Search Results for "vermont"

Outgoing VT Gov. Pardons Nearly 200 People Convicted of Cannabis Crimes

1/06/2017

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In one of his final gubernatorial acts, outgoing Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin pardoned 192 people formerly convicted of nonviolent cannabis offenses on Tuesday, clearing the records of individuals whose ages ranged from their 20s to 60s, the Christian Science Monitor reports. During his tenure, the Democrat has pardoned a total of 208 people, setting a new record in the state.

About 450 people applied for relief under the program and among those pardoned all but 15 live in Vermont. The pardon applied to convictions of nonviolent offenders who possessed less than one ounce and had no felonies, or convictions either of driving under the influence or reckless driving.

P.S. Ruckman Jr., a political science professor as Rock Valley College in Illinois, called Shumlin’s sweeping pardons “almost unimaginably safe” from criticism compared to 40 years ago.

“It’s highly significant,” Ruckman said in the report. “I think it’s likely we’ll see more of it.”

The governors of other states that have either legalized or decriminalized cannabis have not moved to clear the records of those convicted under old marijuana laws.

Governor Phil Scott, a Republican who took office in Vermont yesterday, has made no indication that he would continue the policies of his predecessor, although he told the Burlington Free Press that he believes the pardon offers make sense.

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The New Hampshire capitol building in Concord, New Hampshire.

Bill Removing Hemp from State Drug Schedule Pre-Filed in New Hampshire

12/27/2016

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A coalition of Republican lawmakers in New Hampshire has pre-filed a bill that would prohibit hemp’s designation as a controlled substance in the state, thereby legalizing full-scale commercial hemp farming and treating hemp just like any other agricultural crop. However, cultivators would still need to seek a federal permit if they wish to comply with federal law.

The measure, HB 151, was introduced in the House by Reps. Daniel Itse, J.R. Hoell, and James Spillane; with support in the Senate by Sens. Harold French and John Reagan.

The bill is refreshingly simple – instead of creating a tightly-regulated pilot program, the measure removes hemp from the state’s Controlled Drug Act, which would immediately allow its cultivation in the Granite State. In 2014, the federal government included language in the Farm Bill which allows state Agriculture Departments and universities to grow hemp for research purposes in states that already allow hemp production under state law. Connecticut and Vermont passed similar legislation in 2014 and 2015, respectively.

The bill will be formally introduced on Jan. 4. It was sent to the House Committee on Environment and Agriculture, and is expected due out of that committee by Mar. 3.

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The Denver Mall in downtown Denver.

Cannabis Investment Firm Buys Denver’s Organix

12/06/2016

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Cannabis industry investment firm iAnthus Capital Holdings has purchased Denver, Colorado-based Organix LLC in a $4.375 million deal that will see iAnthus take over Organix’s brands, intellectual property and all real estate holdings of Organix’s affiliate DB Land Holdings, Inc., the company announced in a press release.

Organix owns a medical and adult-use operation in Breckenridge, along with a 12,000 square-foot cultivation facility in Denver. The deal does not include any cannabis, or any licenses to manufacture or sell. However, Bellflower, a newly formed Colorado limited liability company in which iAnthus holds no ownership stake, has agreed to purchase the inventory and licenses for $300,000. The Bellflower deal requires the approval from the Colorado Enforcement Division.

Once the Bellflower deal closes, iAnthus will provide the company with professional services, such as real estate and financing, through two newly created, wholly-owned subsidiaries Scarlet Globemallow, LLC, and Bergamot Properties, LLC.

“With the closing last month of our successful financing of [$16.2 million] in gross proceeds, iAnthus has the financial resources to diversify its footprint across the U.S.” Hadley Ford, iAnthus CEO said in the release. “This acquisition is the first deployment of capital from our recent financing and helps set the stage for our growth strategy in Colorado.”

Organix held approximately 40 percent of Breckenridge’s market share this year, with $4.4 million in estimated gross retail sales. They are the only Brecknridge outlet which holds both a medical and recreational license.

iAnthus has also made investments in Vermont, New Mexico, and Massachusetts.

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U.S. Cannabis Expansion Could be Good News for Canadian MMJ Companies

11/11/2016

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Canadian cannabis companies could benefit from the record number of states that passed cannabis initiatives on Green Tuesday by investing in and entering into partnerships with companies that acquire new cannabis licenses, according to a Canadian Press report. One of the states that successfully passed an adult-use initiative, Maine, shares a border with Canada, while border-states North Dakota and Montana adopted or expanded medical cannabis programs.

Brendan Kennedy, CEO of Privateer Holdings, which owns Tilray, a British Columbia-based licensed medical cannabis producer, said the success of the initiatives in the U.S. provides “huge opportunities for Canadian companies” due to the “robust” regulations under which their home nation’s medical cannabis program operates.

“I think you’ll see Canadian companies jump at the opportunity to expand their operations and brands into the United States,” Kennedy said in the report. “Both governments and companies around the world are looking to Canada to provide leadership and expertise in this industry.”

Canadian firms operating in ancillary industries, such as equipment manufacturers, now have a whole new market to target and, because medical cannabis is legal under federal law, Canadian companies have a lot of experience with large-scale grows.

“We do have a lot of expertise, and we’ve learned, collectively as a sector, a lot of really important lessons about cultivation and consistent production,” Cam Battley, executive vice president of Alberta’s Aurora Cannabis, Inc., said. “I think that does give us some advantages and would bode well for partnerships when the time is right.”

In addition to the recently legalized Maine, North Dakota and Montana; Alaska, Minnesota, Michigan, Ohio, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, Washington, and Pennsylvania all border Canada and allow some form of legal cannabis use.

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Danielle Keane: Marijuana Legalization Opportunities in the 2016 Election

Danielle Keane: The 2016 Cannabis Legalization Opportunity

10/26/2016

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Danielle Keane is the Political Director of NORML, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. She recently joined our podcast host TG Branfalt for a discussion about the upcoming election season and the unprecedented opportunity that it presents for the cannabis legalization movement. In the upcoming election season, nine states will be voting on a cannabis legalization measure. Recreational initiatives will be on the ballot in California, Nevada, Arizona, Maine, and Massachusetts. In Florida, Arkansas, Montana, and North Dakota, voters will have an opportunity to pass medical initiatives.

In this interview, TG and Danielle discuss the specific details of many of the laws that will be determined by voters in November, including what NORML’s position is on the parallel ballot initiatives in Arkansas. Danielle also discusses some potential reasons why pro-legalization forces have out-fundraised prohibitionists in many areas this year, the bittersweet but unavoidable process of passing flawed legislation and working to improve it once it has passed, as well as the fact that going forward, most states will have to pass legalization measures via the legislature and not via the voters due to how their laws are written.

Note: this interview was recorded before the recent revelations about some Florida ballots omitting the medical cannabis initiative. Please spread the word if you live in Florida or know anyone who does!

Listen to the podcast below, or keep scrolling for a transcript of the interview.

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Listen to the podcast:

Read the transcript:

TG Branfalt: Hey there, I’m TG Branfalt and you are listening to the Ganjapreneur.com Podcast. The Ganjapreneur.com Podcast gives us an opportunity to speak directly with entrepreneurs and experts who are working on the front lines of the industry to normalize cannabis through responsible business, education, and activism. As your host, I will do my best to bring you actionable information to help you plan, grow and manage your cannabis business.

Today, my guest is Danielle Keane, political director for the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws better known as NORML. Keane has served as the political director for NORML since 2015. In that role, she manages local, state and federal lobbying efforts and promotes the organization’s political outreach efforts. Welcome to the show. Thank you for joining us today. How are you?

Danielle Keane: Thank you so much, TG. I’m doing great. Happy to be here.

TG Branfalt: Today we’re going to touch on a lot of different states that were voting on cannabis measures this election cycle. In total, there are 5 states up for recreational legalization and 4 states will be voting on medical cannabis initiatives. I want to start with Maine which is voting on recreational because they’re taking a somewhat unusual approach by creating the new industry under the Department of Agriculture instead of the Department of Liquor or an entirely new cannabis department. What is your take on this approach?

Danielle Keane: There isn’t too much significance in treating cannabis as an agricultural product and having industry oversight through the Department of Forestry versus another state department. This situation is sometimes more voter friendly. People feel more comfortable if marijuana isn’t being associated with a liquor or alcohol control board which we often see in other states. They’ll feel better if it’s in a separate regulatory framework.

That’s a decision that the voters should decide, but when it comes down to it, there’s still going to be a licensing process for businesses and administrative rules for the recreational program the same way if it were to be treated agriculturally or not, but the polling in Maine looks really strong. I believe there’s a margin of support of about 53 to 38% according to a September poll. Treated agriculturally or not, I think we’re going to see that passed.

TG Branfalt: How does this set up with the Department of Forestry, does it differ at all from its national counterparts?

Danielle Keane: It doesn’t really. Again, not in too significant of a way. Again, many of those administrative and regulatory duties are the same despite its classification. Limits on cultivation, allowing municipalities to regulate the number of dispensaries, and licensing — they’re all responsibilities of whatever department oversees the program, forestry or not.

TG Branfalt: If Maine were to pass, which other states could that influence or encourage to pass similar measures?

Danielle Keane: Hopefully other states in New England, but specifically following suit treating as an agricultural product or not, I’m not sure too many.

TG Branfalt: Okay. On the opposite side of the country we have California who’s recreational industry is estimated to be worth about 1.3 billion by 2018 and about 4 billion by 2020. What does legalization in California, the country’s most populous state mean to legalization efforts nationally?

Danielle Keane: California is absolutely, no doubt about it, definitely the state everyone will be looking at to move into a fully legalized and regulated market come November. Just as you mentioned, it is the most populous state in our country. I think something like 1 in 6 Americans lives in California. They have largely lead reforms in the marijuana movement in the past.

They were the first state to pass a medical marijuana law back in 1996, which sparked modern medical marijuana programs that we see around the country today. You are correct in that if California approves AUMA or the Adult Use of Marijuana Act or proposition 64 then it could definitely inspire a wave of other reforms just as we’ve seen California do in the past.

That’s not only on the state level. Realizing that because California is so large, they have the most representation on the federal level and in Congress. Hopefully, we’ll have an even larger representation in Washington DC of law makers with home states that have legal regulated adult use markets. I think you’ll find that they will be more open to protecting these state laws when that comes up in federal law. Of course we already know actually from NORML’s congressional score card that California has already the most friendly federal delegation in Washington DC.

TG Branfalt: So, still despite kind of the trajectory of the industry if California does legalize it recreationally, the proposition itself has drawn the ire of some pro-cannabis activists. Some say we’ll dismantle the medical marijuana program and what is your take on what it would do to the medical program as well what might you say to those activists?

Danielle Keane: Of course. As we all know, California has been involved in the marijuana industry both legally and not for quite some time and so because of that, we have so many different stakeholders that have been participating in this for longer than any of us have seen these reforms come about. This diverse set of interests, there’s no surprise that an initiative like this doesn’t please everyone. It would be impossible to draft a marijuana legalization initiative in a complicated state such as California that hits the perfect compromise on every possible negotiation.

The first thing activists should now is that AUMA, or Prop 64, is not the last word. There will be continued further changes in state and federal law that will guarantee affordable medical access, protect employment and housing rights, facilitate banking and allow interstate commerce. The second note is that AUMA’s regulatory provisions are largely patterned on the Medical Marijuana Regulation and Safety Act which was the package of bills that was recently passed by the California legislature and became effective January 1st of this year.

These provisions are sorely needed. California’s medical marijuana program was unregulated and often the example for other states reforming their laws on what not to do. I think California is in an important time right now of hopefully ushering in full legalization and adapting those new laws to the regulation of the medical program. Things are changing.

I think in the next few years local municipalities will be figuring things out. The state will too and I encourage activists to be a part of that conversation. Get into contact with your local municipalities, join up with other activists that feel the same way you do. NORML has a number of California chapters around the state and I encourage you to try to make these laws work for you. Like I said, part of AUMA or Proposition 64 in California allows for most provisions to be modified by the legislature. This isn’t the end of changes for California.

TG Branfalt: In many states, there seems to be legislative changes happening. In Michigan for example, they just overhauled their medical marijuana infrastructure. In Florida, they’re trying to do the same via an amendment. Do you think that this is a smart way to legislate cannabis and marijuana as to kind of put something out there that gets the ball rolling and then go back and make the necessary changes?

Danielle Keane: I don’t think it’s an ideal way but I think it’s unavoidable. I think that it’s a compromise between having the legislature enact the laws that they believe are necessary. Then on the other side, having citizen driven ballot initiatives pick up the slack and enact policies that the legislature isn’t acting on. I think it’s a balance that us being played out through states around the country. Not everywhere, because not every state has the ability to have a citizen ballot initiative, but a lot of these states, I think it’s a successful way to find compromise between voter opinion and legislative action.

TG Branfalt: On that note, we’re going to take a short break. You are listening to the Ganjapreneur.com Podcast.

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TG Branfalt: Welcome back. You are listening to the Ganjapreneur.com Podcast. I’m your host TG Branfalt talking to Danielle Keane, political director for NORML. Before the break, we were discussing the AUMA, the Adult Use of Marijuana Act in California but now we’re going to move back to the East Coast to Massachusetts where so far seems like the ballot initiative vote could go either way. According to our poll aggregates, the majority approve of the measure but it still has less than 50% of voter support. We’re here talking to Danielle Keane, political director for NORML. What do you think that this polling data says about the initiative’s chances in Massachusetts and are the opinions of powerful lawmakers such as Governor Charlie Baker and Boston Mayor Marty Walsh having any impact on the opinions of voters?

Danielle Keane: I definitely think this is going to be a close one come election day. I think the latest polling datta at I looked at which was a September WBZ-UMass Amherst Poll put support at a 53 to 40% lead with about 7% still unsure. However, within that poll support for the measure was found in all age groups except of course for voters over 55 years old. I believe the measure could pass if voter’s turnout to the polls, mainly millennial voters that typically don’t turn out to the polls. If they do turnout and hopefully they do, I think this measure could be successful but like you mentioned.

Unfortunately, there is a well organized opposition group in this state with endorsements from powerful lawmakers like the governor and the mayor of Boston but Massachusetts is used to having a marijuana related amendment on the ballot. In 2008, they voted to decriminalize possession of marijuana and in 2012, they legalized medical marijuana. Both of those measures passed by significant margins, I think about 30% which the legalization initiative definitely does not have that margin. It may just be that Massachusetts voters are still warming to the idea of a legal market. It’s a wonder why though. With decriminalization in place. it’s a shame for a state not to benefit from the tax revenues associated with the regulated above ground market.

I think as we get closer to the election, if we have any listeners living in Massachusetts, now is the time to get active in supporting the initiative. Reach out to friends and family and make sure they are aware of the question and let them know why you’ll be supporting the measure. Voters and marijuana activist definitely need to mobilize in Massachusetts if we want to see it succeed.

TG Branfalt: You had mentioned millennial voters who very strongly supported Bernie Sanders in his run for the Democratic nomination. Do you think that it will be the millennial voters that are going to make a difference in whether or not some of these initiatives pass?

Danielle Keane: Absolutely. I think the millennial voters are the ones that are going to be the deciding factor. They’re the ones that typically do not show out to the polls. Obviously in mid-term election years, you’ll see elections sway way more Republican. You hardly see any marijuana related initiatives on ballots during those years because it’s just not a good strategy. We absolutely need millennial voters to come out and support these marijuana related initiatives if we want them to succeed.

TG Branfalt: Back west, we’re going to talk a little bit about what’s going on in Nevada. This is actually the first appearance for legalization on the ballot in that state. Some might consider Sin City a slam dunk for legalization, but Oregon didn’t successfully pass their legalization measure on its first try in 2012. Do you think that the voters are going to take the leap on the first shot that they have or do you think that they’ll be trying again in 2018?

Danielle Keane: That is hard to say. I definitely don’t want to discount voters by saying it won’t happen until 2018 just yet, before they get a chance to vote on it. I believe polling in Nevada is putting support at around 52%. Again, pretty close and I think it’s clear to everyone how fitting marijuana legalization would be for Nevada and to be honest I personally think that it’s going to pass.

For what it’s worth, the state’s largest newspaper, the Las Vegas Review Journal did endorse this question during the petition collecting process. Unfortunately, since then Sheldon Adelson who is a casino mogul and anti-marijuana advocate purchased the Las Vegas Review Journal and forced the editorial board to reverse their support.

I think the paper’s first position really signifies where voter sentiment is. Also looking at how close Nevada is to states like Oregon and Washington, and there’s just one state between them and Colorado, they have to be watching these other states flourish with their legalization programs and want to get their fair share. I think this is something we’re going to start seeing happening around the country as more and more states move forward with these legalization initiatives. Other states are going to have to move forward with their on reforms.

TG Branfalt: You had mentioned Adelson, the casino mogul who’s actually … I mean you know this, he’s been funding prohibition pretty much every chance he gets. He just gave a million dollars to the anti-campaign in Florida. However, from what I’ve seen, the pro-camps are largely out fundraising the anti-camps even with billionaire casino moguls getting involved. I mean why do you think that this shift is happening to where the proc-campaigns are out funding the anti-campaigns?

Danielle Keane: That’s a great observation and a really sure sign that the time is now to legalize marijuana. I think people around the country are starting to see the dollar signs in their eyes. For better or for worse, There is just money to be made in the marijuana market. I think that is luckily taking shape in people investing in these ballot initiatives.

They’re not waiting until it’s legal to invest their money. They want to be the first ones in and so therefore they’re going to start investing in getting it legal. I think it’s a great thing for the marijuana movement. I think it comes with a number of pros and serious cons that people need to be aware of and evaluate after these states reform their laws and they start to establish markets. For now, I welcome all of the help and financial help from these investors to get these laws changed first.

TG Branfalt: I’m TG Branfalt, here with Danielle Keane, political director for NORML. We’re going to take one more short break and when we get back, we will discuss the medical initiatives on the ballot.

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Welcome back. You are listening to the Ganjaprenueur.com Podcast. I am your host TG Branfalt talking to Danielle Keane, political director for NORML. I want to talk to you a bit about the medical initiatives. First, I want to start with Arkansas where voters are in a particularly unique position due to the fact that they will have 2 initiatives to choose from in November. According to a September 25th,

According to a September 25th, poll by Talk Business & Politics and Hendrix College, 49% said they would support the amendment which does not include grow your own provisions. 43% were opposed. While 36% said they would support the act which includes grow your own provisions for those with hardship certificates, compared to 53% opposed. If both are passed, the one with the more votes supersedes the other.

Do you guys have a preference on which measure is enacted here?

Danielle Keane: We do. Last month, NORML’s board of directors did vote to endorse the 2016 Arkansas Medical Cannabis Act, which is the measure that does include grow your own provisions. For full disclosure, the attorney representing the Arkansas Medical Cannabis Act is a long-time NORML legal committee member, John Wesley Hall from Little Rock.

It comes down to this. NORML is a marijuana consumer rights group. We represent the interests of the marijuana consumer. The other initiative, the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Amendment is far more restrictive than the first in terms of the list of conditions for which marijuana could be recommended and obviously it does not permit personal cultivation. As a result, the NORML board felt the Arkansas Medical Cannabis Act is a more consumer friendly proposal and did elect to endorse it.

TG Branfalt: Why do you think that voters are supporting the amendment more so than the act at this point.

Danielle Keane: That’s a really good question I have myself. I’m not sure if it comes down to voter education, if one campaign is doing a better job getting their message out to the voters and is truly informing them honestly about their initiative. I don’t have an answer for that. It would seem to me that more people, marijuana consumers would support the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Amendment. I’m just not sure.

TG Branfalt: The act supporters for Arkansas Compassionate Care have said that if both initiatives make the ballot, it’s almost certain that both will fail. Do you see this as the likely scenario in the state?

Danielle Keane: Unfortunately it’s a possible outcome. Essentially when you have 2 competing initiatives on the ballot you’re going to split the vote in half forcing neither of the measures to pass. What we do know in Arkansas is that support for the measures is really, really high when voters are asked about one or the other when faced with just one marijuana initiative they absolutely no doubt it support it. However, when voters are asked about both at the same time, support for those is significantly lower. It’ll be interesting to see how this one turns out.

TG Branfalt: According to your political score card, Arkansas doesn’t have a lot of legislative friends regarding medical cannabis.

Danielle Keane: You are correct. Arkansas’ delegation is not good whatsoever. It would be really, really great for them to take some action this election day by passing one of these initiatives.

TG Branfalt: North Dakota’s medical marijuana proposal would require the compassionate care centers to operate as not for profits. It would establish a compassionate care fund that comprise of donations fees and civil penalties which would provide funds for the program’s operations. What is your opinion on this model, is it viable? Are there downfalls?

Danielle Keane: Often times this requirement for medical marijuana dispensaries to operate as not-for-profits is related to the need for transparency. It’s also used to keep the price of medical marijuana down and accessible for a patient no matter their ability to pay. For that reason, I think it’s a good model. It does however need to be sustainable and obviously not at the expense of others in the state.

For example, using civil penalties to fund it. We don’t want to see an increase in civil penalties related to marijuana possession or use in a public place just so that the compassionate care centers can operate. I don’t believe it’s the perfect model and I think the state will have a warming period where overtime they’ll learn exactly how this is going to work out but we’ve seen it in other states and I think it’s a good place to start.

TG Branfalt: Have those other states evolved their programs into operations that make money?

Danielle Keane: Yes. A not-for-profit doesn’t necessarily mean that they cannot make a profit, it just means they need to be transparent about it and they have a cap for those but we have seen successful nonprofit medical dispensaries.

TG Branfalt: A not-for-profit model will certainly provide a lot of job opportunities and medicine for people who need it. That sounds like it would be a good place to start for North Dakota. Let’s jump topics again and talk about Florida. Florida is unique. Their program is very limited medical marijuana program, just took effect essentially and the centers just began to open in the summer. Can you outline Florida’s constitutional amendment proposal and how it differs from the current system implemented this year and what impact might it have on patients who are presently enrolled?

Danielle Keane: Absolutely. You’re correct in that Florida’s medical law that is currently in place and just took action is very, very restrictive. It’s a medical CBD law that allows for patients who are suffering from only cancer, muscle spasm, seizures, amd terminal illness to access CBD products that essentially don’t have any THC in them. These patients, they do not have access to the full marijuana plant and therefore they don’t have access to the full therapeutic potential found in marijuana.

This constitutional amendment, Yes on 2, Would essentially just expand upon the current Charlotte’s Web law. It would allow significantly more patients with a variety of ailments access to an increased variety of marijuana, most notably it allows for people suffering from chronic pain which is a really common ailment and obviously they’ll expand upon the marijuana that they’re currently growing to include high THC strands.

I’m not sure it would have any detrimental effect on patients that are presently enrolled in the program. These patients are already accessing their medicine. If Yes on 2 were to pass, it would simply expand upon who is eligible for the program, what marijuana products patients will have access to, and obviously an increase to accessibility with more growers and distributors.

TG Branfalt: It would put a little more on par with, say, New York program which while still limited … Actually New York is a really bad example. More of a Michigan type system.

Danielle Keane: Yes, exactly. With NORML, we classify medical marijuana programs to 2 degrees, a regular medical marijuana program where there is a variety of qualifying conditions and there’s a variety of marijuana products and potencies available for the patients. Then the other programs, we classify as CBD programs where patients only have access to CBD products, CBD standing for cannabidiol which is the non-euphoric part of cannabis plant. If Yes on 2 were to pass, Florida’s medical marijuana program would go from a CBD medical program to more of a general medical marijuana program that you find around the country.

TG Branfalt: In Montana if I remember correctly, they went from originally having a full medical cannabis market to a much tighter CBD only market after the state crackdown on them. Is that accurate?

Danielle Keane: Not exactly. The situation in Montana is a very confusing scenario for medical marijuana users and supporters. For the past 5 years, a certain bill that was passed by the legislature was involved in a number of legal issues and therefore while it was undergoing all of this legal attention, key provisions of that bill went unenforced. Earlier this year, 2016, a court ruled in favor of upholding that law that was under this legal scrutiny.

What that law does is it limits medical marijuana providers to selling marijuana to a maximum of 3 patients. Prior to this obviously there was no limit on the number of patients a provider could sell to. Before this ruling, this year, this provision was obviously not being enforced and patients had readily access to medical marijuana. Luckily after the ruling, advocates in the state jumps into action and started immediately collecting signatures to place medical marijuana initiative on the ballot.

That is now known as I-182 or the Montana Medical Marijuana Initiative. All the initiative seeks to do is to repeal that limit of 3 patients per each license provider. It allows a number of other things. It allows providers to hire employees, to cultivate, dispense, and transport — all of that good stuff. Essentially the program as it was once known can go back to that if voters in the state approve this initiative.

TG Branfalt: How do I want to put this nicely? It’s a unique rebellion against them decimating that system.

Danielle Keane: Yes, absolutely. It’s a very impressive feat that advocates in Montana got together, organized quickly after this court ruling in February of this year to get this back on the ballot and I really hope that it passes because they definitely deserve it.

TG Branfalt: Here we are, it’s October 2016 and we have 9 marijuana ballot initiatives at one time. A court ruled that the federal government can no longer use federal funds to crack down on cannabis businesses, legally operating under state-run programs. The FBI reports that possession arrests or at their lowest point nearly a decade, but at 574,641, that number is still greater than 0 which is still too many. Is the tide shifting here? Does 2016 — are we shifting getting to a more normalized cannabis culture?

Danielle Keane: Absolutely. There is no doubt that the tide is definitely shifting and it actually has been for a number of years already. About 68% of millennials sau marijuana should be completely legal and 50% of baby boomers also favor legalization. 1 in 8 Americans or 13% now report that they currently smoke marijuana according to a recent Gallup poll which is nearly double the number of current users or 7% found by Gallup just 3 years earlier.

43% of Americans acknowledge that they have tried marijuana at some point in their lives and 1 in 5 adults under 30 years of age regularly use marijuana. There’s just no doubt that as millennials are aging and our older comrades are dying, voter opinion is so in favor of marijuana legalization. I do however want to point one thing out about the recent court ruling that you mentioned, the court did uphold a budgetary amendment that prohibits the Department of Justice from cracking down on cannabis businesses that are legally operating under state run programs.

However this was an annual budgetary amendment approved by congress, but it has to be passed through the budget every single year. So that one little protection for these legal businesses has to be reauthorized every year and unfortunately that provision which was passed the past 2 years has not yet been reauthorized for next year.

NORML has an easy to use take action tool on our website that you can contact your federal lawmakers and tell them that they need to pass this protection again this year. If you want to take action on that you can visit our website but there’s no doubt that the tide is shifting. In 2016, it’s such an exciting year for marijuana law reform,

TG Branfalt: Despite the shifting tide the only 2 presidential candidates talking about legalizing cannabis federally are both third-party candidates, Jill Stein from the Green Party and Gary Johnson from the Libertarian Party. Is marijuana still a fringe issue when it comes to politics? You have progressive Democrats who haven’t discussed at all legalizing on a federal level. Then you have the Republicans who are obviously just going to keep doing nothing. I’m wondering what is your take on that?

Danielle Keane: I’m not sure it’s a fringe issue. Both Hilary Clinton and Donald Trump, the nominees for president have been asked about their stance on marijuana legalization a couple times. You are correct though that neither of them endorse a full federal legalization. But more importantly will they allow, if either of them were to be in office, will they allow states to move forward with their own reforms free from federal interference?

Luckily, both candidates have said that they would allow that. Of course Clinton has doubled down on her positions endorsing medical marijuana and calling for more research into its effects but to be honest, Trump has been a little bit all over the place on the issue. He said that he would let states move forward free from federal interference, however he associates himself with a number of high profile politicians such as Chris Christie that have been very opposed to marijuana reforms.

It’s a little but unsettling if Trump were to be in office. He could appoint someone such as Chris Christie to an important cabinet position, but in general they’re in the same position which is, again, they’ve acknowledged marijuana as an issue. They’ve stuck their foot in the sand in terms of their position, but I do give them credit in acknowledging it and taking a position.

TG Branfalt: You had mentioned Chris Christie and now in New Jersey a lawmaker has proposed legislation that would regulate marijuana like tobacco. First of all, I’ve been covering public policy for several years and bills like this sometimes get stalled in committee or they get voted in one house and not the other. Do you see this proposal in New Jersey having any chance on getting to the governor’s desk passed?

Danielle Keane: The key words were what you just said at the end. Not only does the measure need to pass both chambers, the house and the senate but it eventually ends up on the governor’s desk who has to sign it in order to become law. Obviously with Chris Christie as governor. I can pretty surely say that if legalization bill were to end up on his desk, he would not sign it whatsoever.

With that being said, the measure is a really common sense proposal that was actually introduced by arguably one of the most conservative members of New Jersey’s delegation which is pretty ironic but of course welcomed. We are supporting that legislation on our website if you want to contact your members in New Jersey to tell them to support it, check that out.

We will do our best to support it however, this proposal actually makes it two legalization pending proposals in New Jersey. The first one has been through the chambers for quite a while. No action has been taken so it’s tough for me to say if the other one will be successful, chances are unfortunately not. Again even if it were, it would end up on, unfortunately, Governor Christie’s desk which doesn’t bode well either.

TG Branfalt: If just the ballot initiatives pass, we would have 9 states plus DC. With legal cannabis, we’d have 27 states with some form of medical marijuana available. If legalization did run the table in November, do you think we could expect any more states in 2018 and 2020 or are those remaining states just not ready?

Danielle Keane: That’s a good question. It’s hard to gauge where some states are in this process. It obviously takes a state a number of years to prepare for this move. This is not something where voters in the states just wake up on election day and now they’re faced with a legalization question. It has to build up. I think even more exciting rather than more ballot initiatives in 2018, in 2020 is the idea of a state legalizing marijuana through the legislature rather than the ballot.

This is very, very important in the coming years because only 18 states allow voters the right to amend their state constitution through the ballot initiative process. Most states will have to legalize through legislative means.

TG Branfalt: Peer into your crystal ball for me. Which state might possibly be next to legalize it legislatively?

Danielle Keane: That’s a good question. I’m going to have to say Vermont. Vermont has come very, very close, several times over. They’ve been having this conversation for years. Unfortunately, it hasn’t happened yet but they have the support of their governor which is really important obviously and they’ve tried it over and over. It’s just a matter of finding that consensus through both chambers and through both parties. I’m really keeping my fingers crossed for Vermont.

TG Branfalt: Now, before we wrap up, I just want to touch base on the congressional scorecard from NORML  because I know that you put a lot of time and effort into it personally. Was there anything that you discovered when you were researching these members of congress that was particularly shocking and what is the overall goal of the project?

Danielle Keane: Absolutely. NORML did just release an updated 2016 Congressional Scorecard. This is essentially a voter tool that provides a letter grade, A through F to every single member of congress. These are your federal lawmakers, not your state lawmakers and essentially we graded them on a couple of things. We looked at whether or not they introduced or sponsored marijuana related legislation, whether they co-sponsored and supported marijuana related legislation, whether they had the opportunity to vote on any marijuana related amendments or bills and then of course any public comments that they’ve made on the subject.

We gathered all of that information for all 535 members of congress and according to that provided them a letter grade. You know the most surprising thing to me in doing this project was really just looking at where voter sentiment is. I just rattled off a bunch of statistics to you a few minutes ago where it’s very clear that voters are ready for legal marijuana whether that’s on the state level or either reclassifying or preferably declassifying marijuana from the Controlled Substances Act or passing legislation like the CARERS Act which would allow for a significant amount of research to be done on marijuana.

Whatever it is Americans and voters are absolutely ready for the federal government to take some sort of action and yet we just don’t see that. I mentioned earlier describing the score card whether or not any members had had the opportunity to vote on a marijuana related bill. That’s a no for everyone because despite there being about 25 to 30 marijuana related pieces of legislation pending at the congressional level, not one has ever been heard before a committee, not one.

We’ve only ever seen progress in terms of annual budgetary amendment that are related to marijuana. It’s really time that these members of congress looked at who they’re representing. Look at how they feel about these reforms and take some action because there’s just no doubt about it. The voters are ready.

TG Branfalt: I’ve always maintained that the failure to act by our federal government is because that would be them admitting fault — that they were wrong year after year, after year about marijuana legislation. Do you think that this is responsible for this inaction?

Danielle Keane: I think that’s a good idea, but quite frankly I don’t care if they think that they were wrong. It’s time to be aware that you’re not representing yourself in Washington DC or what you want. You’re representing thousands, hundreds thousands, millions of voters in the state that you represent and it’s really, really clear of where the voter stand on this issue. It’s getting to a pretty unacceptable point for inaction.

TG Branfalt: Is there one final message that you would like to give to those constituents in states with initiatives on the ballot?

Danielle Keane: Absolutely. My message is simple and that is just to educate yourself and your friends and family and go out and vote. We need you to vote. NORML has outlines and information on all of the pending ballot initiatives on our website. You can just go to the homepage, norml.org and you’ll get all of the information you need there.

You’re also going to be voting on your members of Congress and your state-elected officials. We can help you learn about your congressional members with our score card. Otherwise you can look up a NORML chapter near you and your state that hopefully has information on your state elected officials. Just please pay attention to what’s on the ballot and vote. That’s it.

TG Branfalt: Danielle, I’d like to thank you very, very much for being on the Ganjapreneur.com Podcast.

Danielle Keane: Thank you so much for having me.

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, product reviews and cannabis jobs, updated daily along with the transcripts of this podcast. You can also download the Ganjapreneur.com app in iTunes and Google Play. I have been your host, TG Branfalt.

 

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North American Cannabis Holdings Reports 23% FY2016 Growth

10/18/2016

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North American Cannabis Holdings Inc. reported 23 percent annual growth during fiscal year 2016, reporting $515,475 in sales and eliminating over $2 million in debt — more than 45 percent, the company announced in a press release.

The company operates a variety of enterprises including hemp farming in Vermont and growing medical cannabis in Maine, to extraction and edibles. The company also acts as a pilot program incubator and reports that two projects have successfully “graduated” from the program.

One of the ventures, AmmeriCanna Café, a cannabis-themed restaurant chain, graduated as an in-house project and “accounts for the current reported revenue,” the release says. North American Cannabis acquired the company, which includes a full all-day menu, fitness center and smoothie product, in June, 2015. The company plans on franchising the “hybrid” fast food and casual dining café.

The other graduate, an extraction operation, is being commercialized as a spinoff. The project uses a proprietary extraction process for use in infused food and edibles. The operation is housed in the independent company Puration, Inc. According to Puration’s revenue plan, the company estimates three collaboration agreements worth $1 million each will “be finalized promptly.”

North American Cannabis is planning a dividend issuance of Puration common stock for shareholders on Oct. 21.

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Little Interest So Far in Growing Cannabis for the Feds Following DEA Policy Changes

8/31/2016

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A report by Stat News has found little interest from a dozen agricultural colleges to grow cannabis at the behest of the Drug Enforcement Agency, following an announcement by the agency that they would expand their federally sanctioned research program.

Cornell University, the University of Kentucky, Virginia Tech, Michigan State University, the University of Vermont, the University of California, Davis, Western Kentucky University, the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, Oregon State University, Colorado State University, Purdue University — all indicated that they had no plans to grow cannabis for the government.

“I think everybody is just thinking about how to approach this,” Dr. Igor Grant, director of the Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research at the University of California, San Diego, said in the report. “What will it really take to get one of these DEA licenses?”

According to the report, interested organizations would need to show that they have security measures in place to protect the federally outlawed plants, and be willing to comply with a litany of additional requirements. A grow under the program would also likely involve significant funding to get up and running.

Currently, only the University of Mississippi has a federally-approved license to grow cannabis for government research.

Individuals and private companies can also apply for the program; however according to a memo announcing the policy change, individuals with Controlled Substances Act violations would likely be disqualified from participation. According to the document, any person or entity that applies for the program will be entitled to due process and the agency will “show cause” if an applicant is denied.      

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‘Progressive’ Democratic Party Platform Includes Marijuana Reform

7/11/2016

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Democrats endorsed a “reasoned pathway” to future marijuana legalization during the party’s national convention full Platform Committee meeting last Saturday in Orlando, Florida, the Washington Post reports.

Supporters and delegates of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders’ presidential run were reportedly behind the push to add the language to the party platform. Tennessee delegate David King, a lawyer, backed an amendment removing marijuana from the Controlled Substances Act. King said marijuana’s inclusion in the act was to hurt “hippies and blacks” during the drug policy “craze” of President Richard Nixon, but the party settled on a more measured approach.

The drafting party agreed on language calling for “policies that will allow more research on marijuana, as well as reforming our laws to allow legal marijuana businesses to exist without uncertainty.”

Some members were concerned that the language was too strong, and undermined state-by-state efforts. The amendment, however, was approved by a vote of 81 to 80; there were 187 voting committee members.

In addition to the marijuana amendment, the Platform Committee also came together on an amendment that calls for the demilitarization of police, encouraging better community relations and de-escalation training.

The platform is revered as the most “progressive” in the party’s history by both the Sanders camp and Hilary Clinton’s supporters. Clinton’s camp is hoping the progressive nature of the plan is enough to woo Sanders delegates and voters to vote for her in November. The platform is expected to be officially unveiled during the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia during the last week of July.

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Colorado Cannabis Company Awarded U.S. Patent for Marijuana-Based Product

5/12/2016

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Colorado-based Mary’s Medicinals announced today in a press release that it has been awarded a U.S. patent for its transdermal cannabinoid gel technology.

“We might be the first legal cannabis company in the United States to have a patented product formulation currently available to consumers,” Graham Sorkin, Director of Business Development at Mary’s Medicinals, told Ganjapreneur.

Through Mary’s four unique transdermal gel formulations — THC Indica, THC Sativa, CBN and CBD — consumers have an accurate and discreet way of consuming medical cannabis products. Mary’s also offers CBD Transdermal Gel Pens that have been manufactured through its sister company, Mary’s Nutritionals.

“We are pleased that the Patent and Trademark Office has approved our application,” said founder and CEO Nicole Smith in a statement issued by Mary’s Medicinals today. “The PTO has only granted an extremely limited number of cannabis-related patents — almost exclusively to major international pharmaceutical corporations, research institutions and the Federal Government.

Mary’s Medicinals started as a medical cannabis flagship company in Colorado and has since expanded to markets in Washington, California, Oregon, Vermont and Arizona.

“As a small startup company, securing this protection for our intellectual property and the recognition of the uniqueness of our offerings will bolster our continued leadership in this rapidly growing industry,” Smith said.

According to the press release:

The patent application (U.S. Patent Application Serial No.14/561,091), which is owned by Mary’s Medicinals, was filed on Dec. 4, 2014 by inventor Nicole Smith. Mary’s Chief Scientist, Noel Palmer, Ph.D. is also listed as an inventor. Mary’s Medicinals has additional patent applications filed and pending for its other unique cannabis products.

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Joy Beckerman: The Future Hemp Economy

3/31/2016

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Joy Beckerman is the founder of Hemp Ace, in addition to being a nationally-recognized industrial hemp activist and expert. As a hemp consultant, she is a frequently-sought speaker at industry events, and was a panelist in the Economic Benefits of Cannabis and Hemp panel that we attended at this year’s Washington Cannabis Summit. Joy recently joined our podcast host Shango Los for a discussion of the far-reaching impact that industrial hemp is likely to have on our economy, ranging from food agriculture, to textiles, to fuel, and even nanotechnology. She also outlines how the industry will likely formulate and grow as hemp cultivation is legalized across the country, and how outdoor hemp farming can coexist with outdoor cannabis crops.

Listen to the podcast below, or scroll down for the full transcript!

Subscribe to the Ganjapreneur podcast on iTunes, Stitcher, SoundCloud or Google Play.

Listen to the podcast

Read the transcript

Shango Los: Hi there and welcome to the Ganjapreneur.com Podcast, I am your host Shango Los. The Ganjapreneur.com Podcast gives us an opportunity to speak directly to entrepreneurs, cannabis growers, product developers, and cannabis medicine researchers all focused on making the most of cannabis normalization. As your host I do my best to bring you original cannabis industry ideas that will ignite your own entrepreneurial spark and give you actionable information to improve your business strategy, and improve your health, and the health of cannabis patients everywhere. Today my guest is Joy Beckerman. Joy Beckerman is president of Hemp Ace International, an industrial help consulting and brokerage firm serving domestic and international clients. She is the industrial hemp advisor to the North West Farmers Union, and sits on multiple advisory panels and boards. She owned the first hemp store in New York in the early 1990’s and was appointed to serve as the secretary of the Vermont Hemp Counsel in 1996.

Joy then also developed an extensive career as a compliance and complex civil litigation paralegal working with some of Seattle’s most distinguished attorneys. Joy is the recipient of the national hemp industries associations 2014 hemp activist of the year award, and works extensively with policy makers. She is an internationally renowned public speaker and conducts continuing legal education seminars for attorney’s on industrial hemp related law and policy. Thanks for being on the show Joy.

Joy Beckerman: Such an honor and a pleasure Shango.

Shango Los: Joy, often episodes about hemp focus on the astounding array of products that can be made from hemp. Today’s show is going to be a little different, focusing more on the business opportunities that exist within hemp today. That said it would be important to understand the wide array of the industries that American hemp agriculture can impact, so let’s start there. Would you give us a snapshot of the variety of industries that are going to be impacted when hemp comes online here in the U.S?

Joy Beckerman: My favorite story to tell, the full spectrum. We start with the seed because that’s where the least amount of infrastructure needs for us to take advantage of that market. We buy ninety percent of the seeds from Canada, so seed is for nutritional, cosmeceutical, and industrial purposes. Not just fuel because there are other parts and I’m sure we’ll talk about them further on about fuel from the actual cellulose, but also varnishes and protectants. From there we move onto paper, tech styles, twine, yard, cordage, building materials, bio composites, and now and this we didn’t see coming twenty-five years ago, nano technology and super capacitors. It is endless.

Shango Los: I’ve got to hit on the nano tech, in what way does hemp expand to nano tech?

Joy Beckerman: Thank you, well right now what we have for the best RND material and the greatest material that we could use on the market are carbon nano tubes. What we’re talking about, surface area in strength on a nano level, which is about I think to the nine millionth exponential factor, something very, very small. For example, if you wave your hand in front of your face right now a nano meter is about how much your fingernail grew as you waved your hand in front of your face. What they have discovered is that hemp cellulose is the most valuable bio-cellulose on the planet, and it is second in surface area and strength only to carbon nano tubes. In terms of super capacitors we are finding that it is superior to graphene. They’re even starting to make biomedical nano technology, sort of fake skins and everything. I mean we are really making huge strides, and that was about in August of 2014 is when that research started to be released publicly.

Shango Los: I’m really glad that you mentioned that, you know I really mostly think about the plastics, the fibers, the clothes, and the ropes but the high tech impacts are going to be huge as well. Before we can achieve that bright future with hemp we’ve got to make hemp a national industry, and that’s dependent on the laws changing. Give us a road map, what is the legal status of hemp agriculture right now and where are the hot spots of where it seems to be growing in our country?

Joy Beckerman: Thank you for asking that, well you know I have to say that the feds have the hemp heroes in the federal legislature, which is very bipartisan. They have carved out a path for a truly responsible way for us to reintroduce industrial hemp state by state. That happened in the agricultural act of 2014, which most folks refer to as the farm bill. There was an amendment that was included that changed history, and changed the landscape for cannabis. That is section 7606, which is known as the legitimacy of industrial hemp research. Very simple, plainly written two page bill, double spaced and in that bill some very important things happened. One is industrial hemp was defined and distinguished from marijuana for the first time in U.S. history, and it is defined as any part of the plant cannabis sativa whether growing or not that contains greater than .3% THC on a dry weight basis.

Where as our definition of marijuana in the controlled substances act does not discuss this earnest, small, non scientifically based … God help him, he regrets very much having being responsible for this .3, but so where as the definition of marijuana doesn’t include this .3 now we have a definition for industrial hemp which does. A side note, and we’re going to bring that up I’m sure later on with regard to the market for cannabinoid extraction, non euphoric cannabinoid extraction from the plant material, and flowers essentially of the hemp plant. It does not have in this definition of industrial hemp a carve out for the resins, which those of us who have, you know, deeply studied the law and policy from the marijuana tax act through the controlled substances act with regard to that definition of marijuana. We know that even in that second sentence of the definition which details the exception for the oil, seed, and fiber variety of cannabis of course industrial hemp, there’s still an exclusion to the exception in that sentence and that is for the resins of the hemp.

Where as in this definition of industrial hemp, in the farm bill, section 7606 there is no carve out. That becomes very significant as we begin to talk about what Kentucky, and Colorado, and Oregon are doing and the hemp truck that they are driving through this gray area, this hole.

Shango Los: Are those going to be the states that we’d consider our hot spots right now would be Kentucky and Colorado? They are on the vanguard of all of this?

Joy Beckerman: Yes, and with Oregon close behind. What I also want to say is that Section 7606 was very clear, you are only states that, “Permit the cultivation of hemp.” That doesn’t say legalize, that says that permit the cultivation of hemp through the state legislative process will be allowed to take advantage of this. On top of it once the state legislature permits it, permits the growth of it they generally in these bills also say that their state departments of agriculture will now form rules. In section 7606 only, state departments of agriculture and institutions of higher education are allowed to do these agricultural pilot programs. Now that is another term that’s defined in there, “Agricultural Pilot Program.” In that we are allowed to study the cultivation, the growth, and the marketing of industrial hemp.

Now that word marketing included in this research amendment is huge because we are considering that also a big hole to drive a hemp truck through, and we’re calling that commerce. We’re saying that’s a green light, and guess what? The feds are also saying that’s a green light. There are a couple of really important other pieces of federal legislation for me to discuss, but I sense you might have a question before I move onto those.

Shango Los: Yeah you’re right about that. What I’m seeing is that at the federal level they’ve given us the green light. Now the ball is in the states; courts, and Kentucky, and Colorado, and Oregon are quick to jump. I’m assuming there are a couple of other states who are coming up behind, I actually am aware of the recent disappointing veto in Washington. There’s a bipartisan legislation that had made it through both the house and the senate and got to Governor Inslee’s desk and he vetoed it, kind of in revenge from what I hear for the house and the senate not passing the budget that he’s looking for. I’m already hearing whispers that this bill is going to be reintroduced and they’re going to massage that.

For everybody who’s aware of that and concerned about what happened, what’s the latest update on the Washington legislation?

Joy Beckerman: Well what’s happening in Washington is very interesting because we’ll be the twenty eighth state to permit the cultivation of hemp once we get that bill passed, and I’ll touch upon that in a second. To answer your first question we have twenty seven technically states that have legalized hemp, only eight that have ever put seeds in the ground because of this oversimplification of what hemp cultivation is. Bills and policy are not written that will actually allow seeds to go in the ground. Having said that for sure Kentucky, Oregon, and Colorado are in the forefront. Washington, we’ve been at it now for three years, working on these hemp bills. This year the WSDA and I decided basically we were going to get together, get a united front, and double team the legislators because we’ve had competing bills each year both in party and in house. That has in itself been a problem within the legislature.

This year we, with some of the new laws that have passed, particularly section 763 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, which we’ll talk about in a little bit, we knew for Washington that we were going to make our bill in-compliant with section 7606 because now we have a lot of additional protections. Having said that we will, right now as the governor you say has indeed punished the legislature for not doing the one thing that the governor believes the legislature should have done this year. He punished them by taking thirty seven of the bills that they basically worked hardest to agree on the most, and twenty seven of them he vetoed which we do believe is the largest batch that was ever vetoed in the Washington state legislature, ten he didn’t because they had to do with health and safety.

Lucky for us it is the senate majority leader who needs to reopen that vote, and it is the senate majority leader, Senate Mark Schoesler who is a cosponsor of the senate bill for industrial hemp. We believe that he’s going to reintroduce that.

Shango Los: That’s certainly really convenient right? So often when something gets vetoed you have to go back to square one and try to convince someone to reintroduce it but the fact that it’s actually the sponsor really makes your job that much easier. You know, we need to take a short break for a moment Joy. We’ll be right back, you are listening to the Ganjapreneur.com Podcast.

Welcome back, you are listening to the Ganjapreneur.com Podcast, I’m your host Shango Los. Our guest this week is Joy Beckerman, president of Hemp Ace International. Joy right before the break you had mentioned a recent federal bill that included additional protections and how those were going to move us forward so quickly. Will you go ahead and break that out?

Joy Beckerman: Thank you, so each year our federal government even though they haven’t passed a balance budget in fourteen years, they do pass a consolidated appropriations budget because things do have to move forward annually. This year we had some additional protections, I’m sure we can thank the state of Kentucky which has moved forward with true high CBD low THC varieties of cannabis that fit a legal definition of industrial hemp but are being grown specifically for non euphoric cannabinoids. Of course the property mostly being targeted as you can imagine is cannabidiol CBD, so they really had to protect themselves. They knew they could take advantage of the fact that this new industrial hemp definition did not include resins, but meanwhile they do know that the resins are still included in the controlled substances act as a scheduled one control substance.

In this consolidated appropriations act of 2016, buried within section 763 it says, “The department of justice and the drug enforcement administration may not use funds to one, in contravention of section 7606 of the agricultural act of 2014.” By the way that language existed in this bill from last year, so that’s not new, we had that language last year that it said in contravention of section 7606. That wasn’t very clear, was it? They added language that was adopted and became the law of the land on December 18 of 15, and it now also says, “Or two, to prohibit the cultivation, transportation, processing, or sell of industrial hemp that is cultivated in compliance with section subsection 7606 of the AG act of 2014,” and get this, “Within or outside of the state in which it is grown.”

It is only because I know I’m on radio that I’m not yelling and crescendoing my voice as I say that because this is huge you guys, this is historical that we are now, the feds are heroes, our federal legislative hemp heroes have now created this research pathway, which by the way is responsible because we don’t have cultivars here in America that will serve immediate needs. We have to reach outside of our borders to get pedigrade seed from the thirty one developed countries that have these beautiful varieties that are meeting sophisticated demands of today’s global markets for these many industries that I just discussed. We have got to be able to access those seeds. As we access them and plant them in these research crops, some of them are failing and what we don’t want is large growth commercial farming right out of the gate for hemp where we have crops that fail. The naysayers will say, “Oh, they said hemp was going to save the world, they said hemp would grow everywhere,” which it doesn’t by the way, not without irrigation and other inputs.

The point is we’ve got to have success, so the fact that we get to reintroduce under research really helps us learn and not have this horrible judgement when as we learn and crops may fail along the way, as we test cultivars. Having said that this new language that protects the transportation, and the processing, and the sale beyond state lines is more of a giant hole for Kentucky, for Colorado, for Oregon, and hopefully for Washington. I’m going to give you a bit of the, I don’t want to say bad news but obstacle that we’re facing in Washington even when we pass our bill with regard to this cannabinoid extraction market. The reality that even in Canada where they have legalized since 1998 they are mostly growing only for seed. Shango, that’s because it’s expensive to create an infrastructure to process that long, tall, strong, hard fiber, the stock.

In Canada, again, since 1998 for the most part they actually plow their fiber back into the ground. Matter of fact …

Shango Los: Wow.

Joy Beckerman: Yes, we buy ninety percent of their seeds. What we have to do as we look at the business opportunities that are immediately open to us, and then that we can grow into are one, the seed nutrition. We have combines, most states already have seed crushing facilities and meal facilities. By that I mean we take the meal that the seed cake, that’s left over from pressing any seed generally and that is dried and then sifted and ground into various powders, that’s where we get hemp protein powder from. It’s not ground up seeds, that would make a nut butter. It’s the ground up and milled seed cake left over from the seed industry. Anyway, we have those infrastructures in most states. The only thing we’re missing in most states are dehulling mechanics, that is the dehulling takes the shell of the hemp seed and separates it from that beautiful nutrient-dense, protein-filled heart. Of course it is the highest form of protein, and the highest digestible form of protein, and the highest essential fatty acid profile in the entire planet animal kingdom. That’s your immediate market.

Second immediate market, and this is why these protections in the consolidated appropriations act of 2016 are so significant are non euphoric cannabinoid extraction. To the extent that industrial hemp can be ethically grown for human consumption, and for a therapeutic and medical market. There are high standards and ethics that go along with that, of course you would understand, that we then can just use extraction technology which is not nearly as expensive as the infrastructure to decorticate the fiber. Right now the Kentucky department of agriculture is valuing that crop at ten thousand dollars an acre. I work very closely with the Washington state department of agriculture and of course I have brought the Kentucky department of agriculture into our meetings so that we can educate our own state on the incredible opportunities that Kentucky is taking advantage of and they are taking advantage of non euphoric cannabinoids.

When they say ten thousand dollars an acre I’m saying even if they’re wrong by ten times let’s go a thousand dollars an acre, it’s eighty dollars an acre for hay, and about …

Shango Los: Yeah that’s still an incredible return.

Joy Beckerman: It’s huge, and it would generate the revenue that we need to build the infrastructure for these decorticating facilities and processing facilities for the stock, which is where we’re going to be getting our paper, textiles, twine, yarn, building materials, our bio composites, nano technology, and super capacitors. Brother, that is all going to come from the stock but we have to build the infrastructure. I do want to say, because this is very important to the entrepreneurs out there, that it isn’t just the old school decorticating facilities which separate the bast fiber, which is the bark, or the long fibrous outside of the stem from that inner woody core which we call the shid, or the herd. A basic decorticating facility is going to separate that bast from the herd, but what we seen in modern day is then they take it that much further. Then they’re processing the herd to different geometric particle sizes to serve different purposes, whether it’s a bio aggregate for say hemp cream building material, or whether it be used for animal bedding, or a ply wood made with hemp type thing.

Having said that, this is very important for the entrepreneurs out there. There is a technology that has been patented by a company called, “Pure Vision Technology” based out of Fort Lepton Colorado, this is Dr. Winger and the Lurburger brothers, Ed Lurbuger. They have a patented technology that’s fractionalization, it separates the stock into cellulose, linens, and sugars. From those three elements we can make thousands of industrial products and it applies to many applications including methane fuel. Now they have created a secondary company called, “Pure Hemp Technology LLC,” this is the licensing arm that licenses the Pure Vision Fractionalization technology and they even have a new testing facility going up in Southern Oregon. I’ll wrap this up for you, but to tell you what we ultimately need to see around this great country are processing facilities within fifty miles of every biomass feed stock, whether they’re the fractionalization, decortication, or dehulling, and seed pressing, and seed cake milling. Those are the main mechanics that we want to see.

Then of course we need to go into textiles, which China is way ahead of us. Right now there are only three paper companies in American that could process hemp fiber. All of those infrastructures need to be built, but we’re talking about immediately seeds and non euphoric cannabinoids.

Shango Los: Well that’s a pretty great picture and a timeline that we’ve built there. First we’ve got the feds giving the green light, then we’ve got the rules being made at the state level, then we’re moving into seed nutrition, a non euphoric CBD which is going to cause the capital to exist in the industry to start building these decorticators fifty miles from where the farms are. There’s a lot of opportunity for money to be made and for this to all happen very swiftly it sounds like. We need to take another short break, we’ll be right back, you are listening to the Ganjapreneur.com Podcast.

Welcome back, you are listening to the Ganjapreneur.com Podcast, I’m your host Shango Los. Our guest this week is Joy Beckerman, president of Hemp Ace International.

So far on the show we have had a whirlwind timeline of what’s going on in hemp right now from the federal government giving the green light, the states making it’s rules, and now all of the capitalists getting to their particular roles to make this all happen and raise the money to start building these decorticators. At the same time the medical cannabis and recreational cannabis industries also on the rise in our country, and you know Joy one of the things that I hear most is a spastic concern of people that industrial hemp is going to come online outdoors and cross pollinate into the recreational and medical cannabis outdoor crops. You know we’re big fans on this show of outdoor growing of marijuana because of the decreased carbon footprint from indoors, but everybody’s got an opinion about whether or not there’s going to be cross pollination or not.

I figure you have probably got some fact, so boil that down for us. Are we going to see an issue with industrial hemp cross pollinating into recreational cannabis?

Joy Beckerman: Thank you for asking this really important question which I can only preface by saying it is a shared concern. You must know of course that we will easily convert our industrial hemp farmers into interstate and international drug farmers if God forbid their hemp should creep up over .3% THC. It is just as much of a concern of marijuana cross pollinating with the industrial hemp as it is in the reverse. I just always want to preface by saying that. The reality is that it is distance only that I see the state of Washington using in terms of a barrier between cross pollination. Ultimately we know that bees travel about three miles from their hive, and even though it’s true and this is where the hysteria comes from … well there are two pieces actually. It’s true that there have been studies out there that say, “Pollen can travel two thousand miles from one continent to another and we have proof of that.” It’s a small planet, this little blue marble that we all share together so that’s now how we deal with agriculture.

It’s actually a fairly common concern with very common solutions. Those solutions would be A, distance. B, not planting at the same time as many fields, corn, and sweet corn folks do. As a matter of fact there’s a licensed hemp farmer in Oregon who is also a corn farmer and he has a neighbor who plants corn, and his neighbor plants GMO corn and he plants non GMO corn, so they don’t plant at the same time. Having said that for industrial hemp, AOSCA, which is the Association of Official Seed Certifying Agencies, for the first … and this is the seed certifying agency that most developed countries subscribe to, China does not which is why we don’t normally get human consumption items from China. They have developed as Canada has, a way to keep even cultivars, because there are hundreds of cultivars and varieties of industrial hemp, from cross pollinating by distance. With just different types of industrial hemp it can go from one foot, to three miles to avoid cross pollination.

If I’m a betting woman I would say that the WSDA is simply going to use the distance of a maximum of three miles keeping in mind that it just does so happen that our own seed certification gentlemen from our WSDA is also just so happens to sit on that international sub committee for AOSCA, so it has been particularly sophisticated in learning about industrial hemp from the last couple of years due to his position on that international sub committee. That has been very beneficial to us. Now, do we want to absolutely respect our outdoor growers? I want you to know, I am the first line of defense in our own state legislature in Washington. I want you to know by the way, just a side note, that in Washington in our current bill once it has passed, we’re not going to be allowed to collect plant material for non cannabinoid extraction.

I realize I digress a little bit, but before the show ends I do want everyone to know that has been written out of our bill, we’re only going to be allowed to use seeds and not plant material. We will not be taken advantage of that great financial opportunity, and there are reasons for that, that perhaps I’ll go to in another show. It has to do with testing standards, WSDA’s testing standards versus our liquor and cannabis board, and the WSDA standards are much higher.

In any event, moving back to cross pollination. I’m the first line of defense because there are legislatures that are in these agricultural parts of our state that are so pro-hemp that they want to pass a law to make all of the marijuana go indoors. I sit there and say, “Oh you know not what you say, please. That would be an environmental catastrophe.” Number one, we cannot have all of our marijuana go indoors and we need to continue to increase the canopy, I think, of our legal marijuana market. While I am definitely a proponent of using distance I also recognize that there are parts of our state where there are particular amount of sun grown marijuana. It is potential that in those parts of our states, perhaps we should make those regional and put barriers around those and say, “You know what? We’re not going to allow hemp farming in these particular regions.”

An interesting thing, in Oregon the Oregon hemp industries association has put a voluntary moratorium. I don’t think that I would be able to do that in Washington, I am an industry leader here and a trade association leader here but I don’t like going up against farmers. Legislators in that manner are telling hemp farmers that what I think they should do versus what the department of agriculture is telling them to do. Having said that I will probably take on the same tact of discouraging large scale commercial hemp farming around certain areas of the state, to the extent that it’s not law.

Shango Los: Distilling it down the short answer is yes, there’s going to be cross pollination. There’s going to be cross pollination from hemp to peoples personal grows, there’s going to be cross pollination from gorilla grows over to hemp, there’s going to be cross pollination between hemp and legal grows that it’s going to have to be worked out either by when they are each planted, or distance. On a botany level this is going to be a real problem.

Joy Beckerman: I have to correct you, no, I have to correct you. It’s absolutely not going to be a real problem. Everything that you said, as much as I love you, has actually just contributed to the hysteria. I did a bad job explaining.

As much as we want to …

Shango Los: In under twenty seconds do you think you can clean that up?

Joy Beckerman: Yes, and we’re going to start out with those distances so that we can collect hard data to disprove the hysteria that exists. Pollen from industrial hemp is large, it would take tremendous climactic and wind factors in order for it to travel any significant distance at all. We want to start out by making everybody feel comfortable, we are going to learn to thrive and prosper together. Cousins, and sisters, and brothers in cannabis and we want to start out by making everybody comfortable with these distances and collect the hard data so that we can disprove the hysteria and close up those distance gaps. That’s what I’m saying.

Shango Los: Right on, well thank you for re-clarifying that because I definitely didn’t get the right gist. That’s all the time we have for today, thanks for being on the show Joy.

Joy Beckerman: It’s such an honor and a pleasure, thank you Shango for everything you do for cannabis everyday.

Shango Los: You can connect with Joy Beckerman at HempAce.com. You can find more episodes of the Ganjapreneur podcast in the podcast section at Ganjapreneur.com, and in the apple iTunes store. On the Ganjapreneur.com website you will find the latest cannabis news, product reviews, and cannabis jobs updated daily along with transcriptions of this podcast. You can also download the Ganjapreneur app in iTunes and Google Play. You can now also find the show on the I Heart Radio network app, bringing Ganjapreneur to sixty million mobile devices. Do you have a company that wants to reach our national audience of cannabis enthusiasts? Email grow@ganjapreneur.com to find out how.

Thanks to Brasco for producing our show, I’m your host Shango Los.

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New Jersey Medical Cannabis Prices Are Nation’s Highest, Report Shows

3/18/2016

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Patients enrolled in New Jersey’s medical cannabis program are paying about 37 percent more per ounce than their counterparts in states with similar programs, according to a state Health Department report.

The five dispensaries in the state charge an average of $489 per ounce, while the average price at dispensaries in Arizona, New Mexico, Vermont, Maine and Rhode Island is $311 per ounce. The study took into consideration that those five states also have a 10 percent lower cost of living than New Jersey.

The report noted that the Drug Enforcement Agency found that the price of “hydroponic black market marijuana” in the state is around $400 to $450 per ounce.

Taking into consideration that Alternative Treatment Centers are held to rigorous cultivation and production standards in the state – cultivation, packaging and dispensing occur in “sanitary environments” and cannabis is grown without pesticides – the report concluded that “no ATCs are charging excessive prices for medical marijuana.”

“New Jersey medicinal marijuana is regulated and tested, patients are afforded protection under the Act and are able to change ATC affiliation at any time at no cost,” the report said. “ATCs are required to pay federal corporate tax at a rate of 34 percent.”

The 34 percent corporate tax equates to $166.26 per ounce sold at the $489 rate.

In an interview with Philly.com, Michael Nelson, general manager of Compassionate Sciences in Bellmawr, objects to the report’s accuracy. He says it fails to take into consideration monthly discounts and reduced prices for low-income patients, whose final price is closer to $300.

Donna Leusner, spokesperson for the Department of Health, said in the report that in addition to the discounts granted by some dispensaries to certain customers, about 48 percent of program participants receive a discount on their registration fee, cutting it from $200 to $20.         

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New England: The Next U.S. Region to Embrace Legalization

2/23/2016

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Though the west coast has had a lock on U.S. cannabis culture for some time, the tides are turning nationwide, and it’s due time for some representation from America’s birthplace.

On the whole, New England is shaping up to be a promising locale for cannabis. Its growing medical marijuana industry includes Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut.

Vermont has three pending legalization laws in the legislature, finally getting the chance to make official its long relationship with industrial hemp and cannabis. Lots of self-identified marijuana users hail from this state, and a recent poll showed that 56 percent of Vermonters support legalization while only about 34 percent would oppose it.

Maine is expected to legalize via voter initiative later this year, with a few years’ experience running a successful medical marijuana program already under its belt.

Massachusetts, though home to the business and technology hub of Boston, has had trouble gaining government support for adult use legalization. Two competing ballot initiatives faced off, but only one campaign collected enough signatures for 2016. With just a handful medical marijuana dispensaries just recently having opened, three years after the law permitting them was passed, Mass. pot shops are still having trouble doing business with low product supply and very high patient demand.

Rhode Island is also entering campaign season with a viable adult use initiative, which recently gained the support of a key legislator. Historically, Rhode Island citizens have had one of the highest rates of cannabis consumption in the country.

Connecticut has a medical cannabis program in place, but will likely not be legalizing adult use this year.

The New Hampshire House recently shot down a couple of legalization bills, but progress in neighboring states could provide a more supportive environment for policy change, especially given the fact that two thirds of voters showed their support for drug decriminalization, according to a recent poll.

Though New York is typically not considered part of “New England,” it’s the population center of the region and the state’s advances in medical cannabis policy cannot be overlooked. The state finally implemented its own government-supervised retail dispensary program last year, with a total of 393 physicians and 921 patients registered for the program in the first six weeks, and around a dozen storefronts either in operation or set to open soon.

Overall, the East Coast is home to a lot of individuals that support the legalization of marijuana; though stigma and federal illegality is still keeping many prospective New England patients out of the dispensaries. The legislative process seems to be the only hurdle here.

Even if for some reason these campaigns fall short, success is inevitable in the western states. If California, Nevada, and Arizona all choose to legalize adult use come November, it will create a cannabis super-region that will no doubt influence policy across the U.S. for the foreseeable future.

Will New England really be the next hotbed for cannabis, or will traditional values keep the industry low key? Time will tell – but what matters is that just about anywhere you choose to live in the United States, some form of legalization is well on its way.

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A First Look at Etain: Albany’s New Medical Cannabis Dispensary

1/07/2016

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A non-descript building in Albany, New York’s warehouse district houses the state capital’s first, and currently only, medical cannabis dispensary. During the tour of the Etain-run facility, Chief Operating Officer Hillary Peckham said she and her crew had “worked through the night” preparing this, and their Kingston location, to be patient-ready.

“This is something that we put our sweat and tears in,” Peckham said. “It’s dinner, it’s breakfast, it’s staying up all night. This is something that we are really proud to be able to share with everyone here.”

Inside-view of the Etain medical cannabis dispensary in Albany, New York.
Inside-view of the Etain medical cannabis dispensary in Albany, New York.

In accordance with the state law, the outside of the building is plain – it’s simple, painted a hushed grey with red trim. The lobby’s color scheme is the same, featuring a small waiting area with a faded leather sofa, two black leather chairs and a leather faux shipping crate coffee table.

The exterior of the former Regalo Gift Experience location will bear a simple black and white sign reading “Etain” — the only marketing attempt allowed at state-registered medical marijuana operations, as per state law.

The Etain product line — entirely cannabis concentrate products.
The Etain product line — entirely cannabis concentrate products.

Etain will offer three oil-only brands: Forte (a high-THC blend), Balance (equal parts THC and CBD) and Dolce (a high-CBD option). The brands will be available to patients in capsule, tincture, oral spray and a solution for use with vapor pens, similar to e-cigarettes. Each one is designed to offer patients “consistent” and “reliable” doses in their products, Peckham said.

Before patients can enter the location they must first be registered with the state. New York guidelines cover about a dozen critical and terminal illnesses, and individuals must be certified by one of about 150 doctors in the state licensed to prescribe marijuana. Doctors must complete a four hour course before they can recommend cannabis to their patients.

After showing their credentials, patients will be escorted to the dispensing area — which keeps the same grey, red and leather decorative scheme — where they will be greeted by Etain pharmacist Kevin King.

Etain pharmacist Kevin King.
Etain pharmacist Kevin King.

King, 28, graduated from Albany College of Pharmacy and began his career at a compounding pharmacy in the city, which he described as similarly “unique” to his new role in the nascent market.

“Having this opportunity open up as a new program, doing the same [types of] thing, offering a previously illegal option to patients and helping a huge number of people in the state – I couldn’t be happier,” he said. King admits he supported medical marijuana use before he took the job with Etain.

Patients will also have the option to speak with a patient relations specialist. Martha McDermott, whose background is in social work, describes her job as a patient and community educator.

“A lot of it is helping people understand the conditions that qualify for the program,” she said. “People think you can just walk in — there is a certification process that is far more complicated in New York than Colorado, California and Vermont.”

McDermott explains that she hasn’t had questions from any of the new neighbors – the dispensary is located directly next to a heating and air conditioning company and just up the street from a local hard cider brewery, a Crossfit gym and three popular bars.

“A lot of the counseling will come from the pharmacist because that is the regulatory requirement, but I think at Etain we would like to see education advocacy be one of the things that we do here,” she said. “Marijuana is, obviously, a new industry in the state… it’s rapidly growing.”

Peckham said that she expects Etain’s other sites to open “throughout the month,” but was unable to provide a hard timeline. The Department of Health announced yesterday that they were allowing registered operators the option to provide delivery services to patients who are unable to travel due to their health who also do not have a licensed caregiver as a proxy. Peckham said they do not yet have a system in place but it is “something they definitely intend to do,” and are working with homes for aging populations in an effort to provide those services.

Although enrollment numbers are low – the Health Department reported just 50 patients have signed up for the program so far – Peckham anticipates an “accelerated patient count” due to the state’s large population.

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New Report Highlights States Most Likely to Legalize Cannabis by 2017

11/18/2015

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A new report spotlights the U.S. states that are the most and least likely to legalize cannabis by 2017. The 270-page report by the Anderson Economic Group was published to estimate future market demand for legal marijuana.

Anderson CEO Patrick L. Anderson stated that “American opinions about marijuana are changing and it’s time that voters and investors have a sober and realistic look at the potential market for these products in each state.”

The report cites Arizona, Maine, Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, Rhode Island and Vermont as the most likely candidates to legalize marijuana in the next couple of years. On the flip side, it highlights Arkansas, Idaho, Indiana, North Dakota, Texas and West Virginia as the least likely to legalize pot.

“This was no small task, but we believe our state-by-state approach provides readers with the best picture of the market for state-sanctioned cannabis products in the United States,” said Jeff Johnson of Supported Intelligence, an analytics firm that contributed to the report.

Source:

http://www.thecannabist.co/2015/11/17/legalize-pot-states-most-least-likely/43986/

Photo Credit: Tony Webster

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New Doobster App for On Demand Legal Marijuana Delivery Does Things Differently

5/20/2015

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Logistics Trust, Inc. has launched a subsidiary named Doobster (www.Doobster.org), a mobile application and platform (the “Doobster Platform”) that allows a consumer of legal marijuana to order products from their smart phones, tablets or computer and have the products delivered to their physical location. Doobster is launching in 15 states by empowering stakeholders at all levels with its innovative business model.

Started as a logistics and compliance consulting company in January 2013 by Scott Abadjian, Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Logistics Trust, Inc. (“Logistics Trust”) now intends to provide consumers with an on-demand mobile (SaaS) platform. The robust and flexible Doobster Platform is very user-friendly. Consumers can register and order products quickly and with confidence. Products are delivered to a consumer’s location within minutes by using smart algorithms, advanced routing, heat maps, GPS, location services and other techniques.

But the Founder and Chief Executive Officer emphasizes, “Doobster is not Uber for marijuana; we are more than a marijuana delivery app.” The Company intends to make the term “doobster” synonymous with quality logistics and compliance facilitation services within the legal marijuana industry. Another objective of the Company is to create long-term value for its customers and business partners through the quality of its technology and services, its ability to facilitate compliance with applicable state and local laws, and its active commitment to helping customers and business partners build wealth.

Doobster Platform users will include the following parties:

  • – State-authorized Cooperatives/Collectives/Dispensaries (“vendors”; “dispensaries”);
  • – State-authorized legal marijuana product couriers (“drivers”), who are thoroughly screened by Doobster before being included in a dispensary’s driver pool and issued access to the Doobster Platform; and
  • – State-authorized legal marijuana consumers (“consumers”; “patients”), who are thoroughly screened by Doobster before being granted access to the Doobster

Doobster does not grow, produce, process, distribute or sell marijuana or marijuana products. As a unit of a software logistics and compliance facilitation services company, it will deliver the following commercial services:

  • – Enable consumers to search for a Doobster-connected vendor of legal marijuana products within their local market area and state;
  • – Enable consumers to order legal marijuana products from the inventories of a Doobster- connected vendor within their local market area and state;
  • – Enable consumers to request and receive delivery of legal marijuana products by a driver affiliated with a Doobster-connected vendor to their current location; and
  • – Enable consumers to pay for their purchases of legal marijuana

Abadjian is passionate about making sure that all parties in the Doobster service delivery chain obtain real value from the Company’s technology and services. “This is an incredible time in our nation’s history. Cannabis has the potential to revolutionize the economy at local, state and national levels. We have not built a marijuana delivery app just for our benefit. My aim is people helping people. From cultivators to dispensaries to drivers to consumers to licensees to community residents to government regulators, Doobster helps to address the socio-political- economic interests of each of those stakeholders in a harmonized manner,” says Abadjian.

Studies show that both medical and recreational marijuana users of various demographic groups, including mobility-challenged, older people, business professionals and high-profile individuals, welcome discreet and legally compliant delivery of their cannabis products. Since many local ordinances limit the number and visibility of marijuana storefronts, the Doobster Platform enables vendors and consumers to communicate with a smart device or computer and execute a state- sanctioned legal marijuana purchase without the need for consumers to drive to dispensaries or wait in long lines to transact their business. A post-order in-store pick-up is also an option with use of the Doobster Platform for those who may be on the go and simply want to avoid long lines and wait times.

Abadjian emphasizes, “Our Doobster Platform satisfies the desire of vendors, consumers, community residents and government officials to allow state-authorized users of legal marijuana to access products in a safe, efficient and discreet manner. The Doobster Platform also negates the debate about the perceived negative stigma associated with visible, high-profile marijuana retail storefronts. Our business model addresses the core realities of the marijuana industry – people want easy, safe, discreet and reliable access to products, communities want to maintain their family-friendly standards, vendors want an effective means to drive sales, government officials want practical ways to regulate the industry and foster tax revenue, and business professionals want entry into the industry without the risk of violating federal, state or local laws.”

One of several distinguishing factors for Doobster is its use of a license model to open new state and county territories (called “DMA’s”) and enroll state-authorized dispensaries to adopt the Doobster Platform. Licensees at the state-level and DMA-levels serve as Doobster authorized representatives, complimenting internal Company sales and customer support teams. State and DMA licensees are also responsible for helping to foster community relations and maintain close relationships with dispensaries, as well as the customers and communities served. Licensees are vetted for their customer relationship management skills, sales, marketing, business management and financial acumen, as well as their local community connections and other attributes.

Having licensees who are well-established in their communities and vested in the success of the Doobster Platform in their territories provides multiple benefits. One important benefit is that it keeps a large percentage of the income generated by the Doobster Platform within the community, which creates jobs and economic security for the community.

“Our licensee model will afford local business professionals opportunities to get involved and benefit financially from the exploding legal marijuana industry without producing, handling, distributing or selling marijuana products,” says Michael Watorski, Vice President of Sales.

Licensee applications are now being accepted. Watorski has already sold several State and DMA licenses and demand has been brisk.

“What separates us from the competition is that our licensees receive a generous percentage split of the monthly Doobster revenue” says Watorski. He adds, “In addition, all licensees are issued Company stock, allowing them to profit from the ongoing success of the Company.”

To be clear, the company is not selling stock to licensees, dispensaries, drivers, employees or other stakeholders. The Equity participation and stock issuance awards are similar to a hybrid loyalty program and are designed to fully comply with all federal and state securities laws.

Logistics Trust not only shares equity with State and DMA licensees, but also with its dispensaries. “We’re stepping into this industry in a very innovative way to create real separation from the competition,” says Darryl K. Henderson, J.D., Chief Operations Officer. Henderson adds, “All dispensaries that adopt and utilize the Doobster Platform will receive an equity stake in the Company. In other words, not only do we create value with the quality of our technology and services, when we prosper, our business partners and customers prosper as well.”

Abadjian is very proud of the talented and diverse team of executives, internal sales professionals, technology staff and customer support staff assembled to deliver the Doobster Platform. “Our employees are our most valuable asset. We expect them to perform to exacting standards each and every day.” Abadjian adds, “We have been fortunate to assemble an outstanding team of seasoned business professionals to execute the Doobster operations.”

Doobster is moving into 15 states, including the following:

Alaska           Maryland                 Oregon

Arizona         Massachusetts         Vermont

California      Minnesota                Washington

Colorado       New Hampshire

Illinois           New Mexico

Maine            Nevada

The first phase of Doobster Platform launch has begun and involves accepting applications to become State and DMA licensees. The first State in which Doobster will operate is scheduled for launch in June, with a small group of select dispensaries participating in the launch. Consumers and prospective drivers for dispensaries are strongly encouraged to pre-register on the Doobster website and will be able to check for updates as June approaches. The Company is also engaged in a continuation of its angel investor fundraising.

The Official launch date of the Doobster Platform to the public will be announced on June 1st. It will take place in states that have both legalized marijuana sales and authorized legal marijuana deliveries.

Doobster is committed to following the law to exacting standards in all of the jurisdictions where it will operate. It will only work with licensed dispensaries and lawful drivers legally authorized to carry marijuana in their states.

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New Hampshire House Committee Unanimously Approves Hemp Bill

3/11/2015

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Lawmakers in a New Hampshire House committee unanimously approved a bill to remove a ban on the industrial cultivation of hemp. The bill, which was sponsored by Representatives Elizabeth Edwards (D-Hillsborough), Laura Jones (R-Strafford), Robert Cushing (D-Rockingham), and Michael Sylvia (R-Belknap), would regulate hemp like any other farmable crop. The bill will now be debated and voted on in the full House.

In particular, the bill notes that “industrial hemp shall not be designated as a controlled substance.” Since the 1970 passage of the federal Controlled Substances Act, hemp production has been prevented by the Drug Enforcement Agency because of its relation to cannabis.

If passed, House Bill 494 would bring New Hampshire into the company of Colorado, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, and neighboring Vermont, all of which have passed similar laws. Although many producers have hesitated to begin cultivation until federal legislation has passed, farmers in Colorado, Oregon and Vermont have begun harvesting over the past couple of years.

The U.S. hemp market is somewhere around $500 million per year, with the majority of imports coming from China and Canada, the world’s largest hemp exporters. According to the Congressional Resource Service, the U.S. remains the only developed country that does not cultivate hemp on an industrial scale.

Sources:

http://www.thedailychronic.net/2015/41410/hemp-bill-advances-in-new-hampshire-by-unanimous-committee-vote/

http://blog.tenthamendmentcenter.com/2015/03/unanimous-vote-moves-industrial-hemp-bill-forward-in-new-hampshire/

Photo Credit: storebukkebruse

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Kentucky Hemp: First Crop Successfully Harvested, Industry’s Future Looking Strong

9/26/2014

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In May of this year, Kentucky sued the federal government for confiscating the state’s legally-acquired Italian hemp seeds, sparking a fiasco that enraged hemp supporters nationwide. The seeds were eventually returned and planted as part of a pilot crop for Kentucky’s industrial hemp industry. That pilot crop was harvested earlier this week and has been called a great success.

“There’s a great possibility that [hemp] could become a viable crop in Kentucky,” said David Williams, a University of Kentucky agronomist. Williams is an overseer of operations at the UK hemp research plot. “It’s not the most complicated plant to grow for farmers. I think they would pick up on it immediately with very little guidance.”

Six universities and twelve farmers were involved in Kentucky’s hemp experiment, which took place on about 15 acres of land scattered throughout the state. The UK plot reportedly grew quickly and easily: “The plants … have been allowed to grow on their own, and they’ve done just fine,” Williams said.

The hemp harvested this week was a variety grown for fiber production. The plants will remain in the field for two more weeks, however, as part of the curing process.

Hemp, the non-psychoactive sister plant to cannabis, was once considered a staple crop by Kentucky farmers. During the federal government’s crackdown on marijuana in the 1970s, however, growing hemp was also outlawed and the American hemp industry disappeared. Under the most recent Farm Bill, however, the federal government ruled to allow states that have legalized hemp cultivation to begin experimentation with industrializing the plant once more.

A thief reportedly stole several plants during the night last week. Adam Watson, the state’s hemp program coordinator, explained that the thief likely didn’t understand it was hemp and not marijuana being grown on the eastern Kentucky plot. “You can’t use it to get high,” he said. “So we expect it’s … a case of mistaken identity.”

Kentucky is not alone in its experimentation with industrial hemp. Twelve other states — California, Colorado, Hawaii, Indiana, Maine, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oregon, Utah, Vermont, and West Virginia — have passed legislation allowing industrial hemp for research and/or commercial purposes. Meanwhile, actual licenses for growing pilot hemp crops were issued to farmers this year in Kentucky, Colorado, and Vermont.

Though this year’s hemp-growing season has concluded, Kentucky farmers are already looking forward to next year’s crop. After attending this year’s harvest, Everett McIntosh, a farmer from Garrard County, explained that he was curious about converting some of his own land into hemp production. “There’s so much work invested in farming that this would seem much more economical, if they can come up with processing locations,” he said. “That’s the only problem right now is to see who’s going to invest in that.”

Sources:

http://www.thedailychronic.net/2014/37136/hemp-crop-successfully-harvested-in-kentucky/

Photo Credit: Chris H

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Industrial Hemp Takes Root in Kentucky and Colorado

8/24/2014

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Amid the growing popularity of marijuana law reform, it is sometimes easy to forget about the other important cannabis revolution: the revitalization of a forgotten hemp industry.

Recent pioneers of industrial hemp in the U.S. were granted licenses to grow pilot hemp crops in Kentucky, Colorado, and Vermont this year following the passage of the Farm Bill, which loosened federal restrictions on growing the non-psychoactive plant. There are twelve other states who have also loosened restrictions on hemp production, but did not issue licenses for experimental hemp crops this year.

In Kentucky, where American industrial hemp holds its most historical significance, hemp plantings statewide covered 15 acres of farmland this summer. In Colorado, where interest was also running high, there were 56 registrations for commercial hemp production and 76 more for research purposes. In Vermont, there were 12 registrations to grow hemp, — how many farms actually carried out their pilot hemp programs, however, is unknown by officials.

In Kentucky and Colorado, however, industrial hemp is coming along quite nicely.

“It seems to be fairly easy to grow,” said Bruce Pratt, professor of agriculture at Eastern Kentucky University. “The plants got established so quickly that they shaded out the weeds.”

Adam Watson is the Kentucky Agriculture Department’s hemp program director. By his description, the program carries a lot of potential:

“We’ve got an excellent climate for it, excellent soils for it. It’s a good fit for Kentucky producers. The ultimate question is going to come down to economics. Is there a market and can Kentucky capture that?”

Meanwhile, one ganjapreneur in Colorado is looking capitalize on her hemp field before its even finished growing. Veronica Carpio, who owns Colorado Hemp Coffee, has been offering periodic tours this summer of her outdoor and flowering hemp field. Her crop proved its natural resilience to Colorado’s high and dry climate this year, persevering heartily through both summer heat and springtime hail storms.

The biggest difficulties posed to the industrial hemp industry so far have been legal issues: namely, the Drug Enforcement Administration has continued attempting to block the importation of hemp seeds, despite their legality under the new Farm Bill. In one event, the DEA was sued by the Kentucky Agriculture Department, who requested that the federal agency return the state’s impounded hemp seeds in time for the favorable planting season. The seeds were eventually returned, but there remains a distinct dichotomy of ideals between the DEA and industrial hemp.

Commercial hemp is popular for offering eco-friendly alternatives for plastics and papers. Additionally, the revitalization of the hemp industry could help reduce deforestation, offer environmentally-conscious clothing alternatives (cotton is a water-guzzling crop), and stimulate the clean energy market via hemp biodiesel and ethanol fuel.

In 2013, a report by the Congressional Research Service said that hemp imports to the U.S. in 2011 cost $11.5 million — a paltry sum compared to other imported crops. Nonetheless, if the infrastructure for manufacturing and processing the plant is realized sooner rather than later, the U.S. stands to benefit immensely from this forgotten industry’s revival.

Sources:

http://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/2014/08/16/homecoming-for-hemp-rebirth-sprouting-in-kentucky-research-plots/

http://www.thecannabist.co/2014/08/22/colorado-hemp-field-spotlights-industry-struggles-aspirations/18407/

Photo Credit: Miikka

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States and Feds Show Signs of Wavering Marijuana Prohibition

2/14/2014

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With recreational use legalized in two different states, 2013 was a big year for marijuana enthusiasts.  2014 is gearing up to be even bigger and more monumental if social and political patterns are to be trusted.

The nation has watched Colorado and Washington very closely since the states began the great legalization experiment last year, and with recreational stores open in Colorado for one and a half months already, it’s clear that marijuana legalization is not, in fact, the end the world. The state of Colorado is benefiting both socially and economically, and other states are now considering hopping on with this legal reefer madness.  According to the NORML blog, almost 30 different states are currently considering marijuana law reform in one way or another.

The 14 states considering recreational legalization are: Arizona, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wisconsin. 12 states (and the District of Colombia) are considering decriminalization: Alabama, Arizona, DC, Hawaii, Illinois, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Wyoming. 11 states will vote on medical marijuana legislation: Florida, Kansas, Kentucky, Hawaii, Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, West Virginia, Minnesota and Wisconsin. And 3 states will be considering industrial hemp: Indiana, New York, and Tennessee.

And state legislators are not the only ones pushing for change, as demonstrated in an open letter sent to President Obama from 18 members of Congress this Wednesday. The congressmen call for a minimum action of reclassifying marijuana at the federal level, if not declassification entirely, stating that “Classifying marijuana as Schedule I at the federal level perpetuates an unjust and irrational system. Schedule I recognizes no medical use, disregarding both medical evidence and the laws of nearly half of the states that have legalized medical marijuana.”  The letter’s lead author, Oregon State Representative Earl Blumenauer, believes that they have identified a “step the administration can take to start to rationalize federal marijuana policy to bring it in line with the advances that are happening in the states.”  This bi-partisan letter is just another piece of what’s beginning to resemble a frenzied legalization stampede.

In many ways, 2014 is shaping up to be a potential landslide victory for marijuana reform. Enthusiasts believe this victory could also make for advances in economic growth and social justice. With cannabis still considered a schedule 1 controlled substance by the federal government, however, the entire industry continues to operate in a state of legal limbo.

 

Sources:

http://blog.norml.org/2014/02/12/28-states-are-considering-marijuana-law-reform-is-your-state-one-of-them/#sthash.WLcer6NM.dpuf

http://www.thedailychronic.net/2014/27560/congress-calls-president-obama-use-authority-reclassify-marijuana/

http://blumenauer.house.gov/images/stories/2014/02-12-14%20Blumenauer%20Rescheduling%20Letter.pdf

Photo Credit: R. Ayana

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