Alabama Cannabis Commissioner Decries “Medical Cannabis” Term

9/10/2019

by

Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission member Stephen Taylor, a child and adolescent psychiatrist and addiction psychiatrist, said that the state should not be calling cannabis “medical” during a meeting of the commission on Monday, according to a report from Al.com. Taylor argued that “if it hasn’t been validated as medicine, we shouldn’t be calling it medical marijuana or medical cannabis.”

“And the idea that we would just put something out there and call it medicine for the people of our state to use when it really isn’t a legitimate medicine, that concerns me. That means that we are taking the chance at causing more harm than good. And that’s the opposite of what we’re supposed to be doing.” – Taylor, during an Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission Meeting, via Al.com 

Taylor pointed to an advisory by U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams late last month about the dangers of cannabis use by teenagers and pregnant women. Adams, who made the advisory while announcing a cannabis-focused public health campaign, said that cannabis use “carries more risk than ever”; although last year he indicated he supported reclassification of cannabis on the federal drug schedule. 

Medical Cannabis Commission Chairman Sen. Tem Melson (R), who is also an anesthesiologist and medical researcher, said that some studies show medical cannabis helps some patients whether it’s called medicine or not, while responding to Taylor, and asked him what he would rather call it.

“Because I can show you studies where it helps, so let’s come up with a name that makes everybody happy because a name is a name. It doesn’t really matter. It’s the results and the studies that show that it’s been effective,” he said following Taylor’s comments, according to the report. “So, I don’t care what we call it. But I’m going to tell you that I want to find a way to get it to the people who need it and do it in a responsible way.”

The committee was created by the legislature in June after lawmakers failed to pass a bill sponsored by Melson. The 15-person commission includes doctors, lawmakers, and other governor appointees to study medical cannabis legalization in the state. Under the law, the commission is expected to present potential legislation by the start of the 2020 session. The state does have a limited CBD program on the books which allows the University of Alabama at Birmingham to study high CBD oil and intractable seizure disorders.

The commission will meet again next month.

End

Idaho Police Agencies Take Different Approaches to Hemp

9/09/2019

by

The two Idaho criminal cases where police seized hemp being transported through the state have had strikingly different results – one company has had their hemp returned by authorities, while the other’s remains impounded.

In February, Idaho State Police seized a 6,700-pound shipment of legal hemp from Boones Ferry Berry Farms in transit between Oregon and Colorado and jailed the driver and have refused to return the cargo, which is worth about $1 million. The trucker faces a five-year mandatory minimum sentence for drug trafficking, the Idaho Press reports.

In an unrelated case in May, Boise Police officers intercepted a 69-pound package from Ontario, Canada as it was making its way through a United Postal Service distribution center in Boise to Treasure Valley Extraction in Oregon.

After testing by a Kentucky laboratory – which found THC levels of zero throughout the 17-box shipment – it was returned to sender.

Jim Hutchens, a former law enforcement officer who is now president and CEO of Treasure Valley Extraction, said he doesn’t blame police for confiscating the shipment but, at the time, the company was concerned about mold and mildew affecting the product.

“Basically, I want people to understand the separation between hemp and marijuana. They are two completely different plants even though they look alike, and they smell alike. They do different things.” – Hutchens, to CBS2

A spokesperson for BPD declined to comment on the case, calling it “a legislative issue … that is currently being worked on.”

A third case involving ISP seizing a shipment from Montana’s Big Sky Scientific and arresting the driver is still making its way through the courts. The company’s driver still has pending charges, the hemp has not been returned; ISP Director Kendrick Wills and Ada County Prosecutor Jan Bennets say that until the U.S. Department of Agriculture releases rules governing hemp, “[it’s] not legal in Idaho.”

In May, the agency did release a memo explicitly allowing interstate hemp transport.

End

Poll: 47% of Scotland Residents Support Cannabis Legalization

9/09/2019

by

A new survey by the Times has found that 47 percent of people living in Scotland support legalizing cannabis for adults with 37 percent opposed and 17 percent unsure.

Support for legalization is split among political affiliation in the poll with 59 percent of Scottish National Party voters supported the reforms, followed by 45 percent of Labour voters, 44 percent of Liberal Democrat voters, and 34 percent of Conservative supporters.

A June social media survey by substance abuse prevention organization Addaction found cannabis to be the most widely used illicit substance in Scotland, with 78 percent of respondents in the poll admitting to using it over the last year, Sky News reports. Among those that admitted to using cannabis, 19 percent said it was the only illegal drug they consumed over the last 12 months, while 54 percent said they used at least two others, 23 percent said they used at least five others. The survey also suggested that cannabis users were the least likely to develop substance abuse problems from cannabis use.

A July poll of the United Kingdom found 48 percent of adults supported legalizing cannabis for adults – a 5 percent increase compared to a survey the previous year. That poll found 77 percent support for medical cannabis legalization.

In the broad UK poll, which was commissioned by the Conservative Drug Policy Reform Group, one in three of the 1,690 respondents admitted to trying cannabis.

In 2017, the Liberal Democrats added legalization to their party platform. While at least two members of Conservative Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s administration have expressed support for reforming cannabis laws in the U.K.

End

Patient Advocate Removed From Ohio Marijuana Committee

9/09/2019

by

The patient advocate on Ohio’s Medical Marijuana Advisory Committee, Bob Bridges, has been removed and he believed his ouster is due to outspoken beliefs, according to a WOSU report. Bridges was removed by House Speaker Larry Householder and said he received an email about the move “randomly out of the blue.”

Bridges told WOSU that he “ruffled feathers” on the 16-person committee asking about whether the medical cannabis program would launch on time. In public, committee members said the program was on schedule; however, the state missed the Sept. 2018 deadline and dispensaries didn’t start to open until January 2019.

Bridges, who has helped write the state’s failed cannabis legalization bills, said many people on the committee “still believe in the D.A.R.E. mentality that marijuana is bad.”

“A lot of my focus was on patient protections. Like if a patient goes to the hospital and they have their medication on them, is their medication going to be taken away by law enforcement? That’s happened here in Ohio.” – Bridges, to WOSU

Householder said that Bridges’ removal stemmed from a belief that “it was time to go in another direction” and indicated there would be another appointment to fill the vacancy “in the near future.”

“We believe constructive, collaborative engagement is important on any board,” he said in a statement to WOSU.

A June report by the Alliance Review found that only about half of the state’s registered medical cannabis patients have purchased products from the state-approved dispensaries. Many patients said the high costs were keeping them out and forcing them to buy cannabis on the illicit market or go to Michigan whose program allows reciprocity. The Ohio Board of Pharmacy said that the state had sold $5.8 million worth of cannabis from January to June, equaling more than 750 pounds of flower. As of June, 17 of the 29 licensed cultivators were operational but just two of the 39 producers have started making products.

End

Massachusetts Mayor Arrested for Extorting Cannabis Companies

9/06/2019

by

Mayor Jasiel Correia of Fall River, Massachusetts was arrested Friday morning for allegedly attempting to extort cannabis companies for hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash, according to a CBS Boston report.

Specifically, Correia — who is 27 years old — is accused of extorting at least four cannabis business operators by soliciting $250,000 each from them in exchange for “non-opposition” letters from his office. He is said to have illegally generated some $600,000 doing so, as well as alleged arrangements for a future cut in some of the companies’ cannabis sales.

It’s the embattled mayor’s second arrest in less than a year: Correia was arrested in October on 13 federal fraud charges, which ultimately led to his recall — though the young Democratic mayor was re-elected shortly thereafter.

Four other individuals have been charged as the mayor’s co-conspirators, authorities said.

“Despite Mayor Correia’s public assurances to the city of Fall River, based on today’s indictment, he has essentially run that town as a pay-to-play institution. If the allegations in today’s indictment are true, Mayor Correia has engaged in a outrageous, brazen campaign of corruption which turned his job into a personal ATM.” — U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling, during a press conference

Correia appeared in federal court today where he pleaded not guilty; he was released in the afternoon after posting bail. “I’m not guilty of these charges,” he told reporters after leaving the federal court in Boston. “I’ve done nothing but good for the city of Fall River.”

Correia is up for re-election this fall and intends to run. The primary vote is scheduled for September 17.

Last month, the FBI announced it was seeking information about bribery in the cannabis industry.

End

Windsor, Ontario Cannabis Cruise Sells Out In 2 Days

9/06/2019

by

Windsor River Cruises and Border City Entertainment are holding their first annual cannabis cruise which will set sail along the Detroit River, according to a CBC report. The three-hour cruise is the first of its kind in Windsor, Ontario – and likely anywhere else.

Attendees must bring their own cannabis and be aged 19 years or older, as required to consume cannabis under Ontario law. The boat will stay in Canadian waters and people who are smoking cannabis will have to remain on the lower, outdoor, deck. The company will not be selling any cannabis products.

Jessilin Deschamps, promotional manager for Windsor River Cruises, said the event is “a big celebration of legalization.”

“You know people who have lived under prohibition laws for marijuana for decades but have still been using in private. You know and I’ve almost been made to feel ashamed of what they’re doing.” – Deschamps, in a CBC interview.

The tickets cost CAD$50 and were sold out within two days. Due to popular demand, the company is considering another event and has already started a waiting list for those interested in securing a spot on the next cruise, or in case tickets become available for the maiden voyage. Deschamps suggested that the popularity of the cruise could lead the event to become an international one.

The cruise will set sail on September 20.

End

Clear plastic garbage bags that have been stuffed with commercial-grade cannabis nugs.

Washington Grower Robbed of $250,000 Worth of Cannabis

9/06/2019

by

Thieves carried out an elaborate heist at the Cascade Mountain Cannabis cultivation facility in Kelso, Washington early Sunday morning, making off with roughly $250,000 worth of cured cannabis flower, according to a TDN report.

Cascade’s owner Courtney Roberts called the plot “sickening” and has offered a $5,000 reward for information that leads to an arrest.

The alleged thieves — five men and one woman — cut through the facility’s steel walls early Sunday morning and were able to clean out the drying room of some 130 to 150 pounds of freshly cured cannabis. The alleged thieves also destroyed some security cameras in the unmarked facility but surviving cameras were able to capture images of the suspects, including a tattoo on one person’s arm and another’s whole face. Three of the alleged thieves wore “Oregunian” brand sweatshirts, another wore a Nickelback t-shirt.

Mark Michaelson, manager at the cultivation facility, told FOX 12, “They literally cut a hole through the heavy steel siding, sheetrock and all the insulation – cut a hole in and literally crawled like rats through that hole.”

“They come in literally the day before this stuff was ready to be trimmed and sold – and literally took everything. Do I believe they were tipped off that there was dry product in this facility? 100 percent. There’s no question. The timing was too good.” — Michaelson, via FOX 12

Anyone with information about the incident should contact the Kelso police department, which confirmed that it is investigating the robbery.

 

End

Pulmonary Illness-Linked Compound Found In New York Cannabis Vapes

9/06/2019

by

Nearly all of the cannabis vape products tested by the New York State Health Department were found to have “very high” levels of vitamin E acetate, a compound linked to vape-related pulmonary illness in 25 states.

Vitamin E acetate is not an approved additive for medical cannabis vape products; although the agency did not indicate whether any of the vape products available under the state’s medical cannabis program were found to have the compound.

“We urge the public to be vigilant about any vaping products that they or any family members may be using and to immediately contact their health care provider if they develop any unusual symptoms. In general, vaping of unknown substances is dangerous, and we continue to explore all options to combat this public health issue.” – Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker, in a statement.

At least one vitamin E acetate-containing product has been linked to each patient who fell ill and submitted a product for testing; it was not, however, found in nicotine-based products that were tested. Many of the affected products are believed to be counterfeits based on products from states with legalized sales, including knockoffs of Chronic Carts and Dank Vapes.

As of Thursday, the Health Department had received 34 reports from around the state about the pulmonary illness with patients ranging from 15 to 46-years-old. Vitamin E acetate is a commonly available nutrition supplement that is not known to cause harm when applied to the skin or ingested as a pill.

The investigation is ongoing.

End

A cannabis worker in Washington state handles a recently harvested marijuana plant.

Canada’s University of Guelph Launches Cannabis Cultivation Program

9/06/2019

by

The University of Guelph, based in Ontario, Canada, is now offering an online cannabis production course as part of the university’s existing horticulture certificate program.

The course, which is aimed at professionals and home growers, is already fully enrolled with 60 students.

Marjory Gaouette, manager for program development with Open Learning and Educational Support, said the university had a “significant increase” in people contacting the university looking for cultivation courses following cannabis legalization in the nation in 2018.

The course will include cultivation basics: lighting, irrigation systems, growing media, and managing pests and disease. Brandon Yep, a master’s student in the School of Environmental Sciences who designed and will teach the course, said the program “will clarify fact from myth and provide scientifically backed information on cannabis production.”

School of Environmental Sciences professors Youbin Zheng and Mike Dixon have published several recent groundbreaking studies on cannabis plant production that Yep will utilize for the course. Yep’s graduate degree is supervised by Zheng and he is studying ways to improve aquaponics for indoor cultivation. The system collects waste from fish grown in aquaculture and provides that waste to bacteria. Those bugs then break down the material and make its nutrients available to plants grown hydroponically.

About a dozen Canadian colleges and universities have launched cannabis-centric degree and certificate programs.

End

10 Sacramento, California Dispensaries Robbed In Last Month

9/05/2019

by

Sacramento, California authorities are investigating at least 10 break-ins at legal cannabis businesses in the city over the last month, according to a CBS Local (Sacramento) report. It’s not yet clear whether or not the break-ins are linked.

Management at Twelve Hour Care told CBS Local that thieves stole “everything … from product to cash” during a break-in last week. Twelve Hour Care is located in an industrial zone, which Sacramento Cannabis Industry Association spokesman Rob Baca said was at a greater risk for theft than dispensaries in commercial areas — paired with the fact that cannabusinesses operate in cash. 

“These retail locations belong in commercial corridors, they belong in shopping centers, they belong downtown. They belong in Midtown. There’s lighting, there’s people.” — Baca, to CBS Local

Paul Clemons, who handles compliance and licensing for Twelve Hour Care indicated that during one of the Sacramento break-ins, thieves drove a car through the dispensary. He added that without banking access and being forced to operate with cash dispensaries are “always going to be a target.” Clemons said Twelve Hour Care saves their camera data for 90 days and that it runs 24 hours a day.

The Sacramento Police Department told CBS Local that they have implemented certain crime prevention measures to address the issue but declined to offer details on those steps.

Last month the National Credit Union Administration announced that credit unions could serve cannabis businesses; however most state-approved industry operators still relay on cash due to cannabis’ federal Schedule I status.

End

Nevada Nets Over $100M From Cannabis Taxes and Fees

9/05/2019

by

Nevada collected more than $100 million in cannabis-derived revenues over the last fiscal year, the Nevada Independent reports. The revenues include $99.18 million in tax contributions and another $10 million in fees.

The revenues are a 33 percent increase year-over-year in Nevada, which collected $74.7 million in cannabis-derived taxes and fees in the 2018 fiscal year. The state imposes a 10 percent excise tax and 15 percent wholesale tax along with sales taxes and licensing fees. The 2018 revenues were 40 percent higher than government estimates; the state anticipates cannabis-derived revenues to reach more than $100 million per year over the next two years.

Cannabis taxes are earmarked for education spending in the state after costs for regulation and enforcement; however, in 2018 just about $27 million was deposited into education accounts and the rest was deposited into the state’s Rainy Day Fund. In May, the legislature passed a bill to deposit cannabis excise tax revenue directly into the education accounts, which is expected to add $120 million to education accounts over the next two years.

Riana Durrett, director of the Nevada Dispensary Association told the Independent that regulators need to do a better job on cracking down on the illegal market as it “continues to deprive the state of funds that could be going to education.”

Last fiscal year, the Rainy Day Fund received $42.5 million from cannabis industry taxes and fees, $27.5 million was deposited into the school account, $5.5 million was used for regulatory administration, and $5 million was dispersed to local governments.

End

Missouri Receives 2,100 Medical Cannabis Applications

9/05/2019

by

Missouri has received more than 2,100 medical cannabis industry applications, according to Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services officials. The Associated Press reports that 1,163 of those applications are for dispensary operation and 554 are for cultivation licenses.

Missouri officials plan to issue 192 dispensary licenses and 60 cultivation licenses in the first round of licensing. The agency also received 415 manufacturer applications, 17 testing laboratory applications, and 14 transporter applications; under the voter-approved constitutional amendment the state must approve 86 manufacturers. 

According to a St. Louis Post-Dispatch report, at least 25 applicants represent out-of-state businesses, including Massachusetts-based Curaleaf, which applied to run eight shops. Other applicants are from Kansas, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Arizona, and Tennessee. In all, applicants want to open 175 cannabusinesses across the St. Louis metro area.

Entrepreneur Jimmy Koch, who wants to turn part of a Springfield bar and music venue into a medical cannabis dispensary, told the Springfield News-Leader that he was excited to see all the interest.

“It’s great to see how many people want to be involved. And even though everyone knew the risks going in, it will be a bummer to see so many people heartbroken after investing all that time and money it takes to just build a plan, secure a location and turn in the application.” — Jimmy Koch, via the News-Leader

Regulators have until Jan. 1, 2020 to approve or deny dispensary applications. Officials began accepting patient applications in July but sales are not expected until April or March of next year.

Officials anticipate about $20 million annually from medical cannabis-derived sales taxes and fees.

End

Morris Beegle: The Robust Future of Industrial Hemp

9/04/2019

by

Morris Beegle is the president and co-founder of We Are For Better Alternatives (WAFBA), an umbrella of pro-hemp brands that includes hemp industry networking extravaganza The NoCo Hemp Expo.

Morris recently joined our podcast host TG Branfalt for a discussion covering all things industrial hemp. In this interview, Morris talks about NoCo Hemp Expo’s founding and rapid success and the myriad industrial applications of the hemp plant, which include biodegradable plastics, eco-friendly construction materials, and even hemp-based carbon nanosheets for use in supercapacitors. Morris also shares the stories and inspiration behind some of his other hemp companies, including an upcoming line of hemp guitars, and more!

Tune in via the media player below, or scroll further down to read a full transcript of this week’s Ganjapreneur.com podcast episode.

Listen to the podcast:

Read the transcript:

Commercial: This episode of The Ganjapreneur Podcast is made possible by 420-friendly service providers in the Ganjapreneur Business Directory. If you need professional help with your business from accounting to legal services to consulting, marketing, payment processing or insurance, visit ganjapreneur.com/businesses to find service providers who specialize in helping cannabis entrepreneurs like you. Visit the Ganjapreneur Business Directory today at ganjapreneur.com/businesses.

TG Branfalt: Hey there. I’m your host TG Branfalt and thank you for listening to The Ganjapreneur.com Podcast where we try to bring you actionable information and normalize cannabis through the stories of ganjapreneurs, activists, and industry stakeholders.

Today I’m joined by Morris Beegle. He’s a hemp industry entrepreneur, co-founder and president of WAFBA, We Are For Better Alternatives, family of companies, which includes the annual hemp expo, NoCo Hemp Expo. Since 2012 Beegle has developed global brands in the hemp space with eight companies from NoCo to Colorado Hemp Company to Let’s Talk Hemp to Silver Mountain Hemp Guitars. How are you doing this afternoon, Morris?

Morris Beegle: Doing good, TG. Thanks for having me on.

TG Branfalt: I’m delighted to have you on. I really like having the hemp guys on. You guys are always an interesting breed. So before we get into everything that we want to cover today, tell you about yourself, man. How’d you end up in the space?

Morris Beegle: Well, I was in the music industry for 25 years or so, basically from the late ’80s, 1987, ’88, up in through 2010, 2011. I had a music production company, one-stop shop called Happy Scratch Records that I had started in ’95 when I moved back to Colorado. When I moved back to Colorado in ’95 and started this, I was inspired by the Seattle scene and how Seattle blew up. I got to spend a bunch of time there. You had Nirvana and Pearl Jam and Soundgarden and Alice In Chains. Coming back to Colorado, I wanted to see the same thing happen here. There’s a great local music scene, pretty diverse, and not as focused as the Seattle scene was. But when I moved back here, I got dialed in to Fort Collins.

I grew up in Loveland, but Fort Collins had a store there called The Hemperor Wears No Clothes and it was based off the Jack Herer book, The Emperor Wears No Clothes. I read that book and Jack’s kind of the prophet of the industry, the entire cannabis industry, but brought light to a lot of what hemp can do and the difference between hemp and marijuana, but yet it’s all cannabis. So that’s really when I got introduced to it. I didn’t really become a hempster at that point. I’ve always been an overall cannabis supporter and a partaker for quite some time. As I did my music business stuff, I did run some hemp merchandise, I did some hemp shirts and hemp hats, but really never got into the hemp thing in the cannabis space until the music business thing kind of crashed for me. I was really dialed into the physical media side of things with CDs and DVDs and manufacturing and packaging and physical product distribution into retail stores and through wholesale accounts.

And here comes the Internet and the digital age and Napster and mp3.Com, followed by iTunes and Amazon and all these other digital platforms that really pretty much eliminated the record store market except for a handful of cool stores that still do vinyl and merchandise. But the CD market got decimated and my business dried up. I was looking for something else to channel my skillset into and the cannabis thing was happening in Colorado with medical being pretty strong. As of 2009, a lot of dispensaries started opening up and then in 2012 we ran Amendment 64 which legalized recreational marijuana and taxed and regulated it just like alcohol. Within that legislation there was an opportunity for farmers here in Colorado to start growing industrial hemp.

At that point in time I thought it would be a great transition to move from the music space and into the hemp and cannabis space and start a merchandise company. That’s what happened in 2012. We started Colorado Hemp Company as a merchandise company, doing T-shirts and hats and working with some other textile brands that did apparel and wallets and bags and shoes. That’s really how we got started. The following year we started a paper printing business using hemp paper. I had found a hemp paper company that I started buying paper from. The following year we started doing events, which were a needed thing to educate people about industrial hemp, not only the industry itself as we were getting to be brand-new, but consumers as well.

So that’s basically laid the platform for what is WAFBA and where we’ve gone with this. That was with merchandise and printing and paper, and then the event side of things with bringing people together and the education and the advocacy and really just trying to figure out how to facilitate an industry and help move the thing forward by bringing people together.

TG Branfalt: Can you tell me about any parallels between the early music industry and the early … When you decided to get into the hemp industry, it was pretty early.

Morris Beegle: Yeah. I think that there’s really a lot of parallels when you look at there’s a supply chain and in the music industry, that would be musicians going into the studio and making music. From there, that it would have producers and editors and then marketers and selling product to the public. The hemp industry is similar, where you’ve got farmers and you’ve got processors and you’ve got manufacturers and you’ve got marketers and you’ve got events. What you have in both spaces is a lot of creative people. So I’ve seen a real parallel in just the creative element and people thinking outside of the box in this space. It’s just a different mindset in people with a slightly different intention and maybe kind of a counterculture approach.

TG Branfalt: You mentioned the counterculture. I want to go back to earlier when you were talking about the early grunge scene. I’m a huge grunge guy. I love Mudhoney and Jesus Lizard.

Morris Beegle: Mudhoney.

TG Branfalt: Love Mudhoney.

Morris Beegle: I saw Mudhoney at The Off Ramp in Seattle back in, I think, ’91 or ’92. It was great.

TG Branfalt: Be still my heart. Is that something that you think drew you to the hemp industry was this sort of counterculture? I mean it seems like you were pretty entrenched in it before you entered the space.

Morris Beegle: Well, when I was really trying to figure out what was going to be the next step of my life after spending so much time in the music industry and I wanted to do something that, A, is fun, B, that I’m passionate about and I really care about that could make a difference. And then I just feel good about what I’m doing and putting out into the world and that my kids would be proud of me about. So it was just one of these things. I just I felt compelled to do it because I think that our world needs to wake up socially and consciously and just become more aware of what we’re doing in our everyday lives and to our planet and to our environment.

I really just think that hemp can be a game changer in changing the way people think about our world, our planet, and our environment and how we should grow crops and how we should produce finished goods and how we should recycle and replenish all of that. I just think that’s what drew me to it. It’s kind of what drew me to music. There was just this art and this presence that drew me into music that’s really … I don’t know what the exact word is. I’ve tried to figure it out before, but it’s that something else that’s out there that just draws you. The invisible spirit, the invisible energy.

TG Branfalt: When did you decide that you were going to go all-in with hemp? I mean it’s a risk. You deal with the banking issues and being ancillarily associated with cannabis. And then you said you had kids, so I mean, and you do so many different things. When was it that you were like, “All right, this is what I’m doing?”

Morris Beegle: It was really in 2012 and 2013. When we started the company, I felt really passionate about that cannabis was on the way to becoming legalized and becoming socially acceptable. It was funny that marijuana was leading the way when hemp should have never been illegal in the first place. You don’t utilize hemp to get high or to get intoxicated. I felt good about being on this side of the plant and really not being a big activist for the medical and the recreational sides. Not that I’m not an advocate and I don’t support it, because I do. I don’t think anybody should go to jail for the plant, period. I think anybody should be able to utilize this plant for medicinal purposes and get themselves off of some of these prescription drugs that cannabis absolutely can replace.

It’s being shown over and over and over, not only in peer review science studies, but the anecdotal evidence is just it’s mountains and mountains and mountains of it. Anecdotal evidence does matter. When you look at the industrial side of it, the food side of it, nutrition, health and wellness and therapeutic side with all the hemp and the cannabinoids and CBD, the protein, the amino acids, all of it, it’s all good. There’s nothing, there’s no cons about this plant in my eyes. So I just felt really good about jumping into this space and I’m all in till the end.

TG Branfalt: The only negative thing about smoking a joint is that you can go to jail for it. Isn’t that some adage?

Morris Beegle: Well yeah. That is a negative thing and nobody should go to jail for this. I absolutely will stand up and fight till this thing is fully legal. People that have gone to jail for it should all be expunged. All that should be off their record.

TG Branfalt: So I want to switch gears a little bit. I want to talk you about the NoCo Hemp Expo. It’s often referred to as the most important hemp industry event. It’s won that distinction twice by the Hemp Industries Association. Can you tell me about how it started and how it evolved into this award-winning industry venture?

Morris Beegle: Well, we started in 2014 because there was a need to have hemp-centric events, which weren’t really going on. There were a handful of small little gatherings at libraries and universities in a conference room with very little as far as product display or networking or true education. That’s what really was the catalyst is, “Hey, we got to have conferences and trade shows.” So we put on this first trade show and a buddy of mine that I’d worked with in the music industry and a good friend of mine was booking this place called Ricky B’s in Windsor, which is a club that’s got a multitude of rooms. It’s got a big open room with a stage and a bar and a kitchen and another room where you could put some exhibitors. So it had this setup where we could throw an event and have speakers. We could have live music. We could have food. We could make a hemp beer, which we did. We could have a full-on event.

We launched NoCo in April of 2014 and pretty much sold it out. There was 330 people at the event and the place was full all day. We had a really good response. A lot of great people threw in to participate right at the get-go of this industry. So we moved it to a bigger venue the next year out at the Ranch Events Complex in Loveland and had about 1250 people. And then we increased our space again and had 3000 people. Then it went to 6000, and this year we had over 10,000 people. It’s just continued to grow and grow and grow as far as the amount of companies and industry people participating and the amount of general public that has become really interested in in the plant and the different products that are made from it.

So it’s just one of these things that’s just continued to grow over and over and over. It’s kind of like a band. You know how you start your garage band and you play a small dingy club and you got 10 people there. Then you go to the next place and you got 50 people. Then the next thing you know you’re playing stadiums like U2 and Metallica.

TG Branfalt: That wasn’t my experience in a band.

Morris Beegle: Well, it wasn’t mine either. But that’s the road. U2 started off in shitty little clubs just like Metallica did.

TG Branfalt: How important is in-person networking in the Internet age? I mean everyone has an Instagram. Everyone has a Facebook. Why are events like these so important?

Morris Beegle: I don’t think that there’s any way to replace face-to-face networking time and gatherings with entertainment and just the ability to network and socialize and get to know people, as well as go to conferences and hear experts speak on a variety of topics and be able to interact with those people, ask questions and learn. To me, there’s no equating having the live situation and being part of that or just participating online in social media and little conference rooms and virtual this and virtual that. There’s a of business that can be done that way. I mean I do business that way too, but I would say the appearing at events and trade shows just goes a long way to building real relationships.

TG Branfalt: The NoCo Hemp Event happened, the expo happened pretty recently. Can you tell me about what people were talking about at that event? What was the buzz during the show?

Morris Beegle: Well, a big buzz is the Farm Bill passed at the end of 2018. Trump signed it on December 20th. So the Farm Bill passing is now we’re federally legal. It’s no longer associated with the Controlled Substances Act. The DEA has no jurisdiction over hemp. It now falls under the USDA, and it also has the FDA in the mix. The big buzz is, A, now it’s federally illegal, B, how are we going to regulate it and, C, how is the FDA going to come in here with their recommendations for regulation of this plant. So that’s really the hot topic and that’s going on right now. What are these federal regulations coming down from the USDA and the FDA going to look like in the end? And how restrictive is that going to be for parts of our industry to really be able to grow? Is it going to block out some of the smaller, more boutique entrepreneur craft type producers? So there’s a lot of questions that remain.

TG Branfalt: We’ll get into more of the new federal regulations a little bit later. We’ve sort of been dancing around the music issue throughout this episode. Tell me about the guitar company, man, Silver Mountain Guitars. How do you use hemp in the production? Give me the rundown. What I want to know is how it sounds compared to a traditional guitar.

Morris Beegle: Okay. So have you listened to my podcast at all?

TG Branfalt: I have.

Morris Beegle: Okay, so that intro guitar piece is hemp guitar that I play.

TG Branfalt: Okay.

Morris Beegle: The sound is great. You can load whatever pickups in there, whatever hardware you want. But it’s the body of the guitar is a bass fiber composite shell that’s molded around a wood core. So it’s not a solid body hemp guitar. There’s a bass fiber composite molded shell that wraps around a wood core. They’re fairly light. They’re lighter than a wood guitar. And again, they sound really good. I’ve done SG. I’ve done two tellies, got a Les Paul Jr. I’ve got another SG on the way and I’m going to be creating a Strat model for a buddy of mine. He’s going to be the first guy that we actually do a custom one for.

But I’ve been really just dialing in with these guys who’ve been making these for the last five or six years in Canada. It’s still in somewhat prototype mode as far as it’s been hard being able to scale up and be able to produce these on a larger scale. So I think that we’re finally getting ready to clear that hurdle. It seems that way. We’re also making ukuleles with these guys. I think that that production, there’s just been a few technical tweaks with some of the finishing and some of this material that’s got certain nuances in the production side of things. But I think that we’re about to the point where it’s a done deal. Now it’s about scaling up and being able to produce these in some type of quantity rather than one a month.

TG Branfalt: I hear a lot that people who are trying to do these sort of unique projects with hemp have a very hard time finding processors. Is that something that you are experiencing? Are people at the trade shows recognizing that that exists? Could we see that market filled pretty soon?

Morris Beegle: Yes. There is definitely a lack of processing here in the United States outside of extraction for cannabinoids, oil extracts, all of that. That’s really the processing that’s pretty available in the US. But there’s still not enough processing for as much material that’s going to be grown this year, I can tell you that. There’s going to be big issues with that. We definitely have a lack of fiber processing, which is what I’m really excited about. I really got into the industry based on the fiber side of things for composites and plastics and building materials and textiles. That’s what drew me into it. I like the food part of it too with the hemp seeds and the pressed oil and the protein powder. But there’s a long ways to go with the processing for that here in the United States and in North America overall for the fiber side, not the food side. Canada’s been doing the food grain hemp parts thing for 20 years.

But there’s definitely a lack of the processing, but that is going to change now since the Farm Bill was signed. There’s more confidence in the investors market. People realize that there is value in the fiber, the stock side of it. Implementing that processing is going to take the next two or three years to really start building stuff out and being able to utilize that material to get it into a paper or building materials and bio-plastics in some of these industrial processes where it will make it easier for guys like me that want to make more guitars or guitar cabinets or plastic guitar picks that are biodegradable with hemp plastic. So right now there’s a handful of us out there that are doing these novelty things, at least here in the United States.

There’s people that are doing a lot more than that over in Europe, because Europe’s been doing this fiber side of thing. They’re the most advanced when it comes to utilizing fiber for a variety of different industries. China does a variety of that too. They’re more geared on the textiles, apparel side of thing. But we need to get a lot of this European technology over here, as well as some of the Chinese technology, and build out this fiber side of things because that’s where we’re going to be able to have a tremendous impact in this country.

TG Branfalt: It sounds like you focus a lot on industrial issues, or industrial uses rather. Whenever we talk about hemp, we always end up on CBD. I’ve been covering this since 2014, and even just five years ago, CBD wasn’t the hot hemp issue. How has the industry changed with the rise in CBD interest?

Morris Beegle: Well, when I started in 2012 nobody was even talking about CBD that was in my circle. There was people talking about CBD and other cannabinoids in the marijuana side of things and things just started to shift. There’s a couple of companies, I guess, HempMeds, Cannabest which has turned into CV Sciences, or was that group of guys based out of San Diego that really started making this CBD from hemp thing a real business. These guys forged a brand-new industry and a lot of people really don’t know that story. It would be a good story for you to investigate is this San Diego underground group that really developed the beginnings of the CBD market. As you look where it is today, it’s the vast, vast majority of what the market is. It’s driving all the economics of it.

I think it’s great. I think that once it gets settled, it should be regulated just like a dietary supplement, just like a food ingredient. That’s exactly what it is. Hopefully we get the FDA there and we don’t have to overregulate the producers to get this product on the market. But that stuff should be in apothecary sections across the country. Consumers should have the choice as to where they’re going to get their cannabinoids. If they want to take them and they don’t want to get high, they should be able to go to Whole Foods or Vitamin Cottage. If they want to go get them at their dispensary and have THC. They should be able to do that.

If they want to go to their doctor and to their pharmacist because that’s who they trust and they want medications from whatever pharmaceutical company with CBD or other cannabinoids, then the consumer should have that option too. It’s interesting to see how these channels are developing. Hopefully here in the next couple years, they’ll be pretty defined and we’ll have a clear path for hemp-derived CBD and cannabinoid products. You’ll have your adult use side of the market, and you’ll have your pharmaceutical side.

TG Branfalt: What are a couple industrial applications that many people might not think about? You’re obviously really tuned into this industrial side.

Morris Beegle: Well, let’s start with just what can be done on the fiber side. So you can make textiles. You can make clothing and carpet and upholstery. You can make composites. There’s a lot of car manufacturers in Europe. This is a market that they created as making the inside door paneling and trim pieces using a hemp flax based plastic composite that’s lighter and way more eco-friendly and environmentally less impactful on the earth. Building materials they’ve been utilizing in Europe for a long time and other parts of the world. You can make way greener, more sustainable homes using hemp-based building materials. A new development in the last three or four years is the ability to take this hemp fiber and create carbon nano sheets that could be utilized in super capacitors and battery storage. So I think that-

TG Branfalt: Seriously?

Morris Beegle: Yeah. That’s a pretty exciting technology that’s out there that people are going to be developing. I think you’re going to see stuff for the oil and gas industry, loss prevention materials. There’s different materials that have been created or attempted to be created in the last decade that could go into, whether that’s in the fracking situations or oil cleanup and being able to absorb all this stuff. Texas now coming on board, there’s a whole bunch of people from the oil and gas industry that are looking to start growing hemp and utilizing industrial materials for the oil and gas industry to help clean up some of this shit that they’ve been doing for the last 50 to 100 years. So that’s interesting. It’s how can hemp clean up the stuff that’s been poisoning our earth.

TG Branfalt: You’ve mentioned the Farm Bill a couple of times, and I mean we’re standing on a precipice right now. We’re awaiting the FDA regulations. As I’m sure you’re aware, they’ve pointed to Epidiolex saying that there’s a patent on CBD, which sort of muddies the CBD waters. Despite the passage of the Farm Bill, we have no clear direction from the FDA. But it was only a few months ago seemingly that, I guess, almost a year ago that the Farm Bill was passed. How has the industry changed since the passage of that Farm Bill for companies on the ground?

Morris Beegle: I would say that a lot of smart companies are getting all of their operations in place. They’re using GMP-compliant facilities, making products in a way that are going to stand up to the scrutiny of the dietary supplement industry. That’s the direction that these companies are going. People are not backing off. People are moving forward like nothing’s going to happen. A lot of people are. They’re just rolling the dice and throwing a lot of money at it. There is going to be stuff coming down the pipe and people are going to have crop failures. There is going to be some serious chaos that happens in this industry in the next couple years. But I do think when the regulatory process is done that these products will be regulated like dietary supplements and like another food ingredient.

TG Branfalt: Is the lack of FDA clarifications, is that the biggest issue facing the industry right now? Or is it something that we don’t think about, people who aren’t in the industry don’t think about?

Morris Beegle: That’s a really good question. I would say that the FDA thing is really the biggest unknown at this point. But I would say that there’s so much money involved in this now and there’s a lot of political clout that’s pushing for what seems to be a properly regulated industry so we can create these products and a lot of people can compete in the marketplace. But the crystal ball is a little bit fuzzy. I’m in it every day and I’m not exactly sure. I am hopeful that things, in the end, that we’re going to have an industry that’s just like any other agricultural type of industry. That’s what this is. It’s an agricultural crop.

We know now with the passage of the Farm Bill that the stocks and the seeds are grass, generally recognized as safe. So we can do whatever we want with those parts of the plant. The only thing that is cloudy is this flower side, the extraction side, and how these cannabinoids are going to be dealt with when it comes to growing, processing, and the final product. Is any THC going to be allowed in these final products? Is isolate going to be able to be used from any of these compounds? Are all the isolates basically going to belong to the pharmaceutical industry and all we can use are these full spectrum broad spectrum whole plant extracts?

There’s clarification that’s going to be coming down the pipe. I’m not exactly sure where it’ll end up. A lot of people don’t think we’re going to be able to use isolates, that those will be deemed to the pharmaceutical industry.

TG Branfalt: You said the crystal balls a little fuzzy. Well, look into your crystal ball for me. What do you think? Taking CBD out of it, all right. Let’s say the FDA says you cannot isolate CBD, whatever. What do you think would be the next big hemp sort of thing?

Morris Beegle: The next big hemp thing,? I think-

TG Branfalt: Yeah, that’s industrial.

Morris Beegle: I would say animal feed and animal products, pet products. That stuff is happening to some degree now, although it’s not considered legal, the animal side of things domestically, they’re still the FDA has to allow that. They’re trying to fast track certain things, but there’s studies that have to be done. I think that the animal feed market’s going to be large, for sure. Livestock is a huge industry, which is another thing that we could discuss for a long time is industrial agriculture and the industrial livestock industry, which is terrible for our environment and the climate. So I think fiber, I think the grain, that’s where it has to go. Protein powder. People are becoming more organic, more regenerative, more plant-based foods.

Cannabinoids are going to be there. It’s a health and wellness product that’s a plant that can do all these things. So what’s the next big thing? I think that all the uses that … all the potential replacements that it can go into these various industries and replacing these different ingredients to green up products across the industrial spectrum. I mean that’s going to be huge. I don’t know if it’s necessarily one thing. I think it’s just a combination of all the things that we’ve been talking about for a long time, that hemp can do 25,000 different things or 50,000 different things. What is that number? We’re going to find out that number over the course of the next 10 or 20 years because there’s a significant interest to get this crop grown in large acreage and to get into the market.

TG Branfalt: Finally, what advice would you have for entrepreneurs looking to enter the industrial hemp space, not the CBD space, not the cannabis space, but the space that you are sort of entrenched in. What’s your advice for them?

Morris Beegle: Well, first advice is get into something that you really like and that you’re really passionate about. Don’t make it just because you think there’s going to be money in it. I think people are misdirected when it comes to that too often. I’ve been fortunate as an entrepreneur to follow my heart and follow my passions to the music industry and now into the hemp and cannabis space because this is what I want to do. I love what I do and me being a fiber guy, I’m going to do my part. I suggest this at anybody at this point in time. If you’re interested in the fiber side, now is the time because we have the opportunity as entrepreneurs, as innovators, to really create something that’s never been created here in the United States, and that is a hemp fiber side of the market.

There’s technology out there domestically and internationally that has yet to be implemented that, A, we need to come across and discover and connect and collaborate with people that are doing this and figure out how to have it funded and get this implemented. There’s an opportunity for entrepreneurs right now to really just create a future based on our own intention and our own purpose and our own vision.

TG Branfalt: You’re quite the visionary when it comes to this, man, and I really appreciate you taking the time to come on the show. It’s not often that we get a pure industrial hemp perspective on things. I have for a long time been a huge proponent of hemp. I would prefer a very lush hemp industry as opposed to a very lush THC-rich industry. So, Where can people find out more about you, the WAFBA companies? How can they find you on the old Internet?

Morris Beegle: Well, you can go to wafba.org. That’s W-A-F-B-A dot org. That’s the launch page. All of our little entities are listed there. We actually have 12, that’s a half a dozen of those are events and then the other half dozen we’ve got Tree-Free Hemp, the paper side, Let’s Talk Hemp, the education media side, One Planet Hemp, our T-shirt and hat and merchandise store. I don’t know. I can’t even remember all the little brands that we’ve got now. But we’ve got quite a few and that’s where you can find it. You can also go to morrisbeegle.com and I’ve got a lot of links there as well. You can go to nocohempexpo.Com.

That’s what people, if you want to find out really what’s happening in the hemp industry, if you do get a chance you should come to NoCo Hemp Expo, especially NoCo Seven that’ll be in 2020. We’re moving to a brand-new space that’s three times where we were at last year where we packed it out with 10,000 people. Next year we hope to have 20,000-plus and we’ll have 400-plus exhibitors and great programming for the business side, the investor side, the farm side, the equipment side. We’re just really excited to do what we can to help facilitate this industry and bring people together and make it real and make a difference.

TG Branfalt: That’s Morris Beegle. He’s a hemp industry entrepreneur, co-founder and president of the WAFBA, We Are For Better Alternatives, family of companies, which includes that aforementioned NoCo Hemp Expo. Thank you so much for being on the show, Morris. It’s really been a pleasure.

Morris Beegle: Hey. Thanks, TG. I appreciate you having me on.

TG Branfalt: You can find more episodes of The Ganjapreneur.com Podcast in the podcast section of ganjapreneur.com and in the Apple iTunes store. On the ganjapreneur.com website, you will find the latest cannabis news and cannabis jobs updated daily along with transcripts of this podcast. You can also download the ganjapreneur.com app in iTunes and Google Play. This episode was engineered by Trim at Mediahouse. I’ve been your host, TG Branfalt.

End

North American Cannabis Industry Projected at $47.3B by 2024

9/04/2019

by

According to a report by Prohibition Partners, the North American cannabis industry could reach $47.3 billion annually by 2024, with the U.S. comprising $44 billion of the market in the next five years, according to an outline of the report by Health Europa.

Daragh Anglim, managing director at Prohibition Partners, said that figure is likely an underestimation as it doesn’t include illegal sales.

“…The true value of the cannabis market is likely to be much larger than current estimates. This is because, contrary to the hopes of regulators, legalization is unlikely to eradicate black market sales, particularly in Canada.” – Anglim, in a statement, via Health Europa

Anglim added that the “legal disconnect” in the U.S. between federal and state laws “presents significant challenges for businesses looking to mature a market with significant potential.”

“Moreover, conflicting adult-use laws in the US are forcing businesses to move to neighboring states,” Anglim said in the report. “On a positive note this is fueling momentum behind legislation as state regulators look to generate and protect tax revenues.”

The research firm suggests that by 2024 medical cannabis sales in the U.S. will comprise just half of all legal sales, expecting more states to legalize cannabis for adult use.

In May, Prohibition Partners suggested that if hemp and medical cannabis were fully legalized in Asia, the market could be worth $5.8 billion by 2024, but noted that just three Asian nations – Thailand, Pakistan, and Uzbekistan – have legalized medical cannabis use and it’s unlikely that Hong Kong and China would move toward any legalization in the next decade.

End

Sonoma County Shuts Down 63,000 Cannabis Plant Grow Site

9/04/2019

by

California officials are continuing their crackdown on illegal cannabis cultivators as the Sonoma County Permit and Resource Management Department shut down a 63,241-plant grow – the county’s largest ever, according to a CBS Local (San Francisco) report. The illegal cultivation sites were located in a habitat for endangered California tiger salamanders.

About 26,650 plants were found on a 2.5-acre site, while another 36,385 plants were being grown on a 3.3-acre site and some were interspersed with corn.

Permit and Resource Management Department spokeswoman Maggie Fleming said that the largest previous cannabis cultivation site shut down by the county was 13,000 plants. In all, county officials have abated 161,000 this year.

In June, Siskiyou County officials said they had seized more than 19,000 illegally-grown cannabis plants in one month.

Since the launch of legal sales in California through July, the Bureau of Cannabis Control and law enforcement agencies reported they had confiscated about $30 million in illegal cannabis from grows and unlicensed shops.

Lindsay Robinson, executive director of the California Cannabis Industry Association, told the Los Angeles Times in July that the number of enforcement actions by the Bureau is “severely inadequate,” noting that there should be hundreds of enforcement actions on illegally operating shops. She said the state “has always struggled with enforcement of the illicit industry.”

In July, the California Finance Department found that just 15 of 68 BCC enforcement positions had been filled and the agency was experiencing a major cash shortage which prevented it from providing adequate enforcement.

End

Quebec Court Finds Home Growing Ban Unconstitutional

9/04/2019

by

A Quebec, Canada Superior Court judge has ruled that the provincial ban on home cannabis cultivation for personal use is unconstitutional, the CBC reports. Superior Court Justice Manon Lavoie said the ban equals criminal legislation, which is under federal jurisdiction.

Julien Fortier, the attorney who brought the case, told the CBC that while the ruling allows individuals to grown cannabis at home, the ruling is “very technical” and warned that the government can still appeal the ruling or try to rewrite the law in a constitutional way.

“No evidence was filed, except for the legislative debates. It was really a case that was strictly about the … constitutional law.” – Fortier, to the CBC

Under federal cannabis law, citizens are allowed to cultivate up to four plants for personal use, but Quebec’s law banned home-growing. A Quebec official said the government is studying the ruling.

Among Canadian provinces, Quebec has taken a conservative approach to cannabis policy and legalization. In July, the government announced a ban on THC-infused candies and confections and capped edible potency at 5 milligrams of THC per unit and 10 milligrams of THC per package; drinkable products are capped at 5 milligrams per container. Cannabis-infused topicals will also be banned temporarily.

Provincial officials are also considering setting THC limits of 30 percent on all cannabis products sold in the province but have not officially implemented the policy.

Under federal rules, edible products are limited to 10 milligrams of THC per package and 1,000 milligrams of THC per package for concentrates and topicals.

End

Hemp Rising as Alternative for Oak Wood

9/03/2019

by

The Kentucky company HempWood officially opened its Murray-based manufacturing facility last Monday, promising local jobs and a wood substitute that is more eco-friendly than traditional lumber, according to a Woodworking Network report.

After a ribbon-cutting ceremony, HempWood leader Greg Wilson demonstrated the creation process for the hemp-based logs, which can be cut down into boards for construction, woodworking, and flooring purposes.

“We’re taking something that grows in six months and we’re able to replicate, or out perform, a tropical hardwood that grows in 200 years.” — Wilson, via WPSD Local 6

The facility is expected to use up $1 million worth of raw materials annually, which — according to the report — will all be sourced from local Kentucky hemp farmers.

In fact, the company has partnered with Murray State University to keep as many facets of its operation local to the area as possible. Dr. Bob Jackson, the university’s president, said the partnership will lead to “internships” and “future jobs,” as well as opportunities for “teaching and learning from an agricultural standpoint, business standpoint, chemistry standpoint, and I could go on and on.”

Hemp became federally legal at the close of 2018; since then, there has been a massive influx of states with industrial hemp programs, as well as companies looking to pioneer the space. Last week, the USDA announced that hemp farmers can now qualify for federal crop insurance.

End

New Medical Cannabis Rules Take Effect in Oklahoma

9/03/2019

by

New medical cannabis rules are now in effect in Oklahoma, including seed-to-sale tracking requirements, clarifications for gun-owning patients, and rules prohibiting physicians from making recommendations in a dispensary and preventing municipalities from barring medical cannabis businesses, according to a Tulsa World report.

The new rules, part of HB 2612, were struck over three months of meetings between industry stakeholders, advocates, and a bi-partisian and bi-cameral legislative committee.  Under the reforms, cannabusinesses must obtain a certificate of compliance, use a seed-to-sale tracking system and include product information — such as potency and testing results — on all packaging. The laboratory testing requirements could lead to market disruption, according to the report, as the state has not yet opened applications for testing labs. 

The bill also requires cultivators and processors to split harvests and products into 10-pound batches and test each one which head of the Oklahoma Cannabis Industry Association, Bud Scott, said could be cost-prohibitive.

“We specifically asked for firm language saying there would be a grace period, which was not included. There’s some pretty serious issues with testing that still have to be addressed.” – Scott, in an interview with Tulsa World

The measure includes language to explicitly allow medical cannabis patients to possess firearms — a provision included as federal law prohibits registered patients from using “illegal drugs.” The law also allows employers to consider a patient’s status if they work in “safety sensitive” positions such as firefighting, heavy machinery operation, or handling hazardous materials.

The bill also gives all rulemaking authority to the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority. Agency executive director Adrienne Rollins estimated it would cost about $15.6 million to oversee the program for this fiscal year; the state has collected about $45 million in taxes and fees related to medical cannabis since Aug. 2018.

End

Santa Rosa Junior College to Offer Hemp Cultivation Programs

9/03/2019

by

California’s Santa Rosa Junior College is set to offer hemp cultivation certificate degree programs next year — the first of its kind for community colleges in the state, CBS Local (San Francisco) reports. The courses will be available through SRJC’s Sustainable Agriculture and Horticulture program.

SRJC’s Dean of Agriculture Benjamin Goldstein indicated that offering the programs falls in line with the department’s “top priorities” to align programs with “current industry trends.”

“Hemp is a versatile plant at the center of a multi-billion dollar legal industry for medicine, fiber, oil, seeds, textiles and more. We are preparing our students with the knowledge and skills to be competitive in the workplace.” — Goldstein to CBS Local  

The college has existing certificate and degree programs in Environmental Horticulture. Faculty are revising that program to add a focus on hemp agriculture. The classes taken in spring 2020 will count for the revised certificate and degree in Hemp Agriculture in the fall 2020.

George Sellu, who teaches plant science and horticultural classes at SRJC, called hemp an “ideal” plant for “teaching plant science and plant propagation techniques” for both indoor and outdoor cultivation.

Throughout the U.S., traditional colleges and universities have rolled out cannabis- and hemp-related course offerings following cannabis law reforms, both medicinal and recreational. In 2017, City College of San Francisco announced a partnership with the United Food and Commercial Workers union and cannabis college Oaksterdam University aimed at the legal cannabis industry. 

SRJC’s Shone Farm is already growing a 0.8-acre test plot. 

End

EU Approves Ugandan Medical Cannabis Company Exports

9/03/2019

by

European Union inspectors from the Netherlands have approved a shipment of medical cannabis products from Uganda’s Industrial Globus Uganda Ltd., the African Exponent reports. The products are a mixture of 2.7 milligrams of THC and 2.5 milligrams of CBD for Sativex drugs, which are produced in the EU, the US, and Canada.

Industrial Globus is a joint venture between Industrial Hemp Uganda and Israel’s Together Pharma. The compliance certificate issued by the EU is valid until August 2020. Benjamin Cadet, Industrial Globus’ director, said the approval affects the company’s entire manufacturing chain. In June, the lack of EU approval prevented the company from exporting products to both Germany and Canada.

In 2017, Industrial Hemp exported $10,000 worth of hemp to South Africa’s National Analysis Forensic Services.

The EU inspectors also certified World Health Organization (WHO) Guidelines on Good Agricultural and Collection Practices for medicinal plants; and the Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) Guidelines for Good Agricultural and Collection Practices for medicinal plants. 

According to the report, at least 50 Ugandan companies have applied for Ministry of Health certification to join Industrial Globus to cultivate medical cannabis. 

Last month, officials in Zimbabwe approved plans to allow hemp cultivation for export purposes as it seeks to bolster is foreign currency holdings. Last year, Canada-based Canopy Growth announced it had acquired Kingdom of Lethoso-based Daddy Cann Lethoso PTY Ltd which holds a cannabis export license.

End

cbd oil benefits

CBD Oil Benefits: All the Ways CBD Can Help

8/30/2019

by

What is CBD and where does it come from?

Cannabidiol (CBD) is one of over a hundred naturally occurring cannabinoids present in cannabis, whose demand has recently skyrocketed with the advent of tinctures, CBD vape pens, and CBD infused beverages. Cannabidiol is abundant in cannabis — nearly as prominent as the well-known and intoxicating cannabinoid THC.

Both CBD and THC exist in the cannabis plant in the form of their acid precursor (CBDA and THCA). They must be heated, or decarboxylated, in order to become active. Although the specific chemical structure of CBD was discovered in 1963, the earliest use of CBD could date back to 2737 B.C. by Chinese emperor Shen Neng. When cannabis reached American land, it was widely used by settlers for fiber production, inflammation, and disease. It wasn’t until 1914 that cannabis and CBD use was criminalized under the Harrison Act, with stricter regulations to come with the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937.

In 2018, hemp-derived CBD was federally legalized via the Farm Bill’s passage, which has led to a notable increase in CBD awareness and new products.

cbd oil benefits
A hand-cultivated cannabis plant, nearly ready for harvest. Cannabis contains a wide spread of cannabinoids but THC and CBD are the most common. Photo credit: Alexander Aguero

Cannabinoid receptors & the Endocannabinoid System

The Endocannabinoid System (ECS) is a set of natural pathways in our brain and body which carry messages to various regions to manage and regulate pain, appetite, mood regulation, and memory. The ECS was discovered by Israeli scientists in 1992 at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

The endocannabinoid system is made up of two main receptors: the CB1 and CB2 receptors. Many receptors act as channels and when “activated” by specific molecules (in this case THC, or naturally occurring endocannabinoids 2-AG and anandamide), they allow ions to rush through, creating a further cascade of signaling to relay specific messages. 2-AG and anandamide are produced by the body to regulate fetal development, mechanisms of reward, working memory, and other various physiological functions. Outside the brain, the ECS is known for its role in immune support.

THC is considered an “exogenous” cannabinoid, meaning it is not naturally produced by the body, but still activates CB1 and 2 receptors when present. Interestingly, CBD does not directly attach to or activate CB1 or 2 receptors. Instead, it works with serotonin, an enzyme called fatty acid amyloid hydroxylase (FAAH), and other receptors. These messages then can indirectly activate the endocannabinoid system to create the therapeutic and behavioral effects seen.

CBD oil for inflammation and neuropathic pain

One of the most heavily researched applications of CBD is its benefits for inflammation. CBD has been seen to have anti-inflammatory effects on the nervous system, especially in pathologies like arthritis and inflammation related to the gut. There have been many theories as to how CBD reduces inflammation; some studies found that it does so by targeting glycine receptors (glycine is an amino acid naturally produced by our body). CBD administration also alleviates inflammation by reducing the production of signaling molecules called “inflammatory cytokines,” and by acting on TRPV1 receptors. Just like how CBD activates many different pathways and only acts on CB1 and 2 receptors indirectly, its anti-inflammatory properties take on similar characteristics of targeting various receptors and signaling pathways to achieve the effect you experience as weakened pain.

cbd oil benefits
A woman is doubled over in pain against a bed. Photo credit: Alex Boyd

Both THC and CBD have been given to cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy to decrease its intense side effects like pain and nausea. CBD also has alleviated pain in patients with multiple sclerosis. Savitex is an oromucosal sprayable compound (or mouth spray) created by GW Pharmaceuticals, which contains a mixture of CBD and THC and helps decrease neuropathic pain in patients suffering from sciatica, MS, cancer, arthritis, and other ailments. However, because this medicine contains THC, side effects included its characteristic intoxication. Therefore, some believe that CBD oil (like in tincture form) may be a better alternative, especially as research continues and scientists learn how to increase the bioavailability of CBD given orally.

CBD oil for anxiety and sleep

A comprehensive case study published this year found that CBD oil was helpful in the treatment of both anxiety and insomnia. Psychiatrists administered 25, 50, and 75 mg of CBD to 72 adults in a clinical setting. After the first month, 79.2% of the patients struggling with anxiety reported improved affect and had lower anxiety scores. Additionally, 66.7% of those complaining about insomnia had improved sleep scores.

Specifically with anxiety, scientists think these results could be because, with long-term use, CBD activates and rescues impaired 5-HT (aka serotonin) receptors. In terms of sleep, less is known about the exact mechanism at play, but a rodent model of insomnia found that CBD administration increased total sleep time in rats. Scientists also think CBD’s beneficial effects on sleep have to do with anxiety — insomnia and anxiety tend to be comorbid conditions so, if you decrease anxiety, you should be able to sleep better — but more research needs to be done in this area to discover how exactly cannabidiol acts on our brain’s receptors to help with insomnia.

Cannabidiol is growing more and more popular as a potentially useful tool in the treatment for anxiety. Photo credit: Fernando @dearferdo

CBD oil for pets

You may have seen signs around town exclaiming “CBD for Dogs — We Have it Here!!” While at first glance this may seem somewhat ridiculous, there is some science to back it up. A 2018 study found that osteoarthritic dogs given a repeated dose of 2 mg/kg of CBD for four weeks saw decreased pain scores and increased comfort. While there is less ability for observing how this happens in the brain compared to laboratory animals, these results are still promising for a new avenue of CBD treatment.

It is also speculated that CBD can help ease pet anxiety during stressful times like July 4th fireworks. We know CBD alleviates anxiety in humans; animals too release stress hormones when feeling anxious or potentially threatened. If CBD is able to work similarly in dogs and other pets, it would make sense that giving your animal some CBD could reduce their anxiety during specific situations like holidays or trips to the vet.

cbd oil benefits
A man gives CBD oil to his pet dog using a dropper and small bottle. Photo credit: R+R Medicinals

More research is underway

Now that hemp-derived CBD oil is federally legal, scientists have more freedom to conduct research that will help educate cannabidiol users on just how it gives them relief for various ailments. However, the FDA still lists CBD as a dietary supplement and not a drug, which means there is generally less regulation and less known about this seemingly benign substance.

Despite this, there is positive and promising evidence that CBD can help a variety of conditions without the nasty side effects or propensity for abuse that comes with other drugs like opioids. Hopefully, via the advent of CBD, we are on our way to a new status quo where death by opioid overdose is decreased while pain relief itself becomes more widespread.

End

California Cannabis-for-Pets Bill Likely Tabled Until 2020

8/30/2019

by

A California bill to allow veterinarians to recommend cannabis as a medicine for pets is likely tabled until next session, VIN News Service reports. The measure would have made the state the first in the nation to allow medical cannabis for pets.

Last year, then-Gov. Jerry Brown signed a bill to allow veterinarians to discuss cannabis therapies without risk of losing their license or other putative actions, but that bill stopped short of allowing recommendations.

Sen. Cathleen Galgiani’s legislative director Mike Sharif said the bill would have taken last year’s legislative success “a step further.”

“We wanted to free up veterinarians, because it’s very hard to discuss without recommending, and we felt like veterinarians would err on the side of caution and not even discuss it because they don’t want to be seen as recommending.” – Mike Sharif, to VIN

Sharif notes that the measure has already “been amended a bunch of times” by the Assembly Committee on Business and Professions but the crux remains intact. One of the proposed changes would have required pet-focused cannabis products to be obtained at only medical cannabis dispensaries; however, that language was removed.

Oakland veterinarian Dr. Gary Richter called that change “bad policy.”

“We’re already cut out of the loop,” he said. “We’re trying to get into the loop. This would basically keep us out of the loop.”

Dr. Richard Sullivan, a member of the state veterinary board’s Multidisciplinary Advisory Committee, said he supports allowing veterinarians to recommend cannabis for pets so they could develop trust with clients to better follow up on their patients, measure improvements like range of motion “and other metrics” to see whether cannabis is efficacious.

The measure originally passed the Senate in May but California’s session ends Sept. 13 and proponents do not expect it will come to the floor for a vote before session closes. Lawmakers reconvene Jan. 6.

End

U.S. Officials Launch Cannabis Public Health Campaign

8/30/2019

by

U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams and Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar have announced a cannabis public awareness campaign saying that cannabis use “carries more risk than ever” amid increased access and potency, according to a Washington Post report.

The public awareness campaign is funded by President Donald Trump, who reportedly donated his full second-quarter salary of $100,000 to the effort.

Adams said that current cannabis “isn’t your mother’s marijuana,” pointing out that in 1995 the average potency of cannabis flower was 4 percent and now it’s about 12 percent to 25 percent, while concentrates can run as high as 80 percent or 90 percent.

Azar said he does support increasing federal cannabis research into both the risks and potential benefits into cannabis. Earlier this week, the Drug Enforcement Administration announced it was moving forward with expanding cannabis research and would approve some pending research applications.

“We need to be clear: Some states’ laws on marijuana may have changed. But the science has not. And federal law has not.” — Azar, during a press conference, via the Post

According to the report, the health advisory is only the second issued by Adams. His first came in December and was aimed at e-cigarettes. Officials said that Trump using his own salary to back the cannabis health awareness campaign underscores his – and the administration’s – concerns about addiction and substance abuse.

End

South Dakota Gov. Pens Anti-Hemp Legalization Op-Ed

8/30/2019

by

In an op-ed in the Argus Leader, South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R) is discouraging the legalization of hemp in the state, arguing that legalizing the crop “legalizes marijuana by default.”

Noem cites the experience of other states, such as Texas and Ohio, where some officials have indicated they would not prosecute cannabis cases because high-THC cannabis looks like its non-psychoactive cousin and the agencies don’t have the testing capability for THC levels. The governor noted that a few months ago, a South Dakota Highway Patrol officer showed the Legislature that a drug-sniffing dog alerted the same way to both hemp and THC-rich cannabis.

“South Dakota must lead by example. We cannot rush into legalizing industrial hemp without knowing the cost we will pay. The safety and health of the next generation is not worth the gamble.” – Noem, in an Argus Leader op-ed

Noem said that the state’s Secretary of Public Safety, Craig Price, is also against hemp legalization after witnessing the experiences of other states.

“Law enforcement is already stretched thin in our state, and legalizing hemp would stress our resources even further,” Price said last week, according to Noem. “It would have a negative impact on our drug fighting efforts in South Dakota.”

Noem contends that legalizing hemp “weakens drug laws” and “hurts law enforcement.”

“It’s a step backward. South Dakota already faces a drug problem. Families continue to be ripped apart by substance abuse,” Noem writes. “I realize this position might not be popular, but that’s not why I’m taking it. As a governor who has said I will make every decision with the next generation in mind, I cannot sit by.”

Last year, hemp was legalized federally via the Farm Bill which removed the crop from the Controlled Substances Act. Since that action, several states have passed their own hemp laws which still need U.S. Department of Agriculture approval before moving from ‘pilot’ to permanent.

End