium-ion battery market was at 25 percent. That figure will undoubtedly rise, since lithium-ion batteries can account for as much as 50 percent of the total cost of an EV.

It is developments in the EV market like this that prompted Bosch’s botched foray into lithium batteries (http://ibn.fm/0D6tq), but the Germans are not the only ones now licking their wounds. Earlier this year, Chicago grid equipment company S&C Electric announced that it was winding down its battery manufacturing line of business, and GE has also scrapped plans to launch its Durathon brand. Still, the Europeans seemed determined to hold the fort. In early May 2018, Swedish battery cell maker Northvolt announced that it would begin building Europe’s largest lithium-ion battery cell factory, a facility that will require a tremendous amount of lithium. Its CEO, former Tesla executive Peter Carlsson, has planned a project as big as Tesla’s Gigafactory in the Nevada desert. He is targeting an annual cell production equivalent to 32 gigawatt-hours by 2023 (http://ibn.fm/HwhVd).

Those lithium supplies may come from QMC Quantum Minerals. The company is exploring for lithium at Cat Lake, where its property hosts several rare-element granitic pegmatite occurrences, including the Irgon Dike. The Irgon Lithium Mine Project, located immediately north of Cat Lake, Manitoba, is also home to several other pegmatite dikes rich in lithium (Li), with accompanying cesium (Cs), tantalum (Ta) and beryllium mineralization. The former owner of the property, the Lithium Corporation of Canada Limited, carried out substantial underground developmental work on the Irgon Dike, and the deposit is estimated to contain a historical resource of more than 1.2 million tons of spodumene-bearing pegmatite grading at 1.51 percent lithium oxide. Overall, the Irgon Property, which hosts the Irgon Dike occurrence and several other known pegmatite dikes, is comprised of 13 adjoining mineral claims covering 6,538 acres.

QMC’s portfolio also includes two volcanic massive sulphide (VMS) properties – the Rocky Lake and Rocky-Namew, known collectively as the Namew Lake District Project – which contain base metal-rich mineral deposits. These claims extend over approximately 23,000 hectares (~57,000 acres) in one of Canada’s most productive mining regions – the Flin Flon/Snow Lake VMS mining district of Northwestern Manitoba, Canada.

As Western producers struggle to stay in the lithium-ion battery game, junior explorers like QMC will begin to take on increasing supply and strategic importance, particularly if trade arrangements are affected by questions of national security.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.QMCMinerals.com

• Developments in information technology are revitalizing the staid energy industry
• Convergence of smart controls, home building automation and energy solutions
• Zenergy’s ‘Zero Cost Program’ may reduce energy costs by up to 60 percent

To the casual observer, Zenergy Brands, Inc. (OTC: ZNGY) may look like just another utility company; however, there is more to this Texan outfit than meets the eye. The company appears to be singlehandedly creating an entirely new industry built on the convergence of the young and the old—a sector that melds fast developing internet trends such as smart controls with energy consumption and conservation. Traditional energy companies employ traditional energy conservation methods. You will find reminders to turn your lights off when not in use on their websites and bills or prompts to buy fluorescent bulbs. No doubt, such methods work for domestic installations; however, industrial and commercial enterprises require more robust solutions, such as those offered by Zenergy. The company’s suite of cost-saving energy solutions employing smart controls is now available to corporate customers across America.

Developments in information technology are disrupting the status quo, destroying some industries while creating others. No business sector, it seems, lies beyond the reach of the technological changes of the digital age. The management team at Zenergy embraces these changes. Its members believe that we are at the embryonic stages of changes that are going to impact and sweep across the home alarm, smart controls, building automation systems (BAS) and retail energy services sectors and sub-sectors. Moreover, they expect these market sectors to be consolidated and expanded over the next decade, which will result in the amalgamation of diverse business areas such as smart controls, home building automation, energy consumption, and energy conservation and efficiency. It will be a convergence driven by developments in the Internet of Things (IoT) sphere and advances in hardware peripherals and devices. A few examples are worthy of note: on-site battery storage from upstart companies such as Orison Energy, smart appliances by Samsung, smart doorbells, LED lighting and, of course, voice-controlled smart devices such as Amazon’s Echo (Alexa). These emerging smart energy solutions offer small businesses a variety of ways to improve their bottom line.

Zenergy’s flagship ‘Zero Cost Program’ is one such solution. It allows corporate clients to upgrade their energy gadgets to more efficient, cost-reducing appliances, at no additional expense. The program reduces utility bills by 20-60 percent by furnishing energy conservation, smart controls and efficiency-based products and services to residential, commercial, industrial and municipal end-use customers, without requiring any upfront expenditure. The ‘Zero Cost Program’ is a turnkey solution that enables the upgrade of older, inefficient energy infrastructure and allows the retrofit of HVAC and refrigeration motor controllers, load factor improvement technologies, building-envelope-based technologies, weatherization-based technologies, smart controls, LED lighting and other energy-saving solutions, all at no upfront or backend cost to the customer.

The program was developed based on an industry standard contract known as a Managed Energy Services Agreement (“MESA”). Under the MESA, Zenergy will act as an intermediary between the customer and the utility and take on the obligation to develop, finance and maintain all energy efficiency measures and equipment that the company installs. The MESA is expected to last a minimum of five years, with an average of seven years’ duration, which means that each installation could potentially provide a stream of revenue lasting seven years. The company has currently completed four such installations and is aiming to complete fifty more soon.

Zenergy also plans to enter the retail electricity market. Under the terms of an agreement between Zenergy’s wholly owned subsidiary, Zenergy Power & Gas and Enertrade, the former will acquire 85 percent of Enertrade. Though this acquisition, Zenergy will become a Retail Electric Provider (REP).

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.ZenergyBrands.com

• Recently closed $2 million in private placement funding
• Reviving unexplored property in “lithium triangle” of South America while negotiating for additional acquisitions
• Recently acquired over 15,000 hectares in lithium triangle
• Launched a drill program at San Roque
• Global demand for lithium, cobalt projected upward with lithium-ion battery market fueling consumption
• Exploration plans at Marifil Mines include cobalt, lithium and gold

Marifil Mines Ltd. (TSX.V: MFM) (OTCQB: MFMLF), headquartered in Vancouver, Canada, is engaged in the exploration, evaluation and acquisition of mineral rich resource properties in Argentina. A rising global demand for cobalt and lithium is generating interest in Marifil Mines and its resources located within South America’s famed “Lithium Triangle,” which include 15,267 hectares spanning its recently acquired Ratones and Fraile claims, as well as two lithium properties covering the southern portions of the Carachi Pampa salar in the Argentine province of Catamarca.

The company’s property also includes the Las Aguilas nickel-copper-cobalt deposit property, with more than four contiguous claims in the San Luis province of Argentina. The Las Aguilas property, which is 100% owned by Marifil, is noted as one of the largest cobalt properties in Argentina. Other noteworthy properties in the company’s portfolio include the Toruel copper-silver property, with more than two contiguous claims, and additional potash properties in Punta Colorada, Pedernal and El Carmen.

Marifil’s sizable portfolio of cobalt and lithium claims in what is recognized as the world’s most prolific mining jurisdiction for these resources strategically positions the company to benefit as global initiatives push demand for lithium-ion batteries toward a frenzy. Zion Market Research, a leading research and consulting firm, has forecast that the lithium-ion battery market could hit $67 billion by 2022, realizing a CAGR of more than 13.7% from 2017-2022. Both lithium and cobalt are major components of these energy storage solutions, with industry data indicating that the battery industry currently consumes roughly 42 percent of global cobalt production.

The company is reviving a lithium exploration program that was active in Argentina a decade ago, building on an unexplored mine it owns there. Marifil will utilize a large proprietary geologic and geochemical data base it developed during its 2009 lithium exploration program in the Salta and Catamarca province sites to resume lithium exploration in the region.

Applications for a second mine and negotiations to purchase a third property are underway, which would establish a significant property portfolio of ‘salar’ brine evaporation lakes. Hydrothermal solutions emanating from regional faults in area volcanoes often enrich the brine with lithium, boron, potassium and magnesium.

In addition to nearly 152,000 acres of lithium-staked properties, Marifil owns 887 acres of land for cobalt exploration and 91,565 acres of gold mining rights in an advanced exploration stage in San Roque that company engineers indicate has high gold discovery potential with “excellent infrastructure and mining friendly politics.”

To date, more than $7.5 million has been invested assessing Marifil’s flagship San Roque gold property, including nearly 16,000 meters of diamond core drilling. The property is jointly owned by Marifil and Novagold Resources, with Marifil holding a 51% stake and serving as the current project operator. The company recently commenced a drilling campaign to further evaluate several deposits of significant gold-silver-indium-lead-zinc mineralization on a 4-kilometer-long zone.

Marifil has closed a private placement funding for $2 million that will inject additional life into the company. Proceeds from the funding will benefit acquisition plans, the ongoing drilling program at Marifil’s gold claim and other output from its general working capital accounts.

Robert Abenante, a chartered professional account, serves as president and chief executive officer of the company. He has extensive experience in the public markets and has served as an officer and director of several public and private companies across various industries, with particular success in the mining sector.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.MarifilMines.com

• Zenergy focuses on energy conservation and efficiency, smart controls, and retail energy
• The company provides customers with energy conservation solutions, building automation systems, and retail energy
• Zenergy Brands has a turnkey solution in its ‘Zero Cost Program’

Zenergy Brands, Inc. (OTC: ZNGY), with its corporate headquarters in Plano, Texas, has a platform that is a combined offering of energy services and smart controls. A business-to-business (B2B) firm, Zenergy focuses on energy conservation efficiency, smart controls and retail energy. The company’s vision is to enhance businesses through responsible energy use and management.

The company’s business model is based on its management team’s belief that energy services and smart controls, combined with the ever-growing commercial demand for more sustainable business practices, will continue to be fast rising trends.

Zenergy provides commercial, industrial and municipal end-use customers with energy conservation solutions, building automation systems and retail energy. It offers customers the ability to trim down their utility consumption by up to 60 percent, through energy-efficient and smart control products.

In a 2017 article, analyst firm PwC noted, “Business customers are increasingly interested in managing their energy use patterns… Owners of commercial buildings are installing energy monitors to help gauge variations in consumption and predict future fuel requirements. Many well-known companies have announced energy efficiency targets for 2020…” (http://ibn.fm/hmfsn).

Zenergy Brands has a turnkey solution in its ‘Zero Cost Program’. This program enables the company’s target customers to upgrade their older, inefficient customer premise equipment and assets, which permits the installation of energy-efficient retrofits at no upfront cost to them.

Furthermore, concerning its retail energy plans, via a Texas PUC approved and licensed Retail Electric Provider (REP), Zenergy plans to target end-use consumers in the commercial and industrial sectors. Members of the company’s management team have experience in building REPs. Zenergy believes that this experience and industry know-how will help it build a viable and well-rounded energy enterprise focused on reducing utility consumption and achieving sustainability.

The Clean Energy Project noted results from a U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) report regarding year-to-date changes from 2016 to 2017 (reported in MWh). “First, electricity consumption in all sectors except transportation fell, with total electricity sales down by 2.1 percent,” the Clean Energy Project coverage stated (http://ibn.fm/3HKE3).

The reduction of electricity consumption continues to be Zenergy Brands’ focus. The company’s is committed to helping its customers decrease utility use and be more energy-efficient, thereby increasing their enterprise value. Zenergy Brands is looking to change the status quo in the energy industry. As a fully integrated energy company, Zenergy’s emphasis is on considerably lessening the national carbon footprint. The company is also working to significantly reduce demand on the national energy grid and the nation’s water supply.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.ZenergyBrands.com

• Company poised to benefit from impact of Supreme Court ruling permitting gambling on college and professional sports
• Per report, illegal sports betting in U.S. currently estimated at $150 billion
• CSRH subsidiary 359 Mobile, Inc. plans to release its sports-oriented predictive analytics platform in 2018 for Android and iOS devices, with first rollout focusing on the international sport of Cricket

Consorteum Holdings, Inc. (OTC: CSRH), with its groundbreaking predictive analytics platform, could see a boom from the Supreme Court ruling enabling states to legalize sports gambling (http://ibn.fm/X0EK6). Through subsidiary 359 Mobile, the company plans to release its first global sports app in 2018, serving Android and iOS devices. It was developed with DevLex Ltd., marking the first development since a joint business agreement between the companies was signed.

The app incorporates the technologies of the two companies, combining 359’s proprietary Universal Mobile Interface™ (“UMI”), with its advanced analytics, and DevLex’s Predictive Analysis Platform (“DV-PA”), which uses proprietary algorithms in real time. The stakes are high, with the American Gaming Association estimating illegal sports gaming in the U.S. at $150 billion annually (http://ibn.fm/JOJL8).

CSRH is a software development and mobile publishing company that delivers content to devices in the fast-growing fintech market and its associated verticals. The company is growing through a combination of license agreements, joint ventures and strategic alliances. A primary focus of its UMI platform is the mobile gaming sector.

The first sports app will offer massive historical data and updates on cricket teams and players. Cricket is played in more than 50 countries globally, and it has a dedicated fan base in excess of 2.5 billion people around the globe.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.Consorteum.com

• Updates on CBD patents and medical device progress
• Working to improve medical treatments on a global scale through its subsidiaries
• Moving toward uplisting to the OTCQB Venture Market

Earth Science Tech, Inc. (OTC: ETST), based in Doral, Florida, is a biotechnology company focused on cannabis, industrial hemp and cannabinoid research and development, including the commercialization of nutraceuticals, pharmaceuticals and medical devices. The company is working to improve medical treatments on a global scale for different diseases through its subsidiaries: Earth Science Pharmaceutical, Cannabis Therapeutics Inc., Kannabidioid Inc. and Canna Inno Laboratories Inc.

ETST is in the final phases of preparation for uplisting to the OTCQB Venture Market. This move is expected to boost investor confidence and open additional opportunities. “Transparency is a key tool that we needed to accelerate the growth of our business,” Dr. Michel Aube, CEO and chief science officer of ETST, stated in a recent news release (http://ibn.fm/AB0vq). “Since all of our amazing projects are ongoing with our partners, investor confidence will grow, and we will be able to complete our first big round of financing. We are in touch with institutional and private investors that were waiting for ETST to become a fully reporting company before investing the necessary amount to commercialize our projects. We can now resume our discussions with them.” ETST will continue to share updates on the full reporting process as it progresses.

In a recent news release (http://ibn.fm/S8xTD), the company shared updates on its ongoing CBD formula patents and medical device progress. Earlier this year, ETST announced that it received a grant from the Government of Quebec to develop three new CBD-based products. The prototyping on these products has now begun. The function of these products is to maintain quality of life and prevent inflammation, cancer and degenerative diseases. The MSN-2, a medical device developed to prevent chlamydia and other sexually transmitted infections, is in its final stage prior to the launch.

“The official launch of this medical device is a little like giving birth,” Aube stated. “It will be unique in the marketplace and we are branding this device globally. We will create a strong demand for this medical device by showing the world its powerful capacity to diminish the prevalence of chlamydia and other Sexually Transmitted Infections.”

ETST is working with Accélération, Design et Innovation Inc. on final packaging designed to target a global audience of women, and the company is in the process of securing trademark protection for the logo and name. The device is dedicated to improving the health of women worldwide.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.EarthScienceTech.com

• Cobalt strike resource estimate underway at First Cobalt’s Iron Creek Project
• Potential for fast-track startup in Idaho could provide North American response to growing tech metal demand
• Drilling program aims to provide NI 43-101-compliant confirmation of historic estimate of 1.3 million tons grading 0.59 percent cobalt

America’s Gem State could also form the bedrock of future-tech mineral exploration once First Cobalt Corp. (TSX.V: FCC) (OTCQX: FTSSF) (ASX: FCC) completes a mineral resource estimate on a prized asset that it acquired earlier this month. On June 11, First Cobalt announced a $9 million program to increase drilling along a mineralized strike in Idaho’s Iron Creek Project with the hope of fast-tracking it for future production.

First Cobalt obtained the Iron Creek Project through its purchase of US Cobalt after determining that the Idaho site could complement exploration work that the company was already pursuing in Canada’s famed Cobalt Camp north of the Great Lakes. US Cobalt explored the Iron Creek Project last year through a 40-hole, 10,700-meter program to confirm a historic estimate of 1.3 million tons grading 0.59 percent cobalt and 0.3 percent copper that was not compliant with current reporting standards.

“First Cobalt acquired US Cobalt because we believe that Iron Creek is one of the most prospective and advanced projects in North America,” First Cobalt President and CEO Trent Mell stated in a news release regarding the exploration program (http://ibn.fm/yXUFm).

Establishing North American sources for cobalt has become a priority among many junior miners amid concerns over the human rights violations reported in conjunction with the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s cobalt operations. The DRC is far-and-away the world’s largest current producer of the metal, sourcing two-thirds of the entire global supply, and 80 percent of the world’s cobalt is processed in China. First Cobalt’s properties in Canada not only include 50 historic mining operations situated on nearly 25,000 acres, but also a mill and the only permitted cobalt extraction refinery in North America capable of resuming material production.

Cobalt’s renewed value lies largely in the emerging demand for electric vehicles on a multi-national basis. Electric vehicles are touted as an environmentally cleaner alternative to fossil fuel-driven vehicles, but a vast majority rely heavily on the energy efficient qualities of lithium-ion batteries. Cobalt comprises a significant element of those batteries. European countries and China are pushing for sharp increases in EV production and phasing out gasoline-powered vehicle sales. The state of California is also notable in its push for greater EV use. Notably, cobalt also enjoys a national security status, because it is a critical element for some military resources, such as rocket and jet engines.

The Iron Creek Project exploration will include drilling another 70 holes as part of an additional 30,000 meters of surveying throughout the mineral strike zone. The drilling is designed to double the strike length of the cobalt-copper zone from 460 meters to 900 meters. A maiden mineral resource estimate compliant with NI 43-101 standards is expected by October. The drilling began in February and has already extended the known mineralization to over 520 meters of strike to date, according to a report issued this month. The work program will also include surface sampling of exposed bedrock in search of cobalt-copper prospects away from the Iron Creek mineralization.

Part of the attractiveness of the site in Idaho’s prolific Cobalt Belt is that historic mining left significant infrastructure already in place, including three horizontal-entry adits with 600 meters of drifting extraction area and an all-weather road that connects the project to a state highway. The company has all of the necessary permits in place to complete its 2018 program.

For more information, visit the company’s website at http://ibn.fm/FTSSF

• Lexaria is ahead of the game in the expected second flow of investment capital in “plant-to-bloodstream” companies
• Company’s DehydraTECH™ technology has the potential to revolutionize nicotine use, eliminating the major cause of related deaths by shifting demand away from smoking cigarettes
• DehydraTECH™ makes it possible to experience most of the positives associated with inhalation while eliminating the negatives, helping to make lighting up a thing of the past

Within the cannabis industry, the initial flow of investment capital has been toward ‘seed-to-plant’ companies. As the next stage of investment is expected to be ‘plant-to-bloodstream’, companies such as Lexaria Bioscience Corp. (CSE: LXX) (OTCQX: LXRP) are positioned ahead of the game. LXRP’s revolutionary DehydraTECH™ technology disrupts the traditional ways that cannabinoids enter the bloodstream, including through inhalation, under the tongue and through edibles. Each of these three historic methods have their own challenges.

First, inhalation is unhealthy, allowing toxins from the combustion process to enter the bloodstream. People die every day from smoking cigarettes, and no rational person can argue in favor of smoking. Second, edible producers often mask the bitter taste of hemp oils and cannabis oils through the use of excessive sugar or unwanted artificial sweeteners. Additionally, the active ingredients are broken down by the liver, largely destroyed by stomach acid and unable to significantly cross the intestinal wall. Lexaria’s patented technology, DehydraTECH™, improves the effectiveness of the active ingredients and addresses these common problems. DehydraTECH™ reduces the bitter flavor, making sweeteners unnecessary. It also protects the active ingredients during stomach transit and amplifies intestinal absorption by up to 10x, as compared to edible forms that have not been technically enhanced. In addition, the tech has the ability to bypass first-pass liver metabolism, greatly improving the rapidity with which the active ingredient can take effect.

This revolutionary edible technology extends beyond cannabinoids, as the company continues to evaluate its potential use for nicotine delivery and a smoke-free future. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately six million deaths per year globally are attributed primarily to the act of smoking nicotine products. Nicotine, however, is not primarily responsible. According to the U.K. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), “The harm associated with cigarette smoking is almost entirely caused by the toxins and carcinogens found in tobacco smoke – not the nicotine” (http://ibn.fm/co5ex). Lexaria believes that DehydraTECH™ has the potential to revolutionize nicotine use by allowing users to avoid the dangerous chemicals associated with the normal inhalation means of getting nicotine, effectively eliminating the major cause of related deaths by shifting demand away from smoking cigarettes and toward common food and consumer products. Early animal testing of DehydraTECH™ has shown dramatically faster delivery of nicotine to the bloodstream than controls.

Although inhalation is an effective delivery mechanism – much more so than non-enhanced edible ingestion – it is dangerous. The toxins released during combustion are harmful and can potentially kill the user. Edible ingestion eliminates the toxins caused by lighting up. While inhalation is fast, traditionally, ingestion has not been. However, the use of DehydraTECH™ speeds things up to make edible absorption roughly as fast as inhalation, allowing for non-deadly yet effective forms of absorption. This revolutionary technology makes it possible to experience most of the positives of inhalation while eliminating the negatives and making lighting up a thing of the past.

Lexaria Bioscience Corporation was recently added to the CSE 25 stock index, reflecting its recent growth to become one of the 25 largest-capitalized companies on the Canadian Securities Exchange (http://ibn.fm/UkiMt).

In addition, Horizons Marijuana Life Sciences Index ETF recently added Lexaria as one of its core stock holdings, buying Lexaria’s common stock on the open market (http://ibn.fm/rL8G0). Lexaria Bioscience Corp. is clearly receiving more widespread recognition as a sector leader than it ever has in the past.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.LexariaEnergy.com

• Operations underway on industrial hemp fields in New Brunswick and Oregon
• United States trending toward national legalization of hemp agriculture
• Acquisition of 50 percent interest in Cash Crop Today provides successful media and branding resource

Global Hemp Group Inc. (CSE: GHG) (OTC: GBHPF) (FRANKFURT: GHG) is pleased to see increasingly favorable prospects for the industrial hemp industry in the United States after the close of “Hemp History Week” (June 4-10) awareness efforts. Although the plant offers no benefit to recreational drug users, it was ensnared in legislative efforts to control its botanical sibling marijuana decades ago. Now, the veil of suspicion over guilt-by-association policy appears to be lifting.

Global Hemp Group Inc. is a company dedicated to establishing a network of harmonious hemp businesses that produce and market the plant’s products, which serve as a resource for the cannabinoid-based medicines, construction, paper and textile industries, among others. Although hemp remains classified as a federally controlled drug substance in the United States, cultivation policy experiments under Senator Mitch McConnell’s provisos in the Agricultural Act of 2014 (http://ibn.fm/BT8uM) paved the way for a broader legalization effort under the Hemp Farming Act in the 2018 Farm Bill update currently being debated in Congress (http://ibn.fm/mp7LG), which aims to federally legalize the cultivation and manufacturing of industrial hemp throughout the country.

Additionally, the United States President recently indicated that he would probably support a new bill decriminalizing marijuana at the federal level, leaving its regulation to the states if Congress passes the measure (http://ibn.fm/faTIB). Just as hemp was caught up in the drive to regulate marijuana, efforts to deregulate marijuana could prove beneficial to hemp. Thirty states have enacted laws allowing the use of marijuana for medical uses, and 37 others have passed industrial hemp-based laws (http://ibn.fm/N58dd), all in defiance of federal law.

In Canada, the outlook has been more favorable, with successes trending toward recreational-use marijuana and other cannabinoid derivatives from hemp, as legislation is expected to be finalized later this year (http://ibn.fm/Flar2). Global Hemp Group has already launched its 2018 cultivation efforts in New Brunswick hemp fields through its partnership with Marijuana Company of America (OTC: MCOA), and it recently announced a high yielding CBD hemp cultivation project being developed in Scio, Oregon.

The New Brunswick project includes 125 acres of traditional dense cropping of hemp with plans to increase it to more than 1,000 acres in the next three years. The Oregon program includes up to 35 acres of orchard style cultivation with plans to increase acreage significantly in 2019 and with potential year-round perpetual harvest cultivation in greenhouses (http://ibn.fm/jdVrr). The partners intend to analyze data collected from the vastly different cultivation styles to determine which will produce the highest yield per acre.

Global Hemp Group also announced earlier this month that it has acquired a 50 percent interest in Cash Crop Today Media, LLC, a media company that reports on the industrial hemp and cannabis market sectors. Cash Crop Today is growing rapidly and currently has a total of 1.38 million monthly website views from visitors and a traffic ranking on Alexa in the United States of 69,272, according to the company.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.GlobalHempGroup.com

• Receives first QuadSight™ prototype order from truck division of a large European vehicle manufacturer
• QuadSight™ system uses two pairs of stereoscopic infrared and daylight cameras that exceed a human driver’s ability to see, regardless of weather or lighting conditions
• QuadSight™, Eyes-On™ and Eye-Net™ are accident prevention products revolutionizing the safety and dependability of driver assistance and automated vehicle technology

Foresight Autonomous Holdings Ltd. (NASDAQ: FRSX) (TASE: FRSX), a technology company engaged in the design, development and commercialization of stereo/quad-camera vision systems and V2X cellular-based solutions for the automotive industry, recently received its first order for its breakthrough QuadSight™ prototype (http://ibn.fm/qLNY2). A truck division of a large European vehicle manufacturer ordered the system to evaluate the prototype and its performance on the manufacturer’s trucks. FRSX is confident that the sales of QuadSight™ prototypes will strengthen relations with potential customers and lead to large orders of the QuadSight vision system for mass production.

The QuadSight™ system demo was launched last January at the CES show in Las Vegas. Based on 3D video analysis, advanced algorithms for image processing and sensor fusion, QuadSight™ uses four-camera technology combining two pairs of stereoscopic infrared and daylight cameras. Stereoscopic cameras provide a level of accuracy that exceeds a human driver’s ability to see in real-time by using synchronized cameras, along with advanced algorithms for image processing and sensor fusion, to mimic 3D human depth perception. The company’s proprietary stereoscopic system is derived from major shareholder Magna B.S.P.’s field-proven technology, which has been deployed worldwide for almost two decades. QuadSight™ offers exceptional obstacle detection for semi-autonomous and autonomous vehicle safety with near-100 percent obstacle detection and near-zero false alerts, regardless of weather or lighting. FSRX believes that its vision systems will revolutionize automotive safety with its cost-effective platform and advanced technology.

QuadSight™ is one of three accident prevention products offered by FRSX. Eyes-On™, an advanced ADAS system, provides lane departure warning and traffic sign recognition, and it scans the road for any obstacles, including vehicles, pedestrians, cyclists or any other possible hazard. It can detect at long-range and high speeds, identifying smaller objects than comparable systems on the market.

Eye-Net™ is a cellular-based V2X (vehicle to everything) accident prevention solution. It identifies possible oncoming collisions before those involved are even able to see each other. Eye-Net™ is designed to provide a complementary layer of protection for both vehicles and pedestrians beyond traditional ADAS, and it runs as a background process on iOS and Android-based mobile phones, eliminating the need for designated hardware.

FSRX is positioned for growth as it perfects its unique line of automotive vision systems.  QuadSight™, Eyes-On™ and Eye-Net™ are revolutionizing the safety and dependability of driver assistance and automated vehicle technology.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.ForesightAuto.com