NEW YORK, N.Y. – Former Senator Tom Daschle (D-SD) has joined the advisory board of New York-based cannabis investment firm Northern Swan. Former Representative Joseph Crowley (D-NY), has also come onto the board at Northern Swan, joining Daschle.
The politicos are the latest players to pursue private sector careers in cannabis. Former Speaker of the House John Boehner and former Governor of Massachusetts Bill Weld, both Republicans, joined the advisory board of U.S.-based cannabis investment firm Acreage Holdings, in 2018.
According to a press announcement, Daschle has expert background through his work in healthcare policy reform and “believes it is imperative to loosen the restrictions on cannabis so we can research its properties and fully understand how patients can benefit from its medicinal use.” During his career in the Senate, Daschle was distinguished by twice serving as Majority and Minority Leader.
Crowley has supported the “Medical Marijuana Use Amendment, which started in 2005, … [and] has been a key mover in Americans accessing their right to medicine,” said the announcement. He hopes to use his experience in developing healthcare policy to contribute to Northern Swan’s business strategy going forward.
Chairman of the Democratic Caucus for two years, Crowley was a long-seated incumbent from the borough of Queens, New York, in 2018, when political newcomer and democratic socialist Alexandria Ocasio Cortez defeated him in a well-publicized campaign. The win propelled “AOC” to become the face of a new wave of female, progressive politicians that were elected in the wake of the 2016 presidential election.
Northern Swan multinational ambitions were also detailed in the announcement and noted that the firm has “raised approximately $100 million of financing to date for their cannabis initiatives, which include expanding existing Latin American operations, investing in new low-cost, large-scale cannabis cultivation and processing centers, and build-out of distribution channels and brands in Europe, Latin America, and North America.
“Northern Swan has invested in several companies spanning the global cannabis value chain including Clever Leaves, a leading vertically integrated licensed producer of medical cannabis in Colombia, and Cansativa GmbH, a German cannabis distribution company,” the statement continued.
Based in Bogotá, Clever Leaves plans on being the world’s largest producer of medical cannabis by 2023, with more than ten million square feet of “growable terrain,” pharmaceutical grade extraction plant, and production facilities.
