President Vicente Fox Announced as Keynote Speaker for NCIA’s Cannabis Business Summit® & Expo

NCIA Logo (PRNewsfoto/National Cannabis Industry Assoc)

OAKLAND, Calif., May 4, 2017 /PRNewswire/ — The National Cannabis Industry Association (NCIA) announces former President of Mexico Vicente Fox as the keynote speaker for its flagship event, Cannabis Business Summit^® & Expo.

Fox served as President of Mexico from 2000 to 2006, and since his presidency, has become a notable proponent for a legal, regulated cannabis industry in Mexico and the United States. Prior to his presidency, Fox was also a highly successful business leader at Coca-Cola, rising from a position as a route supervisor to ultimately become president of Coca-Cola Latin America.

Once considered an unlikely advocate for cannabis, the former conservative leader of Mexico began speaking on the record in favor of legalization in 2011, attributing his support of cannabis policy reform to Mexico’s escalating problems with drug violence and corruption. Citing it as “a change of paradigm,” President Fox sees ending marijuana prohibition as a vehicle for peace in Mexico, removing a vital instrument of power, control, and authority from the hands of cartels in Latin America.

Vicente Fox Head Shot (PRNewsfoto/National Cannabis Industry Assoc)

During his keynote speech, President Fox is expected to discuss the social injustices created by the war on drugs and how the adoption of legal cannabis regulations by global governments would impede the cartels’ long standing history of abuse and violence. His experience raising himself through the ranks and eventually leading a major corporation also offers important lessons for the cannabis professionals attending NCIA’s Cannabis Business Summit.

In 2011, Fox collaborated with the Cato Institute, a renowned public policy research organization and think tank, at its Ending the Global War on Drugs conference. At the event, Fox called for an end to the war on drugs, alongside prominent global figures including former Secretary of State George Shultz, former Brazilian President Fernando Henrique Cardoso, and former Mexican foreign minister Jorge Castañeda, highlighting the harms of prohibition and recommending realistic policy alternatives.

President Fox began his career at Coca-Cola Mexico, working his way up to become head of Coca-Cola Mexico, and then president of Coca-Cola’s entire Latin America division. During his time leading Coca-Cola Mexico, Fox increased sales by nearly 50%, growing the product to become Mexico’s top-selling soft drink. After leaving Coca-Cola, Fox began his political career, as governor of Guanajuato, his home state. His 2000 presidential election ended seven decades of Mexican government rule by the PRI political party.

Cannabis Business Summit^® & Expo will be held in Oakland, CA, June 12-14, 2017. Passes may be purchased at CannabisBusinessSummit.com or by calling (888) 409-4419.

Members of the media on assignment for an established media outlet may request a press credential for this event at http://www.cannabisbusinesssummit.com/oakland-2017/media/press-pass.

Representing more than 1,000 member-businesses nationwide, the National Cannabis Industry Association (NCIA) is the largest cannabis trade association in the U.S. and the only organization representing cannabis-related businesses at the national level. NCIA promotes the growth of a responsible and legitimate cannabis industry and works toward a favorable social, economic, and legal environment for that industry in the United States.