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New Study Suggests Veterinarians are Still Hesitant to Discuss CBD Treatments

January 9, 2019 by Staff Writer Leave a Comment

In the last 6 years, the cannabinoid known as CBD (cannabidiol) has gone from something almost no one had heard of to something almost everyone wants to know more about. With the recent federal legalization of hemp, the hemp-derived CBD industry is poised to grow faster than it already has.

And the questions that surround CBD are not confined to the human realm. Dog owners are increasingly interested in what CBD can do for their canine companions. But a recent study shows dog owners may have to find other avenues of information regarding CBD – avenues that do not include their dog’s veterinarian.

A recent online survey conducted by researchers from Colorado State University, North Carolina State University and the Veterinary Information Network collected responses from some 2,130 vets across the country and “gauged US veterinarians’ knowledge level, views and experiences related to the use of cannabinoids in the medical treatment of dogs.”

While roughly 61% of respondents felt comfortable discussing CBD with their colleagues, only 45.5% were comfortable discussing CBD with the pet owners they see. That means more than half of vets won’t even broach the subject of CBD with owners whose pets may benefit from it.

And while vets “practicing in states with legalized recreational marijuana were more likely to advise their clients and recommend the use of CBD,” surprisingly “[r]ecent veterinary graduates were less likely to recommend or prescribe CBD.”

One has to wonder while vets who are newer to practice would be less likely to recommend something we know much more about than we did 5 years ago. What we have learned about CBD in that time has been overwhelmingly positive, with even the World Health Organization declaring CBD to be not harmful. “At its November 2017 meeting, the WHO Expert Committee on Drug Dependence (ECDD) concluded that, in its pure state, cannabidiol does not appear to have abuse potential or cause harm.”

It would seem that the natural tendency is for those new to the vet business to be more likely to recommend CBD as time goes on as medical practitioners in general become more comfortable with the substance, but so far the data doesn’t seem to have borne that out.

One key to veterinary reluctance on CBD seems to be a wish for more information and guidance. “Participants felt their state veterinary associations and veterinary boards did not provide sufficient guidance for them to practice within applicable laws,” the study’s abstract reads in part. “Recent graduates and those practicing in states with legalized recreational marijuana were more likely to agree that research regarding the use of CBD in dogs is needed.”

Another reminder that there is still a long way to go to unleashing the full potential of the cannabis plant for those who need it, whether they have two legs or four.

New Study Suggests Veterinarians are Still Hesitant to Discuss CBD Treatments
Source: Marijuana Times

An Oregon Bill Could Cause New Conflict with the Federal Government Over Legal Cannabis

January 8, 2019 by Staff Writer Leave a Comment

There are a lot of cannabis related bills making their way through legislature right now – but one that is expected to be introduced soon in Oregon takes a leap that could lead to federal interference on a new level if it becomes law. The bill would make it legal for wholesalers to export dried cannabis to other states in the country where cannabis is legal – which is entirely illegal under federal law no matter which way you look at it.

As it stands there are very few protections for the cannabis industry to prevent the federal government from coming in and shutting things down simply because they can, and in the end those protections rely on states keeping their legal cannabis within their own borders. While the bill would only allow wholesalers to sell to states where cannabis is currently legal – like Washington and California – it still goes against the guidelines set by the feds that have kept them out of legalization so far.

“There are plenty of markets that would be thrilled to have world-class cannabis,” said Adam Smith, founder and director of the Oregon-based Craft Cannabis Alliance, in an interview with the paper. “But prohibition keeps us from sending it into those markets.”

Why, if it could cause such conflict with the federal government, would Oregon lawmakers be looking to take things to this new level and test waters with exporting cannabis? Mostly to help solve a problem of their own, which is an extreme oversupply.

There is currently an excess of roughly 1.3 million pounds of cannabis sitting around in Oregon since there is no limit on cultivation licenses in the state. With more growers than necessary to keep up with the supply and demand, there is far more cannabis being grown than can be consumed by those living in the state. With licenses still being issued, this is a problem that isn’t going to go away on its own.

However, Oregon isn’t the only state with an overabundance of cannabis since legalization. While the industry often starts off with a slump in supply right after sales begin, eventually this evens out, prices drop and suddenly there is more bud than imagined just sitting on shelves – so exporting might be harder than legislators imagine.

It is uncertain if this bill will gain enough support to make it to the governor’s desk for a signature – or if the governor would consider passing the legislation if it got that far. However, if it does make it that far, then there is a strong possibility that it would be challenged by federal law in some form or another.

An Oregon Bill Could Cause New Conflict with the Federal Government Over Legal Cannabis
Source: Marijuana Times

Only Economics Can Defeat the Black Market

January 7, 2019 by Staff Writer Leave a Comment

Before we begin, let’s make one thing clear: there will always be a black market for marijuana. Alcohol is legal, yet there are still those who make their own illegally. Cigarettes are legal, yet there are still places where you can buy them on the street and avoid the tax levied on legal tobacco products.

As long as some part of the cannabis industry remains illegal, someone will be there to take advantage of the inflated profits that come from selling an illegal substance. And as long as legal marijuana remains much more expensive than illegal marijuana, the black market for cannabis will remain and even thrive. No laws can change this, any more than the laws against marijuana have wiped out marijuana use.

“[A] recent story by the Southern California News Group highlights a more pressing issue,” The San Diego Union-Tribune Editorial Board said in a recent op-ed. “It cited evidence that ‘the illicit side of the weed business is only growing stronger’ in California because illegal sales and cultivation are so much cheaper and have so few hassles compared with legal sales and cultivation.”

Much has been made of the high taxes and burdensome regulations suffered by legal cannabis businesses in California. I’ve remarked on the subject several times, most recently in my review of the Netflix docuseries “Murder Mountain.”

California is a perfect example of how to fail at under-cutting the black market. Legal marijuana businesses are in competition with each other obviously, but their main competition are illegal dealers and unlicensed dispensaries who are free from costly compliance and whose products are free from high taxes. The result is much lower prices from those dealers and dispensaries.

No law will stop illegal dealers, as the histories of alcohol and drug prohibition have taught us. Only economics can do that. If legal cannabis businesses can offer better products at lower prices, they can crush the illegal market. All things being equal, cannabis consumers would rather buy from a legal shop.

I understand this may not be a popular thing to say in some quarters in this day and age, but here it goes anyway: the only way to drive illegal dealers out of business is to lower prices – and the only ways to lower prices are to increase supply and lower taxes. Restrictions and regulations must be stripped down so that the maximum amount of businesses the market will hold can come into being. Taxes that inflate the price of cannabis products must be lowered.

The greater variety and safer buying experience that legal businesses can offer are natural advantages over the black market, but unless legal businesses can compete when it comes to price, those other advantages will never be enough to shrink the illegal market.

Only Economics Can Defeat the Black Market
Source: Marijuana Times

Cannabis Law Reform Moves Through Much of The Northeast in 2018

January 6, 2019 by Staff Writer Leave a Comment

The Northeastern portion of the United States was a whirlwind for cannabis progress in 2018. Each state and district saw progress of some variety. While most took progressive steps, some remained relatively stagnant. With such a wild and mostly progressive 2018 in the books, let’s examine the marijuana news coming out of each state.

Maryland

Maryland began the year with a medical cannabis program, which officially launched in March. However, the bill did create confusion for some. In one case, lawmakers found themselves uncertain around medical patients and any potential arrests. The state also passed a medical marijuana bill which aimed to create more access for minority business owners to become growers and processors.

By December, it was clear that Maryland’s program is a hit. So much so that sales surpassed expectation, pulling in over $100 million in revenue. Potentially even more impressive is the 300 new patients registered each day.

Washington, D.C.

Despite much activity on Capitol Hill, the country’s capital saw little change in 2018. The unorthodox market continues not to allow cannabis sales. Instead, a product can be gifted along with other purchased items. The ban on dispensaries continues to hinge mainly on bureaucratic reasons in Congress. Though, 2018 saw efforts by cannabis attorneys to change that. The November midterm elections have also given hope to rules changing when Democrats take control of the House next year.

Delaware

Delaware spent much of 2018 in limbo. While some lawmakers pushed for recreational cannabis, others opted for the status quo. This includes a failed June attempt in the House. There, the measure fell four votes short of the needed 25 to move the bill to the Senate.

Despite the setback, the state did make progress in 2018. That includes passing a bill which expunges possession records for those charged with such crimes prior to 2015. Now, with neighboring New Jersey on the edge of legalization, some say Delaware lawmakers are watching intently.

New Jersey

New Jersey saw immense progress in 2018, though no certain milestones have been reached just yet. The year began with staunchly anti-cannabis Governor Chris Christie succeeded by a pro-cannabis governor, Phil Murphy. Murphy swore to legalize adult use within the first 100 days of his term. This did not occur. Instead, cities like Point Pleasant and Tom’s River announced plans to ban medical and/or recreational sales.

February saw the state propose a decriminalization bill. Another bill followed in March. This one centers on home growing and the allowance of 400 legal dispensaries. That same month saw the state expand access to its medical program. By the spring, rumors of legalization were heating up. In April, the state Attorney General acknowledged that law enforcement was preparing for the changing laws.

The rest of the year consisted of steady progress towards completing the bill. However, in December, state lawmakers announced that the bill will not go up for a vote in the final days of 2018. Rather, it appears that the state is poised to become the 11th state to legalize in early 2019 – becoming the second to follow in Vermont’s path.

Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania’s medical marijuana program began in 2016. This past year saw it make significant gains with the start of its medical cannabis market. In short order, the demand for medical products outpaced expectations.

The standout figures helped spur on further advancement of the market. That includes granting 23 additional dispensary permits this past December. The move gives the state 79 locations for patients. Additionally, the state has considered expanding its list of qualifying conditions. However, one setback came when the state rejected all eight applicants attempting to partner with universities for research. A new round of applications is expected to open in early 2019.

New York

New York State’s about-face on cannabis access continued in 2018. The year began with Governor Andrew Cuomo, a staunch opponent to cannabis, launching a study into regulated marijuana in New York. By the summer, the study, which was led by the state Health Department, concluded that New York should legalize adult use. Recently, the Governor continued his change of tune by calling for the legalization of cannabis within the first 100 days of 2019.

Throughout the year, New York State also saw progress concerning medical access. One measure saw the state become one of the first programs to allow anyone with an opioid-based prescription to receive medical marijuana. Meanwhile, in New York City, Mayor Bill de Blasio told police to stand down on cannabis smoking arrests. Instead, the city now pushes summonses as a crime deterrent. The decision came as the city looks to overhaul its policing policies towards cannabis and people of color.

Connecticut

Much of 2018 in Connecticut centered on expanding its current cannabis laws. So far, the state has a medical program and has decriminalized small possession. In April, the state House Appropriations Committee approved a bill which would legalize the plant. The next step would be consideration of the floor. This was expected before the end of the year, but that will not be the case. Nothing is guaranteed for legalization in 2019, but there does appear to be some progress.

Despite the setback, in December, Governor-elect Ned Lamont offered his support for adult use cannabis. Meanwhile, around the same time, the state doubled its number of dispensaries.

New Hampshire

If this article were the famous Sesame Street song “One of These Things is Not Like the Other”, New Hampshire would be that thing. In terms of Northeastern states, New Hampshire appears set on keeping cannabis at bay. The state has a medical program and expanded its program by adding a dispensary in a lightly populated part of the state.

However, the likelihood of more expanded access coming doesn’t appear likely. Despite residents favoring legalization, Governor Chris Sununu has vowed to veto legislation of any type. In December, he called legalization “the next major battle” and uses anti-marijuana groups for advisement on the matter.

Vermont

Vermont began 2018 by making history. In early January, state lawmakers approved an adult-use cannabis bill, which was signed into law by Governor Phil Scott. This became the first time in which a state-approved recreational use through legislative means rather than a vote by citizens.

With sales not yet beginning, lawmakers spent the rest of the month hammering out the program’s details. They include considering options which would fast-track erasing misdemeanor offenses from criminal records. This led to the establishment of expungement clinics which will begin in the coming months. Additionally, Vermont passed a home cultivation law which allows residents 21 and over to grow in their homes and potentially rental properties.

Meanwhile, the state continues to sort its marketplace out. A significant sticking point for policymakers appears to be a demand for roadside saliva tests before the market can open.

Massachusetts

While Vermont made quite an impact on the Northeast in 2018, it can be argued that Massachusetts had the more lasting effect. With recreational sales beginning this past November, the state became the first on the east coast to do so. During the second week of sales, the state pulled in $2.6 million in revenue. Additionally, thanks to its market going live, states like New York, New Jersey and others in the Northeast have reconsidered regulation changes.

Prior to its legal cannabis market launch, much of the state’s year was spent preparing its rules, regulations and licensing. One such measure included giving licensing preferences to communities of color. However, issues persisted in the maturing market. Heading into the new year, the state’s “gray market” caused debates over what is a sale and which is a gift. Despite the issues, the year was seen as a smashing success by most.

Rhode Island

Rhode Island ushered in medical cannabis in 2006 and became the second state to open a dispensary. However, its progression has slowed since then. This includes some troubling signs as well. The most glaring mark came from a February report which found that state police continued to enforce small possession laws despite it being decriminalized since 2013. The number of citation appears to be around 5,000.

With surrounding states opening its access and dispensary doors, Rhode Island may join the movement. In May, a bill to legalize was filed in the state Senate. Despite Governor Gina Raimondo’s resistance to cannabis – citing her youth sons and role as a parent – she and other lawmakers seem to embrace the likelihood of recreational cannabis in the state. Lawmakers already confirmed that cannabis will be up for discussion next year.

Maine

Maine voters legalized adult use cannabis in 2016. Thanks to notoriously anti-marijuana Governor Paul LePage and his vetoes, the law was only passed this past May when the state’s Congress overrode his efforts. Some even called the passed legislation “a more conservative version” of what citizens voted for in 2016.

The conservative measures include prohibiting social clubs and only allowing for three plants to be grown at home. Then, in July, lawmakers also overturned the Governor’s efforts to veto medical cannabis reforms which would improve access in several facets of the market.

The state did make some progress near the end of the year. A law was enacted in December which gives increased options to medical businesses. Under the new law, operations can sell up to 30% of its harvest. The move allows retailers to not have to cultivate their own crop.

Cannabis Law Reform Moves Through Much of The Northeast in 2018
Source: Marijuana Times

What Netflix’s “Murder Mountain” Teaches Us About Prohibition

January 5, 2019 by Staff Writer Leave a Comment

By now many of you have likely heard about the interest in a new docuseries from Netflix called Murder Mountain. The mountain in question is in Humboldt County, California, a hub of illegal cannabis growing for decades.

The series weaves together several different plotlines, including the story of a man from the San Diego area who went missing while working on Murder Mountain and the affect adult use legalization is having on growers in the area.

Over the course of the six-part series, several things become glaringly obvious. The most over-riding takeaway from the series is how cannabis prohibition created an area of lawlessness in the northern part of the largest state in the U.S.

Humboldt County’s rural nature and rough terrain were a natural lure for criminal elements looking to take advantage of the prohibition-inflated profits that came with marijuana growing. Over time these more violent elements drove out the hippie culture that northern CA was known for. Growers in the area, not wanting law enforcement anywhere near their operations, did their best to seal themselves off and deal with problems in their own way.

Under prohibition the area became a magnet for criminal gangs looking for a place to hide and grow lucrative cannabis. As mentioned in the series, some estimate that 60% of the black market marijuana grown in the U.S. at one point came from the Emerald Triangle – Humboldt, Mendocino, and Trinity counties in northern California.

Whether or not that number is true – or could ever even be accurately determined – is less important than the fact that its very plausibility speaks to the amount of cannabis coming out of the region.

Another big takeaway from the series is just how damaging the over-regulation of California’s new legal cannabis industry is to growers and would-be legal business owners in the state. Massive fees, high taxes and numerous regulations have caused many to have to make a choice between continuing in the black market or risking everything for the possibility of keeping their head above water in the legal market.

What would Humboldt County have been without marijuana prohibition? Would “Murder Mountain” have that name in a world where cannabis was never made illegal in the first place? One thing is for sure: without marijuana prohibition, there is no reason for the Emerald Triangle to be flooded with criminal gangs and those who are more likely to settle their disputes with firearms than they are to settle them in a court. The vast mountainous wilderness would always draw in people who are looking to hide or get away or start over their life in a quiet place, but there is little reason to think that swarms of violent elements would have populated the area without the lure of prohibition-driven cannabis profits.

Of course, hostility and a lack of trust between citizens and law enforcement is not new – and certainly not exclusive to the Emerald Triangle. Much of that distrust can be traced to the War on Drugs however, no matter what the locale.

It’s also true that bad things happen all across the United States and the world every day, things that have nothing to do with prohibition. But creating an artificial incentive for violent people to settle in one geographic region can never end well.

As for the series itself, Murder Mountain is well done overall, and does a fair job of juggling disparate story threads. It keeps you guessing if you don’t already know the stories of the people involved and does a good job of showing a region through the eyes of the people who live there.

What Netflix’s “Murder Mountain” Teaches Us About Prohibition
Source: Marijuana Times

Finding Software Solutions in the Cannabis Industry

June 6, 2017 by Staff Writer Leave a Comment

There is no doubt that computer software is playing a major role in the legal marijuana industry, and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. An avalanche of information and requirements come with entering the cannabis industry, just as it does with any other industry. It is entirely too much for the human brain to know and catalog. That is why we rely so much on computers and their capabilities in our everyday lives; being successful in the legal marijuana industry is no different.

One of the companies at the forefront of providing software solutions to those in this new and uncertain industry is the NexTec Group. In business since 1994, NexTec has been helping companies connect their systems, update out-of-date software, ensure compliance and improve forecasts for over 20 years. They recently took their expertise to the cannabis industry.

“Based on our expertise in food, pharma, nutra, and traditional growers (like hops and nuts), where traceability and strong compliance are a must, we decided to look into the cannabis industry as a possible new market for NexTec,” Catherine Lindner, Director of Marketing at NexTec, told The Marijuana Times. “One of the members of our management team met other executives in the cannabis industry to learn about the issues they were facing and gaps in technology where NexTec’s expertise could help. From these conversations, NexTec determined that our expertise with food and beverage, growers and process manufacturing can be transferred to the business needs of cannabis cultivators and processors. It was then that NexTec decided to make a big investment and develop a specific ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) solution for the grower side of the cannabis industry.”

Some of NexTec’s ERP solutions include barcode and RFID tracking of plants, integration into state regulatory systems, 280e cost capturing and a “product recall” add-on that can “identify in 10 minutes where that material (from a bad crop) was used. It will then help identify and quarantine all related materials and create recall communications that can be sent to customers and partners if need be.”

There is a mountain of compliance issues when it comes to the marijuana industry. In many cases, record-keeping and information flow must be accurate and air-tight; there is little room for error. If you are going to be a force in the cannabis industry and plan on sticking around, your software must be able to keep up.

Finding Software Solutions in the Cannabis Industry
Source: Marijuana Times

City of Detroit Cracking Down on Medical Marijuana Dispensaries

June 5, 2017 by Staff Writer Leave a Comment

Under a new medical marijuana ordinance that took effect a little over a year ago, the vast majority of medical marijuana dispensaries operating in the city of Detroit have been deemed illegal by authorities. In that time some 167 dispensaries have been forced to close their doors, their patients forced to look elsewhere for their medicine.

In total, 283 dispensaries have been told to cease operations since they were not legally licensed under city rules. “None of them were operating lawfully,” Detroit corporation counsel Melvin Butch Hollowell said. “At the time I sent a letter to each one of them indicating that unless you have a fully licensed facility, you are operating at your own risk.”

The coming weeks will see another 51 closures; as of right now, only 5 are legally licensed to operate. Five dispensaries in a city with over 4 million people in its metro area, in a state with almost 250,000 registered patients.

“The voters of the state made medical marijuana legal so we have to manage that in a way that is consistent with keeping our neighborhoods respected and at the same time, allowing for those dispensaries to operate in their specific areas that we’ve identified as being lawful,” Hollowell said. “There was very significant public input in this process.”

While local control and input is a good thing, there is also the suffering of thousands of medical marijuana patients in Detroit, one of the poorest and most crime-ridden cities in the nation, to consider.

For example, under the new rules, dispensaries are barred from operating within a 1,000-foot radius of a church, school, park, liquor store, another dispensary, library or child care center. Can’t that list be pared-down? Why 1,000 feet from a liquor store or another dispensary? What danger exists at 900 feet that doesn’t exist at 1,100 feet in that situation? And this at a time when the Michigan Liquor Control Commission recently lifted a regulation that state liquor stores have to be at least a half-mile from each other.

One can see why a neighborhood would want sensible requirements for any business that operates near their location. But why is medical cannabis singled out for harsher treatment than other industries, like the alcohol sales industry? Where are the people who depend on those closed dispensaries supposed to go?

Some, to be sure, will go to the handful of legal dispensaries left in the city. But most will end up buying from the black market or even worse, going without their medicine completely. Some of those people will migrate back to addictive and deadly prescription drugs.

But I guess as long as Johnny’s Liquor Store isn’t 700 feet from Bob’s Medical Marijuana Dispensary then all is right with the world.

City of Detroit Cracking Down on Medical Marijuana Dispensaries
Source: Marijuana Times

How America is Celebrating Hemp History Week

June 4, 2017 by Staff Writer Leave a Comment

The second week of June marks the eighth annual Hemp History Week, and hemp advocates are putting on educational events across America to demystify the multi-tasking plant.

Going into Hemp History Week, the number one (and two) hemp fact to know is: While it’s a cousin of cannabis, the hemp plant is unique in that it can provide the therapeutic benefits of cannabidiol (CBD) with only trace amounts of the psychoactive compound tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Hemp also has limitless industrial possibilities.

For decades, America has had a checkered past with hemp. The once-thriving crop was banned in the 1930’s, then encouraged for the war effort throughout World War II, only to be banned again in the 1970’s. More recently, there’s been progress as the crop can be cultivated under certain circumstances and on a state-by-state basis.

Hemp History Week

Hemp History Week is the largest national grassroots effort to restore support for industrial hemp farming in America. The many events taking place June 5th through June 11th will include retail promotions, hemp plantings (in the states where hemp farming is legal under Section 7606 of the U.S. Farm Bill), documentary screenings, as well as farmer outreach.

Did you know that the hemp you see in national grocery stores like Whole Foods are actually imported from Canada, Europe, and China? It’s a controversial issue for domestic farmers as they fight for the right to grow and profit off American grown hemp.

According to the campaign website, “Hemp not only nets up to 2.5-times the value of U.S. corn and soy, it also has wide-reach environmental benefits including soil remediation, prolific pollen production for our bees and beneficial insects, and no synthetic pesticides nor fertilizers necessary to grow.” While some states continue to fight for hemp farming, progress is being made in states like Kentucky, Vermont and Colorado.

In 2014, these three states became the first to grow hemp under Section 7606, Legitimacy of Industrial Hemp Research, of the 2014 Federal Farm Bill. Now, hemp farming has reached many more states including: California, Colorado, Hawaii, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.

The objectives for Hemp History Week:

Celebrate America’s rich history with industrial hemp before it was outlawed and educate the public about the barriers to hemp farming in the United States.
Advocate for a federal policy change while sending a strong, positive message to the Executive Branch and Congress to remove barriers to hemp farming and let farmers grow the versatile and profitable crop.
Engage consumers by showcasing the range of hemp products available and the nutritional as well as environmental benefits that they provide.

“As recognition of hemp’s excellent nutritional profile grows, along with the demand for regenerative agricultural practices and advancements in plant-based innovations, hemp stands to once again be a vital and viable crop in the United States and around the world,” the Hemp History Week organization said in a statement.

Take action

A national nonprofit advocacy group, Vote Hemp was founded in 2000 with the mission to remove legal barriers to American industrial hemp farming. Vote Hemp estimates that the hemp market in the U.S. achieved 25% growth in 2016, reaching a total market value of $688 million.

This year, the focus is on garnering support from constituents across the country to ask their Senators to support the Senate version of the Industrial Hemp Farming Act. According to Vote Hemp, “the Bill Amends the Controlled Substances Act to exclude industrial hemp from the definition of “marihuana.” Writing to your senator is only few clicks away with this letter writing tool on their website.

This year’s theme for Hemp History Week is Breaking Ground, which focuses on how regenerative hemp farming, hemp foods, and other hemp products provide sustainability solutions for the next generation. Below are a few hemp-centric events from across the nation. You can also visit the campaign website to search for a nearby event.

Grateful Hearts Unite for Hemp: Boulder, Colorado

The Industrial Hemp Research Foundation (IHRF) has organized an event on June 9th to celebrate and educate people about the history of hemp. From 2:30 – 5:00 Café Aion will host the Grateful Hearts Unite for Hemp, a pre-party fundraising celebration while the Dead & Company is in town for a concert at Boulder’s Folsom Field.

“It’s a great opportunity for the Earth conscience followers of the band to learn more about hemp,” explains Melanie Rose Rodgers, Community Engagement Director for IHRF. The event and fundraiser will highlight the Industrial Hemp Research Foundation, a local 501c3 nonprofit dedicated to supporting industrial hemp research programs at institutions of higher learning and education in Colorado and universities across America.

Attendees are encouraged to wear all the hemp clothes and accessories they own. The ticketed event includes giveaways from hemp sponsors, food, drinks, and music from the band Pistols and Petticoats.

A note from the organizer: “Cafe Aion is conveniently located 0.2 miles (7 min. walk) to the Dead & Co. concert venue, Folsom Field. We welcome the music community, Dead fans, and fellow hempsters for this unique, community event celebrating Hemp History Week!”

Get HIP on HEMP: Washington, D.C.

If you’re in the District and want to learn more about hemp, there’s an educational event at WeWork’s K Street location on June 8. The Hemp History Week event is organized by the local hemp business Get Hemp Butter, an all-natural beauty and wellness salve company. Consult DC and High Caliber Events are also hosting.

Featured speakers include: Lauren Stansbury, Media Relations Manager of Dr. Bronner’s; DC Scroger, local Cultivator and Host of DC’s first Grow Show; and Suzannah L. Simmons, Director of Operations & Outreach for Cogent Law Group. Tickets are free and available online.

Harborside Health Center: Oakland, California

The legendary cannabis dispensary will be celebrating Hemp History week with interactive industrial hemp exhibit displays of building materials, plastics, fabrics, fibers, and clothing. There will also be free samples of hemp seeds and body care products. Proceeds from the purchase of posters, CD’s of John Trudell, and the DVD Bringing It Home will go to the organization Hempstead Project HEART (Hemp Energies Alternative Technologies). The event is on June 11th from 1:00PM to 4:00PM.

Harborside’s Co-Founder and Executive Director, Steve DeAngelo, is well-known in the cannabis and hemp space. A lifelong cannabis activist and businessman, DeAngelo has positioned himself as one of the most respected experts in the industry.

He literally wrote the book on the plant, called The Cannabis Manifesto, and is credited with creating the model medical cannabis dispensary with Harborside. According to his dispensary website, “he sees hemp and cannabis as one issue, not two.” DeAngelo is also the Co-founder and CEO of Ecolution, an international manufacturer of hemp clothing and accessories.

Search for Hemp History Week events near you with this handy search tool from the campaign website.

How America is Celebrating Hemp History Week
Source: Marijuana Times

2017 Cannabis Cultivation Conference

June 3, 2017 by Staff Writer Leave a Comment

I attended the inaugural Cannabis Cultivation Conference at the Oakland Marriott City Center in Oakland, California this past March and was very impressed with the professional business-to-business atmosphere. Valuable education and advice was offered by keynote and panel speakers, as well as over 50 product and service exhibitors. Networking opportunities abounded and hundreds of experienced individuals, as well as eager newbie registrants, exchanged ideas and made connections during program breaks, lunch and social time.

Participants traveled from all across the country and world to Oakland, California for the event – with an especially strong contingent from the western cannabis-friendly U.S. states of Colorado, Washington, Oregon, Alaska and California. All the expected topics were well covered, from best growing practices to licensing procedures – and even the fundamentals of futures markets, in anticipation of cannabis eventually being treated like any other agricultural commodity. Three days of intensive learning! I tried to take it all in. Here’s a brief breakdown of a few highlights.

The very first session dove right into the emerging challenges and opportunities presented by the evolving laws and processes in newly legal states. Here in California, for instance, the aftermath of Prop 64 is leading to a flurry of rule-making and a nearly impenetrable minefield of punishing fines for failing to have your ducks in a row. There will be more than a dozen classes of Medical Cannabis Cultivation Licenses, with annual fees ranging from $560 for a nursery to $38,350 for a medium indoor grow. But local permits must first be obtained and many cities/counties are still debating what to allow. Not surprisingly, a paperwork relief industry is springing up around the application process as lawyers and consultants chart winning paths through the regulatory straight-jackets as fast as bureaucrats can erect more daunting barriers to entry.

Étienne Fontán, Co-owner and Vice President of the Berkeley Patients Group, kicked off day two with an entertaining and heartwarming keynote speech tracing his personal journey through life as an activist and entrepreneur. A follow-on panel before lunch addressed several serious business issues affecting the state of the cannabis market, including the Obama era Yates memo on banking, FinCEN (Financial Crimes Enforcement Network) money laundering rules, and Internal Revenue Code section 280E which has been interpreted to prevent cannabis enterprises from deducting business expenses on tax returns.

Lunch breaks were held in the Exhibit Hall, so besides schmoozing and boozing between snacks, there was plenty of non-stop product info to ingest. One booth in particular that caught my attention was the big aquarium display tank brought by Oxygen Research Group LLC . Experienced cannabis cultivators know the value of delivering oxygen to the roots of plants and have long employed aquarium air-stones and noisy pumps to bubble or aerate water. The O2Grow uses hydrolytic electrolysis to silently break apart water molecules (H20) and create a mesmerizing underwater fog of hydrogen plus super-saturating oxygen nano-bubbles. Science geeks will correctly guess that much of the output recombines into water, and stray hydrogen simply dissipates at the surface. What’s interesting is that so much of the oxygen dissolves into the water since the bubbles are too small to break surface tension. University research found a 21% yield increase when this ultra-oxygenating tech was applied to organic brandywine tomato culture – impressive results!

A panel discussion later that day was devoted to increasing yields. Many techniques were reviewed that you’ve likely already heard about or employed, such as high stress training/super-cropping, automated fertigation, and soil salinity monitoring. Did you know that compounding your own bulk batches of fertilizer from cheap 50 pound bags of base salts can save you 90% over commercial off-the-shelf pre-mixes? I was also impressed with a simple suggestion for optimizing square footage, reducing wasted floor space by virtually eliminating aisles with wheeled benches – kinda like those puzzles we played with as kids where you pushed squares around in a plastic frame to form a pattern by manipulating the one empty space. While writing this article I chanced upon a short video demonstrating this idea on YouTube.

Facility automation was the next hot topic on the track I pursued. Scott Reach, founder of Rare Dankness, blew the crowd away with his investments in futuristic farming technology. Water recycling is a key to being green. Elimination of unskilled labor keeps costs down. What gets automated? Almost everything – and I’m not just talking trimming bud, think germination and up-potting, machine vision based IPM, data collection and climate control.

I found a podcast called Blazin’ with Bobby Black featuring an informative interview with Mr. Reach describing his career history that I thought was interesting. Scott feels legalization & competition drives down prices dramatically; to that end he is administering the financial discipline of big agriculture, working toward a $200/lb cost of production for 8 million grams/year via greenhouse automation, from his current $900/lb .

Any advice and opinions about the cultivation of Cannabis offered by Bruce N. Goren are his own and do not represent the University of California or the Master Gardener Program.

2017 Cannabis Cultivation Conference
Source: Marijuana Times

Accelerating Your Growth

June 2, 2017 by Staff Writer Leave a Comment

Anyone who has ever grown cannabis indoors knows how difficult it can be. If you’re not lucky enough to be able to grow huge plants in a greenhouse or outdoors in a place with great climate for most of the year – like northern California – then you’ve likely dealt with the myriad of issues that arise when you take something meant to be done easily outdoors and bring it inside.

There are many reasons to grow cannabis indoors, climate and security being chief among them. Indoor growing means year-round growing and plants grown inside a secure building are so much easier to keep away from potential thieves.

Fortunately, technological advancements in cultivation are making it easier to grow large amounts of plants indoors in ways that are cost-effective but that do not sacrifice quality. And helping growers build cost-efficient spaces for growing is exactly why companies like Accelerated Growth Solutions exist. According to their website, AGS “provides the best climate control equipment in the cannabis industry. We not only offer the most efficient systems, but unrivaled precision in environmental control based on temperature, humidity, and vapor pressure differential.”

AGS systems can automate every aspect of the climate plants exist and thrive in. They have water-cooled systems that are up to 50% more efficient than air-cooled systems, as well as pre-fabricated “Central Utility Plants” which are a “a controlled, single source environment” that AGS can provide “in a matter of months rather than the years it may take to engineer and construct a field built system integrated into the building.”

The environment your cannabis is grown in is critically important to the success of your crop. Stability is key, and systems from AGS provide that stability. They provide not only the products, but also the know-how and can guide you step-by-step through the process of growing top quality cannabis in an indoor environment.

Accelerating Your Growth
Source: Marijuana Times