Cannabis Economy

Cannabis Economy provides information from elected officials, regulators, scientists, business leaders, advocates and activists on cannabis as medicine, wellness and economic opportunity. Who you are informs what you do. Business is personal. Follow us @CannEconomy

Ep. 551: Blai Bonet 06/25/2020

Ep. 551: Blai Bonet /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/14738921

Ep. 550: Brent Venable 06/22/2020

Ep. 550: Brent Venable /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/14738807

Ep. 549: John Dickerson 06/18/2020

Ep. 549: John Dickerson /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/14738606

Ep. 548: Ross Knepper 06/15/2020

Ep. 548: Ross Knepper /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/14738285

Ep. 547: Kokil Jaidka 06/11/2020

Ep. 547: Kokil Jaidka /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/14738156

Ep. 546: Erez Karpas 06/08/2020

Ep. 546: Erez Karpas /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/14738042

Ep. 545: Matthew E. Taylor 06/04/2020

Ep. 545: Matthew E. Taylor /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/14681198

Ep. 544: Kobi Gal May 06/01/2020

Ep. 544: Kobi Gal May /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/14681072

Ep. 543: Shlomo Zilberstein 05/28/2020

Ep. 543: Shlomo Zilberstein /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/14675261

Ep. 542: Charles Isbell, Michael Littman, Peter Stone 05/25/2020

Ep. 542: Charles Isbell, Michael Littman, Peter Stone /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/14658506

Ep. 541: Pieter Abbeel 05/21/2020

Ep. 541: Pieter Abbeel /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/14658173

Ep. 540: Jason Ortiz, MCBA 05/18/2020

Ep. 540: Jason Ortiz, MCBA /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/14350637

Ep. 539: Chuck Smith 05/14/2020

Ep. 539: Chuck Smith /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/14236727

Ep. 538: Emily Paxhia 05/11/2020

Ep. 538: Emily Paxhia /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/14235446

Ep. 537: Bridget Conry 05/07/2020

Ep. 537: Bridget Conry /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/14218124

Ep. 536: Neill Franklin 05/04/2020

Ep. 536: Neill Franklin /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/14205491

Ep. 535: David Lonsdale 04/30/2020

Ep. 535: David Lonsdale /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/14200004

Ep. 534: Tseli Khiba, Advocate, High Court of Lesotho 04/27/2020

Ep. 534: Tseli Khiba, Advocate, High Court of Lesotho /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/14065580

EP. 533: Brian Vicente 04/23/2020

EP. 533: Brian Vicente /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/14065523

Ep. 532: Narbe Alexandrian, Canopy Rivers 04/20/2020

Ep. 532: Narbe Alexandrian, Canopy Rivers /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/14051696

Ep. 531: Charlie Bachtell 04/16/2020

Ep. 531: Charlie Bachtell /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/14009219

Ep. 530: Ross Bradshaw, New Dia 04/13/2020

Ep. 530: Ross Bradshaw, New Dia Ross Bradshaw shares that his company, New Dia, was one of the first recipients of Massachusetts's economic empowerment program; they are now licensed and will be opening their doors in Worcester by the end of July this year. Bradshaw shares how he got started in the industry: "One of the things that really was profound to me was the lack of minority representation when it came to business ownership. I experienced it in Massachusetts and then once again in Colorado, in probably the most robust marijuana market in the world." Since then, Bradshaw has been fighting for equity and minority business ownership, especially for people who have been incarcerated and historically excluded from opportunities in cannabis. He emphasizes the importance of educating people about the opportunities that are available and removing the stigma surrounding cannabis. /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/13599629

Ep. 529: Guy Rocourt, Papa & Barkley 04/09/2020

Ep. 529: Guy Rocourt, Papa & Barkley Guy Rocourt, of Papa & Barkley, returns for a discussion on good manufacturing practices (GMP). "The GMP is there to prevent the off-chance of something going wrong and to put in standard operating procedure. In our industry, we used to not be transparent because we were secretive, so the road to GMP is about professionalizing some processes so that we have the gear to do it the right way at scale." For Rocourt, the future of cannabis is one that is solvent- and chemical-free without any over-processing. Because the majority of GMP entails your standard operating procedures, codifying processes and looking for places wherein things could go wrong is essential. /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/13599608

Ep. 528: Terra Carver, Humbolt County Growers Alliance 04/06/2020

Ep. 528: Terra Carver, Humbolt County Growers Alliance Terra Carver, Executive Director of the Humboldt Country Growers' Alliance, discusses how the changing seasons are affecting cannabis farmers and growers in Northern California. Unfortunately, California is dryer than usual right now, which has caused difficulty for farmers. Carver explains the three most important things that cover crops do and also gives some insight into crop rotation and regenerative farming: "A very important part of regenerative farming is not only just planting crops, but ensuring that you have some animals on that piece of land to do what they do to regenerate and re-introduce certain nutrients, and then also weed out certain weeds." Carver then pivots to policy and notes that tax reform is the most important issue right now for farmers, for which there is currently broad support. /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/13861217

Ep. 527: Socrates Rosenfeld 04/02/2020

Ep. 527: Socrates Rosenfeld Socrates Rosenfeld, CEO of Jane Technologies Inc., discusses his military experience and how it has informed his entrepreneurial life. He shares one of his philosophies regarding doing business in cannabis: "I see all these people trying to do a lot and focus on things that they can't control, whereas for us, I think, as stewards of this industry, we should focus on the truth...if you can focus on the truth, you can grow." Rosenfeld believes that, although there is temptation for every business to focus on profit and growth, providing access to products that help people so fully is the most important part about being in the industry. For Rosenfeld, getting yourself to where you want to be is an iterative process, and cannabis was the one thing that truly helped him to find his balance again after his military service. /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/13599575

Ep. 526: Former US Congressman Carlos Curbelo 03/30/2020

Ep. 526: Former US Congressman Carlos Curbelo Former U.S. Congressman Carlos Curbelo returns for a conversation on politics and legislation. Curbelo explains that, because of all the noise amidst impeachment and the Democratic primary, congressional campaigns have flown largely under the radar. He also discusses the political cost of switching parties and emphasizes that reelection is everyone's biggest priority. Curbelo talks about the STATES Act versus the SAFE Banking Act and believes that, between the two, the SAFE Banking Act is more likely to pass in the near future. He also notes the newfound absence of cannabis as a political hot topic: "The fact that cannabis is not being discussed a lot in the context of primary elections is actually wonderful news because that means it's not a sharp weapon anymore, in a negative sense." /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/13542527

Ep. 525: Bridget Conry, Companion Botanicals 03/26/2020

Ep. 525: Bridget Conry, Companion Botanicals Bridget Conry of Companion Botanicals joins us to discuss different anti-inflammatory drugs and the various ways of managing chronic pain. She describes the problem with pain medications: "You want to feel pain. We have pain because it tells us stop doing that or something's wrong. And the reason it gets so dangerous when we mask it is that all you're doing is stopping your body from doing what it would normally do to deal with some sort of trauma. It's a signal something's wrong." This is exactly where botanicals come in, although Conry notes that each botanical does something different, so it's still important to consult with a healthcare practitioner and to know what works for you specifically. Conry distinguishes between the different types of botanical medicines, discusses the products that combine botanicals and CBD, and explains why CBD doesn't help everyone fall asleep. /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/13536041

Ep. 524: Jessica Assaf, Prima 03/23/2020

Ep. 524: Jessica Assaf, Prima Jessica Assaf, co-founder of CBD beauty brand Prima, begins by sharing with us her thoughts about the potential of cannabis to be a women-led industry: "This is really first time in history that women have the opportunity to design, build, and lead an industry from scratch, with no glass ceiling...cannabis is the opportunity to redefine feminism." She also discusses the different views toward cannabis in California versus New York, the benefits of having seasoned business people in the industry, and the necessity of having the right protocol and safety standards. Assaf notes that CBD has the potential to fix some of our biggest problems, like stress and chronic pain. /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/13536080

Ep. 523: Torsten Kuenzlen, Sundial Growers 03/19/2020

Ep. 523: Torsten Kuenzlen, Sundial Growers Torsten Kuenzlen of Sundial Growers begins by discussing how welcoming Alberta, Canada has been toward the cannabis industry, allowing the province to truly be one of the country's industry leaders. Kuenzelen shares with us Sundial's intentions regarding the future of global operations: "As soon as we have the ability to export and then import into the other countries, the world's our oyster." He believes that there will be many developments with all the hundreds of lesser known cannabinoids in the near future but is most especially excited about the breadth of CBD opportunities coming our way. Kuenzelen also discusses hemp, fuel, and the urgency of sustainability. /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/13342388

Ep. 522: Nancy Whiteman, Wana Brands 03/16/2020

Ep. 522: Nancy Whiteman, Wana Brands Nancy Whiteman, of Wana Brands, discusses operating in multiple markets that don't behave like one another -- for example, California and Illinois. She shares that "you have to approach every market kind of like the opposite of Groundhog Day. With a brand new set of rules. While you hope that there are learnings that you can bring from one market to another, sometimes you just have to say, my God, I'm on a different planet now, I'm not quite sure what I'm doing." Whiteman warns of the mindset of wanting to grow as quickly and as broadly as possible, as lowering prices to get on the shelves is a decision you can't step back from. She also discusses what might be next for Colorado now that House Bill 1090 has passed, the profound importance of picking exceptional partners to work with, being strategic about the markets you choose, THC v. CBD, and more. /episode/index/show/canneconomy/id/12917486

Cannabis Economy

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