Jun. 2021 - California Leaf

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Marijuana products may be purchased or possessed only by persons 21 or older. This product has intoxicating effects and may be habit-forming. Marijuana can impair concentration, coordination and judgment.

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CANNABIS TOURISM CALIFORNIA SUMMER

CONCENTRATE OF THE MONTH NASHA TEMPLE BALL HASH

44 Amsterdam’s Reefer Culture Known as one of the Cannabis capitals of the world, Amsterdam has a long and unique history of accepting and also rejecting Cannabis. Leaf Nation’s Bobby Black unravels the complicated city’s take on Cannabis Culture.

////////// story by bobby black

JUN. 2021

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WERNARD BRUINING

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SOL SPIRIT FARM

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CALIFORNIA LEAF’S TOM BOWERS reviews this stylish, San Francisco boutique dispensary.

Claudia Della Mora, co-founder and managing partner at Black Legend Capital, on Cannabis as a global commodity, the challenging but rewarding path forward for the growing industry, and what the future holds for companies and our community.

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MIKE ROSATI

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#14

CLAUDIA DELLA MORA

THE GLOBAL ISSUE

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JUNE 2021

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EDITOR’S NOTE N AT I O N A L N E W S LOCAL NEWS PLANT PEOPLE CANNABIS TOURISM SHOP REVIEW STRAIN OF THE MONTH GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE GLOBAL COMMODITY GLOBAL CR ACKDOWN GLOBAL STR AINS C O N C E N T R AT E O F T H E M O N T H ALPHA PEN REVIEW A LT E R N AT I V E M E D I C I N E CANNTHROPOLOGY STONEY BALONEY

Above: Master growers Soma, Wernard Bruining, Old Ed Holloway, and Ed Rosenthal in Amsterdam around 1996.

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Marijuana products may be purchased or possessed only by persons 21 or older. This product has intoxicating effects and may be habit-forming. Marijuana can impair concentration, coordination and judgment.

Do not operate a vehicle or machinery under the influence of this drug. There may be health risks associated with consumption of this product. For use only by adults 21 and older. Keep out of reach of children.

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N O RT H W E S T L E A F / O R EG O N L E A F / A L AS KA L E A F / M A RY L A N D L E A F / CA L I F O R N I A L E A F / N O RT H E AS T L E A F

A B O U T T H E C OV E R For The Leaf’s first-ever Global Issue, we tapped the artistic prowess of Maine-based illustrator Cody Muir, who has become known for his surreal and futuristic editorial cover pieces for clients like The Washington Post, BBC Science Focus, Seattle Met, and Politico Europe. “I was excited to be approached by the Leaf team with the Global Issue’s cosmos-inspired theme since it gave me a chance to make something truly atmospheric,” he says. “Finding a visual method to express Cannabis’ global importance throughout history was a blast.”

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WES ABNEY | FOUNDER & EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

BOBBY BLACK, FEATURES JOSHUA BOULET, ILLUSTRATION TOM BOWERS, FEATURES WERNARD BRUINING, PHOTOS EARLY, PRODUCTION MAX EARLY, FEATURES STEVE ELLIOTT, NATIONAL NEWS MIKE GIANAKOS, FEATURES ALEXA JESSE, REVIEWS CODY MUIR, ILLUSTRATION JEFF PORTERFIELD, DESIGN MIKE RICKER, FEATURES MEGHAN RIDLEY, EDITING MIKE ROSATI, PHOTOS ZACK RUSKIN, FEATURES O’HARA SHIPE, FEATURES DAN VINKOVETSKY, FEATURES JAMIE VICTOR, DESIGN NATE WILLIAMS, FEATURES

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Editor’s Note Thanks for picking up The Global Issue of the Leaf !

CAN YOU IMAGINE a day in the future where Cannabis and hemp are traded on the New York Stock Exchange? Where container ships carry bulk biomass, flower, distillates and finished products like edibles and vape pens, along with the usual haul of bananas, shoes and cars around the world? That future is closer than we think – Cannabis legalization is quickly becoming a global issue, and like all developing markets, is full of enough opportunities and restrictions to make your head spin.

I believe that someday I will be able to smoke hash from Spain while eating an edible delicacy from Denmark, while using a transdermal patch for pain from Canada in the comfort of my Seattle living room, or consumption lounge of my choosing. This reality is closer than we think, but also faces a ton of hurdles before my stoner’s delight dream becomes reality. While a lot of pot gets shipped around the world currently, it definitely isn’t legal or regulated, and that means we have a lot of policy to craft as the industry goes from the U.S. dominated states’ rights program, to a universally legal substance.

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CANNABIS LEGALIZATION IS QUICKLY BECOMING A GLOBAL ISSUE, AND LIKE ALL DEVELOPING MARKETS, IS FULL OF ENOUGH OPPORTUNITIES & RESTRICTIONS TO MAKE YOUR HEAD SPIN.

Along the way we need to decriminalize all possession, release all non-violent Cannabis prisoners, and find a way to make the global market equitable for all players and consumers. Does that sound like a lot to do? There’s so much more to global legalization than most think, and while it isn’t going to happen quickly, the seeds of change are being planted now. To celebrate this impending change we released our first ever Global Issue, where we explore the history of Cannabis strains, look at the global legal outlook on Cannabis, and explore the reality of turning our plant from a drug into a commodity.

So what’s next? While the future is only a day away, we can all take a big bong hit and celebrate our local Cannabis, and use our voices and votes to help end the war on drugs and bring freedom to our people. In my lifetime, Cannabis has gone from super illegal to medically acceptable to completely legal to buy and grow in many states. I can only imagine what the future holds for our plant and our planet as acceptance for Cannabis spreads like a weed. As Jack Herer said, “I don’t know if hemp is going to save the world, but it’s the only thing that can.”

-Wes Abney

Have a strain, product, or news tip that the California Leaf staff needs to know about? Contact us at tom@LeafMagazines.com!

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CAPITALISM

THE FEDS

PHARMACY CHAIN RITE AID IS ‘LOOKING AT THE MARIJUANA BUSINESS’

ALABAMA GOV. SIGNS MEDICAL CANNABIS LAW

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ite Aid CEO Hayward Donigan in May said that “everyone is looking at the marijuana business.”

“There is complexity to that, but (we’re) certainly keeping an eye on it,” she said at THE PA-BASED PHARMACY CHAIN The Wall Street Journal’s Future of Everything Festival.

HAS CARRIED HEMP-DERIVED The pharmacy chain, based CBD PRODUCTS in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania, has SINCE 2019. carried hemp-derived cannabidiol (CBD) products since 2019.

Donigan said Rite Aid is looking at more homeopathic options in addition to traditional pharmaceuticals. He added that the chain has had all of its pharmacists re-certified as integrative pharmacy specialists. “Pharmacists are trained in alternative therapies,” Donigan said. “They are not just trained on traditional medicine.”

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WYOMING TRIBE MAY LEGALIZE MEDICAL CANNABIS

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he Eastern Shoshone General Council met May 14 to discuss legalizing medical Cannabis on the Wind River reservation in Wyoming, reports the Rocket Miner. Several resolutions were passed – resolutions are law on the reservation – including the authority to move forward with a medical marijuana commission to regulate, oversee and operate tribal-owned cultivation and extraction facilities for Cannabis-related products.

The Northern Arapaho Tribe voted the previous weekend in favor of decriminalizing marijuana.

The Eastern Shoshone General Council will reconvene June 12 to finish the process of voting on whether to legalize medical marijuana on the reservation. The General Council consists of all adult members of the tribe, while the Business Council is made up of elected officials.

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additional Cannabis growing facilities will be authorized by the DEA.

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states currently allow the recreational use of Cannabis by adults.

M DEA WILL ALLOW MORE FACILITIES TO GROW CANNABIS FOR RESEARCH

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oving to end the University of Mississippi’s decades-long monopoly on supplying marijuana for U.S. research, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) said in May it will soon issue licenses to a number of growing facilities, reports Science Magazine.

Since 1968, only one operation, located on the campus of Ole Miss, has been licensed to supply Cannabis to medical researchers who want to explore its value for treating conditions including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and chronic pain.

The DEA announced on its website that it had sent a memorandum of agreement (MOA) to three manufacturers that had applied for licenses to grow Cannabis for research studies.

The memos came six months after the agency published a final rule describing how exactly the program would work.

This could mark a “WE WERE EUPHORIC. huge shift after years THIS IS A VICTORY of delayed license FOR SCIENTIFIC FREEDOM,” SAID applications. Although DR. SUE SISLEY. consuming marijuana is legal for medical purposes in 36 states and for recreational use in 17 states, consumption remains a criminal offense under federal law.

“We were euphoric. This is a victory for scientific freedom,” said Dr. Sue Sisley, president and principal investigator at Scottsdale Research Institute, which received one of the DEA agreements to be able to grow Cannabis for research. In 2019, SRI sued the DEA to force it to end its years of delay in processing license applications.

edical marijuana has come to the Heart of Dixie. Alabama Gov. Kaye Ivey in May signed a medical marijuana bill into law.

More than a dozen conditions, including autism, cancer, terminal illness, depression, epilepsy, panic disorder and chronic pain would allow a person to qualify.

Despite not allowing any smoking, and prohibiting patient use of Cannabis flowers and banning growing, the move represents progress for this deep-red state. Daily total THC dosages are also limited to just 50 milligrams, which will certainly come as bad news for chronic pain patients, those fighting cancer, and others.

“This is a major step forward for Alabamians,” said Karen O’Keefe at the Marijuana Policy Project. “Rather than being subjected to arrest and criminal penalties for using medical Cannabis, this new law will enable patients who are suffering from illnesses and medical conditions to safely use and access medical Cannabis, a treatment option that is accessible to so many of their fellow Americans. We applaud the legislature for passing and Gov. Ivey for signing the Compassion Act.”

ARTHRITIS, MIGRAINES AND REGIONAL PAIN ADDED TO OHIO MMJ

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hio’s Medical Board has added three existing conditions to qualify to buy medical marijuana, reports the Associated Press. The panel had earlier this year determined that arthritis, chronic migraines and complex regional pain syndrome fall into the existing category of chronic or intractable pain.

State residents must obtain a physician recommendation under the state’s 22 qualifying conditions and register to become eligible to buy marijuana flower and other products at the state’s 52 dispensaries. The Ohio Board of Pharmacy voted last month to make more dispensary licenses available to deal with patient complaints about lack of access and high prices. Three of the state’s 31 medical marijuana districts, all in Western Ohio, have no dispensaries.

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states now have medical Cannabis laws; 11 states have CBD-only laws.

percent of Miss. residents favor a special session to reverse a block on MMJ.

percent of Connecticut voters favor legalizing marijuana in a 2021 poll.

91

percent of Americans say Cannabis should be legal for medical/rec, or both.

STORIES by STEVE ELLIOTT, AUTHOR OF THE LITTLE BLACK BOOK OF MARIJUANA

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Sisters of the Valley were among the 28 experts participating in the sungrown Cannabis event.

The SunGrown

Challenge

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Willie Mack Co-founder, Think BIG

Jason Pinsky Author, “Bong Appetit”

Bobby Black Leaf Contributor

Laganja Estranja Industry Personality

Liz Rogan Exec.Dir, American Academy of Cannabinoid Medicine

Eric HissLoreda Journalist

Michelle Lhooq Journalist

Ngaio Bealum Co-Host, Cannabis Planet

STORY BY BOBBY BL ACK @THEBOBBYBLACK420

This April, I was invited to participate in a unique promotional event on behalf of the Leaf — a Pepsi Challenge-style blind taste test called the SunGrown Challenge. The concept was simple: gather a group of Cannabis influencers, insiders and journalists; blindfold them, give them samples of Cannabis to touch, smell and taste; then ask them which they preferred and see whether they could differentiate between those grown indoors and those grown outdoors.

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Kiana Anvaripour Sweet Flower CMO

Our thanks to Flow Kana for including us in this fun experiment. Watch the video at flowkana.com/sungrown-challenge

JUN. 2021

AMONG THE 27 other “experts” taking part were Cannabis comedian Ngaio Bealum, Bong Appetit producer Jason Pinsky, Weed and Grub podcast hosts MaryJane Gibson and Mike Glazer, “Compton Cowboy” Stona Mane, and stoner drag queen Laganja Estranja. Each of us was led in one or two at ACCORDING TO EVENT SPONSOR FLOW a time and had KANA, THE PURPOSE our eyes covered OF THE CHALLENGE by a cushy, pot WAS TO DEBUNK THE leaf-emblazoned PERCEPTION THAT blindfold. We INDOOR-GROWN were then handed FLOWER (WHICH CREATES A SIZABLE different jars of CARBON FOOTPRINT) Cannabis to touch IS SOMEHOW and smell, followed MORE POTENT OR FLAVORFUL THAN MORE by a joint of each to smoke and SUSTAINABLY GROWN, OUTDOOR FLOWER. assess.

THESE SAMPLES were allegedly some of the best-selling strains in California, with similar terpene and cannabinoid profiles – the only major difference was whether they were indoor or outdoor.

Of the three strains I was offered, my top two both turned out to be sungrown.

The final results of the challenge were revealed a month later in the form of a video released on social media (videos of the individual participants’ experiences are reportedly forthcoming).

In the end, the majority of my peers were in line with my choices: 68% of them picked the sungrown as their favorite.

According to event sponsor Flow Kana, the purpose of the challenge was to debunk the perception that indoorgrown flower (which creates a sizable carbon footprint) is somehow more potent or flavorful than more sustainably grown, outdoor flower.

A 2018 study by New Frontier Data found that indoor Cannabis cultivation produces nearly 25 times more carbon and requires 18 times more energy per gram of bud than outdoor cultivation.

To help address this environmental concern, Flow Kana is putting their money where their marijuana is by donating five dollars for every share of the video (up to $10,000) to Planting Justice – an Oakland nonprofit dedicated to sustainable gardening and social food equity.

STORIES by CALIFORNIA LEAF CONTRIBUTORS | PHOTOS FLOW CANNABIS CO.

San Diego’s Cannabis Industry Begins To Unionize STORY BY JACKIE BRYANT @JACQBRY

JUST A FEW YEARS AGO, most Cannabis markets in the United States were completely illegal. Now, not only are states legalizing adult-use at a rapid clip, but employees in the licensed industry are beginning to organize and form unions. The latest effort comes from San Diego, where employees at Southern California EMPLOYEES AT dispensary chain March and Ash have formed a union with SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA UFCW Local 135, ratifying the region’s first locally-formed DISPENSARY CHAIN Collective Bargaining Agreement. While not the first Cannabis MARCH AND ASH HAVE FORMED A UNION WITH union contract in California, its broad support from employees UFCW LOCAL 135 signals a greater tide of unionization to come in the industry.

Around 150 workers are included in the agreement, which covers three of the chain’s four locations. The organizing effort and subsequent contract, which took over two years to organize and was spearheaded by management, is intended to “serve as a blueprint for the industry,” says March and Ash general counsel and partner, Bret Peace.

Included in the contract – and notable for employees who, up until not long ago, were more worried about getting raided by the police than 401ks – is subsidized childcare, paid vacation, education funding, compassionate disciplinary procedures, guaranteed wage increase and merit bonuses, and other bells and whistles.

Interestingly, the chain’s original location in the Mission Valley area of San Diego isn’t included. When asked, management, workers and union representatives all credited the unique culture in the Cannabis industry for creating skepticism, along with the fact that the effort was management-led.

“We’re not even necessarily coming from a point where people even know what a union is,” says Peace. “[The employees] are still just getting used to working in a legal industry.” Those factors caused the Mission Valley staff to hold off, but it is expected that the location will eventually join the contract down the line.

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FOUNDER // LEUNE

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NIDHI LUCKY HANDA Nidhi Lucky Handa is the lifeblood of what she calls the “Leuniverse” – a nickname for the popular line of California-based Cannabis products she debuted in November 2018. Here, Handa and Leune are all about transcending narratives – be it supporting the Last Prisoner Project, taking a “vertically agnostic” stance on product development, or welcoming new investors like NBA stars Carmelo Anthony and John Wall – Handa seems to take it all in humble stride.

Leune launched in 2018. What had to happen for you to reach that moment? My background is in business marketing and building brands. I’m a brand geek through and through, so when legalization passed, I was really interested in what was going on in the brand space for weed. As a consumer, none of it was appealing to me. Brands were either really leaning into this stigma of being bad – booty shorts, bikinis and lots of aggressive marketing – or, on the other end of the spectrum, there were all of these wellness brands who approached the stigma by dealing with it in this very clinical way. It was really glaring to me that there were no brands speaking to the concept of the modern consumer: someone who is interested in bringing Cannabis into their life, but maybe doesn’t identify as a stoner or one of the three other categories the industry had created. That was really the genesis of Leune.

How would you describe Leune’s identity, so to speak?

What drives your company? From the jump, Leune has always been structured as a lifestyle brand. I also feel super, super passionately about being vertically agnostic. We launched the brand with infused joints and disposable vapes, and then we added PAX pods and jarred eighths. We have edibles coming soon, as well as gram bags, hash joints and all kinds of things.

JUN. 2021

For a really long time, the way that we’ve marketed to consumers in this industry has been about indicas, sativas and hybrids, but today, most people in the industry know that’s not really a fair way to talk about these things.

“I’m a brand It’s more complicated. That’s why, inside the geek through Leuniverse, the architecture is really hinged around archetypes like Cloudberry and Solberand through...” ry. Instead of indica, we talk about Cloudberry, which emulates a lot of different things. We may favor indica-leaning strains inside the Cloudberry world, but from our perspective, it’s more complex than that.

Leune also works closely with several nonprofits. How did those relationships develop? Hopefully, as a society, if we learn anything from 2020, it’s the importance of showing up. I am a startup founder who has something that was a very small brand, that has since really taken off. I’m very, very fortunate and lucky that happened, but my desire to be involved and to participate will always outweigh how much money I have in the bank to support these causes. For example, with Last Prisoner Project, the first time I reached out to them, it was really early on for them. At that point, I was just this little brand with not a lot of money, but I asked them what we could do to show up. Leune is a very aesthetic, creative company – we do everything internally – so we offered those resources to LPP and the result was us making some videos for them that are now up on their website.

Would you encourage other Cannabis companies to follow your example? I think so much of what stops people from getting involved is the feeling that if you can’t make a dent or get a plaque on the wall, why bother? Try just showing up to the party!

If you can’t afford to buy a bottle of wine, show up with napkins. Just fucking show up – that’s my view on this. And that’s just what we did. And by the way, the two videos that my team made were about two folks who were serving terms, and both of them were released at the end of 2020! I also have to mention Eaze’s Momentum because I consider Eaze to be family. I first launched my brand on Eaze and they’ve been a phenomenal partner. Now, as a brand, we sponsor Eaze’s Momentum accelerator, and [personally], I mentor the folks who participate in it. I don’t really think about competition in the way that I’m guessing a lot of other folks do. I think that we’re building this industry together and I want to help and know the other people who are trying to be involved. I want to see other people rise with me, because I think it’s more fun to be growing and rising together than to be throwing arrows at each other.

STORY by ZACK RUSKIN @ZACKRUSKIN for CALIFORNIA LEAF | PHOTOS by LEUNE @LEUNEBRAND | LEUNE.CO

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The sun rises over Alpenglow Farms in Southern Humboldt County.

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California Cannabis Tourism Poised for Huge Summer

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Cannabis farms with tourism licenses, hotels offering direct sales to guests, and more reasons to expect a big year for a certain type of homegrown hospitality.

THE SECRET IS OUT: People want to see where Cannabis grows. Until recently, such desires were usually a futile wish. After all, protecting the location of one’s crop was of the utmost importance prior to the rise of legal markets in certain states. Even today, many continue to experience a disconnect between the flower in a jar purchased at a dispensary, and the soil – not to mention farmers – from which it originated.

This issue isn’t limited to consumers and the general public. When Judi Nelson of Trinity County’s Sol Spirit Farm first began attending trade shows several years ago, she recalls being “blown away” by the number of people she met who were working in the Cannabis industry, but had never seen a Cannabis plant growing in the ground.

“That was a big part of us wanting to do this,” Nelson added. “It’s so important to really see that, because I think it has the power to be life-changing.”

Nelson’s undertaking – which she owns and operates alongside her husband, Walter Wood – is a 10,000-square-foot regenerative Cannabis farm in Trinity County. In 2019, the venture added Sol Spirit Retreats: a farm-stay hospitality business focused on Cannabis tourism.

JUN. 2021

The result is a glamping experience that includes a tour of the farm, decadent spreads of locally-made goods, and even a day of floating on the South Fork of the Trinity River. It is, in fact, but one of many opportunities those interested in Cannabis tourism are currently being encouraged to enjoy.

A T I C K E T T O ( C A N N A B I S ) PA R A D I S E

April Black’s Cannabis travel agency career happened somewhat inadvertently.

After working to book trips to Amsterdam in connection with High Times Cannabis Cup events, Black, who is married to Leaf Magazines columnist Bobby Black, soon found her work expanding to include travel packages for the Hawaii Cannabis Expo. From there, she saw a niche and flourished.

Today, Black brings years of experience working on events and itineraries – set everywhere from Jamaica to the inner-wilds of the Emerald Triangle – to her role at Higher Way Travel. And naturally, the success of Prop. 64 in 2016 brought with it a huge surge of new opportunities for her clients.

“Since legalization happened here in California,” Black said,

“the doors have just burst wide open. Now there are all kinds of different options for Cannabis tourists. There are hotels like the Desert Hot Springs Inn, which has a micro-license which allows them to sell Cannabis to their guests. It’s gone that far.

There are farm tours, Cannabis-infused massages, dinner pairings – you name it. There are even farms you can stay at.”

One such option is Judi Nelson’s Sol Spirit Farm. In fact, the Trinity County property will soon play host to the Higher Health Retreat — an upcoming event Black is planning for this July.

There are also four farms licensed for tourism in Humboldt County, though as Nelson explained, the entire process regarding what is required to welcome visitors can sometimes come down to a matter of inches.

“Our farm is licensed in Trinity County, but our property line is the Humboldt-Trinity line,” Nelson explained. “My next-door neighbor is in Humboldt County and her farm is permitted in Humboldt County, but we happen to be in Trinity County.”

“Trinity has its own set of challenges,” she continued. “But as far

Victor Pinho and Lauren Mendelsohn of Emerald Farm Tours

“Since legalization happened here in California, the doors have just burst wide open.

Now there are all kinds of different options for Cannabis tourists.”

April Black | Higher Way Travel

as the tourism goes, I feel like it’s given me a lot more freedom. Any Cannabis farm that’s permitted in Humboldt County has to get a special tourism permit as an attachment to their Cannabis permit, but we do not have to do that in Trinity.”

Even if the bureaucracy governing how to regulate tourism in the Cannabis industry remains spotty and inconsistent – efforts to get such a system underway in Sonoma, for example, remain glacially slow – the appeal and potential market for such offerings is quickly becoming undeniable.

A N D O N Y O U R L E F T, W E E D

For Victor Pinho, a windfall of interest in Cannabis tourism is a moment he’s thrilled to welcome.

Together, Black and Pinho host the Audible podcast “High on Tour,” which draws on their respective experience in the world of Cannabis tourism.

As the owner and operator of Emerald Farm Tours, Pinho was ahead of the curve when his company became the first to start offering tours in the San Francisco Bay Area after adult-use legalization took effect in 2018.

“The idea was conceptualized over that winter,” he said, “and we were doing tours by February.”

Since then, Pinho estimates his operation has served hundreds of tourists and thousands of people overall.

In terms of demographics, the customers Emerald Farm Tours sees represent all (legally permitted) ages and also hail from all walks of life.

During a typical tour, 10 or so guests will take a Mercedes Sprinter van up to visit Cannabis farms in the Emerald Triangle – though the company offers a variety of options, including a localized walking tour of San Francisco.

“We’ve created a lot of different kinds of tours,” Pinho noted, “but the focus always remains on bringing folks right to the plants and the process.

We really revere and love this plant and what it’s all about, so we make that central to everything we do.”

When COVID-19 upended travel plans across the globe last spring, Pinho’s own ability to fulfill this mission became exponentially more difficult.

Thankfully, the outlook for 2021 appears far brighter, and, as a result, Emerald Farms Travel plans to officially reopen on June 15. Pinho reported that spots are filling fast.

“I think there’s this pent-up demand,” he said, “because we already have a lot more bookings than we ever would have thought possible by this point.”

Sol Spirit Farm in Willow Creek, CA.

WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?

The map of potential Cannabis tourism destinations continues to expand at a rapid clip. According to April Black, Canada is already well on its way to embracing its post-legalization identity, with a number of Cannabis-friendly lodging options and continued, promising efforts in support of 19 consumption lounges.

Meanwhile, following Mexico’s recent move to legalize, Black envisioned what a packaged tour there might entail.

“I’d love to do something in Oaxaca or Tulum, where all those old guys in the 1970s used to smuggle Cannabis into the U.S.,” she said. “I would love to do like a sacred sites Cannabis tour, where you could tour some farms down there, you’d get to smoke, but then you’d also go and see all of these cool pyramids.”

But even in California alone, HigherWayTravel.com the opportunities surrounding EmeraldFarmTours.com Cannabis travel continue to SolSpiritFarm.com grow, while enticing an ever-expanding pool of potential patrons.

Whether you want to indulge in Cannabis-assisted luxury or simply stand in the presence of the plant in its natural state, these services offer a never-before-available way for consumers to connect directly with each other, as well as to the farmers who grow the plant – many of whom have long preferred the shadows to the light, but welcome the chance today.

In so many words, that’s why Judi Nelson invites people to Sol Spirit Farm each year.

“To come out here, to this very rural place, is part of the experience for sure,” Nelson said. “We try our best to imbue the flower with good vibes, so when visitors are back home and go buy our flower, it can spark a sense of place. In that way, it’s an experience that lasts beyond the visit itself. It’s something that has the power to continue to change people.”

STORY by ZACK RUSKIN @ZACKRUSKIN for CALIFORNIA LEAF | PHOTOS by SOL SPIRIT & EMERALD FARM TOURS

SHOP review

Just a short walk from San Francisco’s Japantown, Liberty brings a professional, boutique-style approach to the friendly neighborhood dispensary.

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SAN FRANCISCO

JUN. 2021

LIBERTY THE VISION

Launched in early 2021 in San Francisco’s Pacific Heights neighborhood, Liberty combines the expertise culled from operating a nationwide family of dispensaries with a localized vision. For the endeavor, multi-state operator Holistic partnered with local equity entrepreneur and San Francisco-based Cannabis health advocate Tim Omi, sharing both the ownership and the vision for the shop. The goal is to provide high quality products for every type of customer, with a focus on wellness and plant therapy.

LIBERTY

2222 BUSH ST., SAN FRANCISCO, CA OPEN 11AM-8PM DAILY LIBERTYCANNABIS.COM @LIBERTYCANNABIS

THE VIBE Tucked inside the old Unity Church building, the high-ceilinged, slender space feels like a hybrid between a fashion boutique and a friend’s spacious studio apartment – with midcentury modern-style white-and-gold fixtures displaying a diverse, intentional selection of edibles, flower, cartridges and therapeutic products. The centerpiece of the living room lounge effect is a stereo cabinet, complete with an actual hi-fi system and record player dedicated to the store’s sister brand, Garcia Handpicked. Psychedelic homages to Jerry Garcia and San Francisco’s acid-dripped rock ‘n’ roll history adorn the walls above the stereo cabinet, looking like classic 1960s show posters from the Fillmore nearby. The overall effect feels right at home in a city known as much for its high-end style as its free-spirited rock ‘n’ roll soul.

THE GOODS The obvious superstar brand here is Garcia Handpicked, with its Jerry Garcia-branded gummies, pre-roll packs and eighth jars of indoor flower.

Perusing the rest of the product offerings, you’ll notice attention to quality and diversity, with Leaf staff favorites like Sonder Space Crystals ($10), premium fire from cultivators like Connected and Archive ($80/eighth), and plenty of little surprises. We walked away with a simply sweet, vegan and gluten-free curiosity from confectioner Rose Los Angeles called Delights – seasonal rosininfused Turkish Delights that will transport you to Narnia if you’re not careful.

THE CREW We noticed some welcoming, familiar faces from the local Cannabis scene among the staffers at Liberty, who walked us through the shop’s offerings and gave us some insight into the dispensary and its vision. Friendliness, charisma and product knowledge were not in short supply, and we ended up with nothing but good vibes as we left the shop with our treats.

THE WRAP Liberty brings expertise, professionalism, artistic flair and attention to quality to the Pacific Heights neighborhood. Whether you’re looking for top tier flower, therapeutic whole plant capsules, small batch edibles, or simply a few pre-rolls for an afternoon adventure, this shop deserves to be on your list of stops in the city.

THE OBVIOUS SUPERSTAR BRAND HERE IS GARCIA HANDPICKED, WITH ITS JERRY GARCIABRANDED GUMMIES, PRE-ROLL PACKS AND EIGHTH JARS OF INDOOR FLOWER.

REVIEW by TOM BOWERS @PROPAGATECONSULTANTS/CALIFORNIA LEAF | PHOTOS by MIKE ROSATI @ROSATIPHOTOS for CALIFORNIA LEAF

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STRAIN OF THE MONTH LEAFMAGAZINES.COM

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grown by

STICKY FIELDS 28.74% THC / 33.45% TOTAL CANNABINOIDS

JUN. 2021

CAL I F O R N I A

DURBAN POISON THE STRAIN STRETCHES HIGH TO THE SKY ON ROBERTSON’S FARM, WITH ELONGATED COLAS AND SPINDLY INDETERMINATE GROWTH PATTERNS – THE HALLMARKS OF A LANDRACE SATIVA. REVIEW & PHOTO by TOM BOWERS @PROPAGATECONSULTANTS/CALIFORNIA LEAF | @STICKYFIELDS

Jesse Robertson cultivates some phenomenal sungrown Cannabis. The third generation legacy farmer carries on his family tradition in Mendocino County, where he cultivates vegetables alongside some hard-hunted genetics that he perfects and preserves from harvest to harvest at his farm, Sticky Fields.

A California Leaf Certified Stoner Owner, Robertson once told us that he doesn’t cultivate anything that doesn’t pass the joint test. If it keeps a terpene-rich, distinct profile all the way through a joint, only then will he consider keeping it around. When selecting a Strain of the Month for this issue, we were torn about whether to go with his Mandarin Tart (which is destined for greatness – find some and fight me), but seeing as this is the Global Issue, we decided to highlight his distinct cut of the legendary Durban Poison.

Lauded for its upbeat, energetic effects, Durban Poison is a stretchy, sticky sativa strain that originated in Durban, South Africa. The famed DP is beyond classic – it’s among the revered building blocks of modern Cannabis known as the landrace strains, which are famed genetics that evolved and adapted to survive and thrive in the specific climates of their native regions.

The landrace strains propagated around the globe the way Cannabis always has, via trade, bag seed scores and insider hookups. Robertson came into possession of his own Durban in a similar fashion. The way he tells it, a mysterious, grizzled veteran grower approached him at an Emerald Cup many moons ago and handed him a pack of seeds labeled Durban Poison. The rest, as they say, is history. To this day, the strain stretches high to the sky on Robertson’s farm, with elongated colas and spindly indeterminate growth patterns – the hallmarks of a landrace sativa.

Sticky’s Durban leans toward piney earth tones with subtle, delicious notes of lemon-lime.

The perfectly cured, dense flowers break apart easily, leaving a satisfying tack on the fingertips. It rolls up and draws smooth, and true to Robertson’s word, it passes the joint test – keeping its flavor all the way to the end.

See more on Durban Poison and other regional genetics in our global strain guide on page 34.

the GLOBAL issue

L A B O GL PECT I V E P E RS

UNITED STATES

at home and s rm fo re s e in exam nabis laws n LEAF NATION a C n o rt o p re pecial abroad in this s d. around the worl

THE U.S. HAS EXPERIENCED A FLURRY OF PRO-POT REFORM SINCE ELECTION DAY IN 2020 AND FOUR STATES – NEW JERSEY, NEW YORK, VIRGINIA AND NEW MEXICO – PASSED LEGALIZATION LEGISLATION IN JUST THE FIRST FOUR MONTHS OF 2021!

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Currently, 17 states and the District of Columbia have legalized Cannabis for adult use, while 36 states (and D.C.) have approved medical marijuana programs. More than 237 million Americans now live in a state with some form of legal Cannabis.

While individual states have spearheaded the recreational and medical marijuana legalization movement, beginning with California’s landmark Prop. 215 in 1996, it is possible the federal government may soon follow suit. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has announced plans to introduce a measure that would legalize marijuana federally, removing it from the CSA and its insidious designation as a Schedule I narcotic. It’s true that President Joe Biden favors decriminalization and would likely prefer to see Cannabis rescheduled rather than descheduled. However, Senator Cory Booker, who is working with Schumer on the federal legalization bill, believes that Biden would back the legislation. And with a slight Democratic majority in the legislature, there really is a chance that Cannabis is legalized in the United States this year – an unthinkable scenario just months ago.

WITH THE U.S. ON THE VERGE OF HISTORIC CHANGE, LET’S SEE HOW THE REST OF THE WORLD IS HANDLING MARIJUANA-LAW REFORM: NORTH AMERICA

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CANADA

After first approving medical Cannabis more than 20 years ago, Canada became the second country in the world to legalize recreational marijuana in October 2018 when the aptly named Cannabis Act took effect. The adult-use law legalized possession of up to 30 grams of pot. The Cannabis Act also established retail sales and rules for home cultivation. While Canada’s provinces create their own guidelines for retail (and can also opt out of personal cultivation), online sales are legal throughout the country. Provinces also set the minimum age for consuming Cannabis, which varies from 18 to 21.

MEXICO

In 2018, the Supreme Court declared prohibition to be unconstitutional and tasked lawmakers with creating a legalization law. Earlier this year it appeared that Mexico would finally join the ranks of recreational Cannabis countries. However, while legalization legislation passed both chambers, the bill has stalled in the Senate, as lawmakers failed to meet the deadline set by the court.

A special session could be held later this year to pass the bill but at the moment, legalization in Mexico remains up in the air. Personal possession of pot has been decriminalized in Mexico since 2009 and a medical law allowing for the use of marijuana with less than 1% of THC was passed in 2017.

JUN. 2021

MIDDLE EAST

ISRAEL

There is a long history of Cannabis in Israel, as many consider the country the birthplace of marijuana research. Israeli Professor Raphael Mechoulam discovered THC in 1964. Since then, Israel’s dedication to Cannabis research has made the country a global leader in the field. Israel boasts a strong medical marijuana program that began in the ‘90s. Recreational Cannabis is partially decriminalized for possession of up to 15 grams.

LEBANON

In April 2020, Lebanese lawmakers legalized the cultivation of marijuana for medical use. The policy change, which officials say was financially motivated, made Lebanon the first Arab country to allow Cannabis cultivation. Legislators also legalized growing industrial hemp. The U.N. considers Lebanon one of the world’s top producers of pot and its crops could be worth up to $1 billion annually.

ASIA

SOUTH KOREA

While recreational Cannabis remains highly illegal, South Korea passed a landmark law in 2018 that made it the first country in East Asia to approve the use of medical marijuana. The program is quite strict, requiring a doctor’s recommendation as well as approval from the government to obtain medical Cannabis. And, only pot-based medicines like Sativex, Epidiolex, Marinol and Cesamet are allowed.

AFRICA

SOUTH AFRICA

Thanks to a Constitutional Court ruling in 2018, personal consumption, possession or cultivation of Cannabis in private is legal in South Africa. Medical Cannabis is also legal and a doctor can prescribe pot for any condition. Prescriptions are filled at registered pharmacies.

ZIMBABWE

In 2018, Zimbabwe legalized the cultivation of medical Cannabis. However, it took nearly a year for the first license to be awarded (in exchange for a $46,000 fee). While the medical program is struggling, it calls for high quality Cannabis to be mailed to qualified patients by licensed producers.

EUROPE

SOUTH AMERICA

The Czech Republic decriminalized possession of up to 10 grams of pot and home cultivation of up to five plants in 2010.

Lawmakers approved a medical Cannabis law in 2013, which allows for patients to obtain 180 grams of marijuana per month by prescription through pharmacies.

The country decriminalized possession and private consumption of small amounts of Cannabis in 2009. In 2017 the government approved CBD for medicinal use, and in 2020 President Alberto Fernández expanded the program to allow home cultivation of medical Cannabis. The new law also permits pharmacies to sell pot products (like oils and creams), which must be covered by insurance for any patient with a prescription.

CZECH REPUBLIC

DENMARK

Despite the famed Freetown Christiania neighborhood, which became famous for tolerated Cannabis sales, marijuana remains illegal in Denmark. However, the country began a four-year pilot program for medical Cannabis in 2018.

The government is allowing the marijuana used in the program to be grown locally through a special permit.

GERMANY

Germany legalized medical Cannabis in March 2017, but the program is extremely strict. Only seriously ill patients qualify for a prescription. The government licenses companies to cultivate Cannabis for the limited medical program.

IRELAND

While recreational Cannabis remains illegal in Ireland, the country is experimenting with medical marijuana in the form of a five-year pilot program approved by the health minister. Seriously ill patients failed by conventional treatment would qualify for “compassionate access to Cannabis for medical reasons.”

ITALY

ARGENTINA

BRAZIL

Cannabis remains illegal in Brazil, and those caught with small amounts are subject to community service and conscripted education on the effects of drugs.

While medical marijuana has been allowed since 2015, it is reserved for terminally ill patients. In 2019 the program was expanded to include sales through pharmacies.

CHILE

Despite widespread support for, and use of, Cannabis in Chile, pot remains illegal in the South American country. Nonetheless, there have been pro-pot reforms over the years. In 2015, Chilean President Michelle Bachelet removed marijuana from a list of dangerous drugs, where it had been classified along with heroin and cocaine. The move allowed Cannabis to be sold at pharmacies. Additionally, home cultivation for personal use of recreational or medicinal marijuana has been decriminalized.

COLOMBIA

Possession of up to 20 grams of Cannabis has been decriminalized in Colombia since 2012, and in 2015 the country approved home cultivation of up to 20 plants.

That same year, Colombia legalized medical Cannabis and established dispensaries. Most recently, in 2019, the Constitutional Court overturned a ban on public consumption.

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ECUADOR

Personal use amounts of Cannabis and hash are decriminalized in Ecuador and possession of up to 10 grams is essentially legal.

The Ecuadorian government legalized medical marijuana in Sept. 2019.

Medical marijuana was legalized in Italy in 2013. Shortly thereafter, the government announced that the Italian army would grow the Cannabis for the country’s medical pot program.

In February 2021, the health ministry granted a license to a private company to grow medical Cannabis. Prescriptions are only available to qualified patients and marijuana is available through pharmacies. Recreational Cannabis is decriminalized in Italy and as of 2019, home cultivation for personal use was legalized.

URUGUAY

THE NETHERLANDS

The Australian government legalized medical marijuana federally in November 2016, after changing the Narcotic Drugs Act to allow for the cultivation of Cannabis for medicinal purposes. However, the rules for pot patients in Australia differ depending on the jurisdiction.

While parts of the country have decriminalized pot, the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) became the first jurisdiction to legalize Cannabis in January 2020. While still federally illegal, the ACT law allows for the possession of up to 50 grams and home cultivation of as many as four plants per household.

Everyone’s favorite pot vacation spot; yet most don’t realize marijuana is illegal in Holland. Cannabis is tolerated by the government and sold at coffeeshops. Possession of up to five grams is decriminalized. Public consumption at coffeeshops is allowed.

PORTUGAL

In 2001, Portugal became the first country to decriminalize all illicit drugs, including Cannabis.

Currently, those in possession of up to 25 grams of marijuana or five grams of hash face no criminal or civil penalties. Portugal legalized medical Cannabis in 2018, establishing sales through pharmacies.

Growing marijuana remains illegal.

In 2013, Uruguay became the first country in the world to legalize recreational marijuana. The following year, lawmakers approved home cultivation of up to six plants and cultivation clubs allowed growers to work together to produce 99 pot plants a year. In 2017, Uruguay implemented its dispensary program, consisting of 16 licensed pharmacies approved for retail sales.

DAB UNDER

AUSTRALIA

CARIBBEAN

BARBADOS

Barbados legalized medical Cannabis in 2019 and also allows registered Rastafarians to legally use marijuana through the Sacramental Cannabis Bill.

JAMAICA

In 2015, Jamaica legalized medical Cannabis and decriminalized possession of up to two ounces. Personal cultivation of up to five plants is allowed, as is the sacramental use of marijuana by Rastafarians.

Jamaica faced a Cannabis shortage earlier this year due to a drought and increased demand.

STORY by MIKE GIANAKOS @MIKEGEEZEEY/LEAF NATION

the GLOBAL issue

CANNABIS CA CANNABISCANNABISC CANNABIS W 28

THE GLOBAL COMMODITY

hat will it take for Cannabis to become a global commodity, and what does success imply for the current and future marketplaces that are selling Cannabis in the U.S. and beyond? I zoomed with Claudia Della Mora, the co-founder and managing partner at Black Legend Capital – an investment and advisory firm based out of Los Angeles and an expert in international Cannabis legalization – to explore what the future holds for the plant, the industry, and our ability to consume Cannabis internationally.

CANNABIS AS A COMMODITY Traditionally, a commodity is the raw material that makes up finished products like petroleum, sugar or rice that can be traded internationally in large quantities with little restrictions, with pricing based on supply and demand as prices fluctuate. Commodity potential within the Cannabis industry includes THC flower, hemp biomass, THC/CBD distillates or isolates, and crude oil. While these have potential as bulk commodities and to one day be traded on the exchanges, there are three essential pieces to the puzzle that must be made to fit before Cannabis products can be sold as commodities globally.

While most U.S. companies see the future of Cannabis as a commodity coming from federal legalization, the real barrier to global trade is the United Nations Drug Treaty.

“Cannabis needs to get to a point of international legalization to have a commodity status, and that will require a type of standardization and minimum requirements for products to be traded and sold,” said Claudia Della Mora.

“Although everyone looks at the U.S. as the biggest market, it’s only the biggest developed market, but it’s not going to be the biggest manufacturing market. I do believe when everything is federally approved, Cannabis will be cultivated in low labor cost countries like China, Mexico, Columbia – so those countries will be very important while people buy from them.”

JUN. 2021

Claudia Della Mora, Black Legend Capital co-founder and managing partner.

CANNABIS

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IN TERNATION A L L EG A L I Z A T I ON

ANNABIS CANNABIS SCANCAN SO S T ANDARDIZA TION

For Cannabis to be treated as a commodity, there must be universally accepted standards for products. Currently, every state in the U.S. has different standards, as does each country across the globe. For there to be import/export of products, standards for quality, testing, ingredients and many other factors must be determined.

There will be different standards for medicinal/ pharmaceutical grade and recreational Cannabis, including cultivation, processing and the end user product.

PR IC E T RANSP A REN CY

There has to be a benchmark for prices, with differentiation, just like with the oil and gas industry. Once there are standards agreed upon internationally, there can be pricing set for types and grades of products, which would allow the ability for trade on a global commodity scale.

“In order to be a commodity, a product must be freely traded and sold,” said Della Mora. “Oil is a benchmark for pricing, but gas is refined from oil and priced locally. One interesting thing is that raw materials are sometimes a minor cost of the cost of the finished goods – sugar costs very little by the pound, while a two-liter bottle of Coke is above two dollars with little added expense.”

THE THREE VERTICALS OF THE INDUSTRY

While it is easy to think about the Cannabis industry as one giant melting pot, there are actually three distinct divisions that come from the same plant: industrial hemp, medical Cannabis and recreational Cannabis. Recreational Cannabis is like the alcohol or consumer packaging industry with lower regulations, medical Cannabis

is similar to pharmaceuticals in terms of regulations and expectations, and industrial hemp can be used for either industrial applications, pharmaceutical grade medical products, or even recreational use. This is a complex web of overlapping products, and it’s important to understand how each vertical has a different function on a global level.

INDUSTRIAL HEMP & CBD

Hemp is the only aspect of the three that is today at a commodity level globally, with import and export being legal in the U.S. at under .3% THC, or .2% THC in the European Union. As a commodity, hemp-derived CBD has crashed in prices globally, and the value continues to fall as supply outstrips demand and more farms come on-line globally to produce industrial hemp and CBD. MEDICAL CANNABIS VS . R E C R E AT I O N A L

MMJ is a very specific aspect of the commoditization of Cannabis because processors use THC and CBD raw materials that are specialized, not just anything random. They often require specific ratios of cannabinoids and for the products to be grown or processed in a specific way, like European Union Good Manufacturing Processes certified. These raw materials are also used for specific types of treatments.

When you get down to specifics, the real difference between recreational and MMJ is not the end user, but the standards used to classify what category the Cannabis falls under. Apart from regulations like quality control or specific dosing, the only difference between MMJ and recreational is the label on the jar.

G L O B A L DE MA N D

Although the global pandemic may have caused an up-tick in Cannabis consumption over the past year, the numbers appear to be here to stay.

“Americans legally purchased $17.9 billion of legal Cannabis in 2020, not including the black market or states without legal Cannabis,” said Della Mora. “Which is $7.2 billion more than was bought in 2019 – so the pandemic saw a massive increase in sales – with the combined medical/rec market projected to reach $23 billion annually by 2025. Globally, the value is estimated at $130 billion by 2025, with Mexico alone estimated to be a $60 billion market.”

While there are U.S. based companies that have hundreds of employees and millions of dollars in revenues, even the largest U.S. producer/processor is woefully undersized and unprepared for a global Cannabis market. The market conditions that currently exist domestically have created an environment that has made Cannabis a cash crop in America, but this will not necessarily be the case long term. At the center of this bubbling market is the American idea that Cannabis producers have an inherent value that will make them ripe for acquisition from multinational companies, or that the products and brands they produce have enough domestic value and demand that there will always be a warm market for U.S. companies to sell their products domestically. However, this rose-tinted optimism has new competition on the horizon.

“A small number of companies can already supply all the commodity input needed to meet global demand for CBD,” explained Della Mora.

“THC is limited state by state in the U.S., currently with high demand, but there is no sense in producing Cannabis in expensive countries or in climates not friendly to cultivation. Small producers might want to provide their knowledge, distribution networks and sales relationships to larger companies that will ultimately produce Cannabis in Mexico or elsewhere. That is the primary value that a small cultivator in the U.S. can provide to a large company once Cannabis is legal globally.”

In short, the current state of global legalization works in the producer/processor’s favor in the U.S., as does a lack of federal legalization. Even if the U.S. legalizes before the U.N., a national legal market would likely hurt small to medium U.S. producers in the long run, as they try to compete against multi-state operators and the rush of investment from major corporations.

“Of course, I don’t want to sound like a downer, and no producer/processor wants to hear this as they continue pouring money into companies, especially when there is domestic demand,” said Della Mora. “But from an entrepreneurial view, you have to understand your clientele before starting a business – and I think a lot of people are not sophisticated enough to make good decisions long term.”

CAN AMERICAN GROWERS COMPETE? >>

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CANNABIS

while the U.S. currently dominates the Cannabis conversation, it is far from the center of the world when it comes to pot’s future as a commodity.

And while the U.S. can legalize at the federal level, that doesn’t mean they can export it lawfully. “It has to be the United Nations moving Cannabis to a U.N. Schedule II or III – that would allow countries and investors to create a market for products to be sold legally,” said Della Mora.

“Right now to import and export MMJ, a narcotic license is necessary and it has to be compliant to the 1961 U.N. convention.”

THE CURRENT STATE OF GLOBAL LEGALIZATION WORKS IN THE PRODUCER/ PROCESSOR’S FAVOR IN THE U.S., AS DOES A LACK OF FEDERAL LEGALIZATION.

STORY by WES ABNEY @BEARDEDLORAX/LEAF NATION | PHOTO by BLACK LEGEND CAPITAL

Continued from previous page

CANNABIS

THE GLOBAL ISSUE

CANNABIS - THE GLOBAL COMMODITY

Listen to Leaf Life Podcast Show #115 Legal Cannabis in Mexico, with guest Claudia.

LEAFMAGAZINES.COM

CAN AMERICAN GROWERS COMPETE IN A GLOBAL MARKET?

products. ‘Made in America’ could be the stamp that keeps U.S. companies alive – just like the demand seen in the United Kingdom for Australian products that follow the commonwealth trade history of other commodities.”

In the European Union and most of the developed world outside the U.S., local governments As noted previously, with commoditization control commodities like minerals and natural comes standardization, meaning that Cannabis resources, and issue permits to companies to in Mexico or Columbia will have to follow the extract, refine and sell these products. From a same rules, regulations and standards as Cannaregulatory standpoint, the less companies involved bis grown in the U.S. In reality, all Cannabis will the better, as it takes fewer resources to regulate be regulated similarly globally, meaning that the and hold accountable a couple massive compasame standardized quality will come from counnies than a large number of smaller companies. tries with more favorable growing climates and This means that globally the market is already lower production costs, which will make it very tilted in favor of huge companies, especially those difficult for U.S. domestic producers to compete with experience in other industries. abroad. The biggest hope for U.S. growers will “In Germany, three companies won the right be local demand, and the potential for the U.S. to cultivate because it is a no-brainer for the Government to impose tariffs or taxes that make government to work with three companies instead competition easier for U.S. growers producing the of dozens, with less management and risk, and same quality of products as those in other parts of everything being provided the world. easily in big amounts on a silver “I think that there will be consum“THERE’S ALWAYS platter,” explained Della Mora. ers domestically and globally that “So any little company would be OPPORTUNITY want to choose ‘Grown in Amera waste of time for a regulating ica’ products versus those grown WHEN THERE ARE government.” in South America or elsewhere,” LIMITATIONS, SO I Nonetheless, Della Mora sees explained Della Mora. “Not all, opportunity within the complex but there will be those who choose ALWAYS ENCOURAGE web of global Cannabis. domestic products if regulations ENTREPRENEURS “There’s always opportunity allow disclosure of where the raw when there are limitations, so I material comes from, like in food/ OR BRIGHT MINDS always encourage entrepreneurs beverages/clothing. If those trends TO THINK ABOUT or bright minds to think about follow, there will be a portion of the SOLUTIONS,” solutions,” she said. “Because consumers that prefer locally-made

JUN. 2021

CANNABIS

CANNABIS

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when you provide a solution, it’s a good investment of time. Obviously, whoever finds solutions in the meantime is going to make a lot of money, because it’s going to be a few years at least before full commoditization. Eventually, what we would like is for a real commodity situation, for Cannabis to be traded globally – and whoever is first to figure this out will take the market.”

D

espite the challenges facing American companies on a global market, Della Mora is hopeful that the changes in international law will lead to a greater acceptance of Cannabis as a safe recreational drug and medicine, which will continue to create new opportunities for companies in America and around the globe.

“My hope is that it will be federally and internationally legal, so that everyone can use it recreationally,” said Della Mora. “But I really hope that this plant can be recognized medicinally and wellness-wise everywhere, because it really does help. We are discovering that Cannabis consumption might even help or protect against viruses like COVID, so we need more research and acceptance. I really hope that people who use Cannabis for medicinal uses can do so without the stigma and ignorance, and that there is going to be global information awareness so that people can learn more about this amazing plant – not from the point of view of stoners, but from medical practitioners working to save lives.”

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STORY by WES ABNEY @BEARDEDLORAX/LEAF NATION

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the GLOBAL issue

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Signs in Amsterdam warn against smoking Cannabis in public.

AMSTERDAM’S

COFFEESHOP CRACKDOWN

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OR THE PAST HALF-CENTURY, Amsterdam border municipalities (where many rowdy tourists enter has been considered the Cannabis capital from neighboring countries like Germany, France, Britain of Europe, if not the world. Long before and Belgium) rather than in Amsterdam, where weed legalization seemed possible here in Ameritourism comprises a significant portion of the city’s econca, Amsterdam’s coffeeshops were the only omy. Sadly though, it looks like that’s about to change. place where one could buy and consume Earlier this year, Amsterdam’s first female mayor Femmarijuana openly without fear of criminal repercussion – ke Halsema, proposed, among other things, enforcing thanks to the Netherlands’ policy of “soft drug” tolerance the wietpas ban in the capital for the first time. In a letter (gedoogbeleid). But over the past decade, that tolerance to the city council on January 8, Halsema outlined a sehas eroded due to the right-leaning Christian national ries of policy changes regarding the city’s Cannabis ingovernment and complaints from the citizenry. dustry. Aside from the so-called “residence criterion,” the Just before the pandemic, tourism to Amsterdam was proposal would also institute new licensing requirements at an all-time high – averaging nearly 2 million to legalize the supply chain – allowing THE LOSS OF visitors per month – half of whom were there, shops to purchase their Cannabis legally at least in part, to visit some of the city’s 166 from government-approved sources (thus CANNABIS Cannabis coffeeshops and/or infamous Red Light eliminating the problem of illegal “backTOURISM IS District. Residents have long decried the throngs of door” suppliers who are often connectSURE TO HAVE ill-behaved tourists who reportedly piss, puke, lited to organized crime) and keep more A DEVASTATING ter, shout and fight in their streets, and seeing the stock on-premises. However, these new EFFECT ON THE city tourist-free during the COVID lockdown has requirements would also limit the number only spotlighted these “overtourism” complaints. of locations each coffeeshop brand can CITY’S ECONOMY To address these “quality of life” concerns, the operate and eliminate over half of the Dutch government began taking steps to reduce tourism: remaining coffeeshops in the city. banning new hotels and tourist-targeted businesses As expected, coffeeshop owners are pushing back (such as Red Light tours and souvenir shops), restricting hard against these measures. Joachim “Joa” Helms, Airbnb rentals and increasing their “tourist tax.” In 2012, co-owner of the legendary Green House coffeeshop and they introduced the “wietpas” (weed pass) policy, which spokesman for the Dutch Cannabis Retailers Association banned non-residents from visiting coffeeshops; howev(BCD), says that the coffeeshop industry is being unfairly er, until now, the policy has been enforced primarily in targeted for the problem of misbehaving tourists.

JUN. 2021

“People who come to smoke weed aren’t the ones causing the disturbance,” he asserts.

“Usually, it’s guys being loud on the street and being drunk – and those aren’t typical coffeeshop people.”

So if drunk people are causing most of the problems, BCD representatives argue, why not ban tourists from bars?

They also point out that the ban will only exacerbate the very criminality officials claim to be concerned about.

“If you want to prevent an illegal market, then coffeeshops are essential,” says Helms. “Every smoker that’s not allowed in a coffeeshop is one that buys his weed from an illegal dealer!”

According to them, the tourist ban is bad policy for several reasons: It endangers tourists by exposing them to shady street dealers who also sell hard drugs, carry weapons and rip people off; it funnels revenue from Cannabis sales into the hands of criminals, rather than regulated, tax-paying businesses; and it forces tourists to consume their Cannabis out in public, rather than inside designated shops, thus exposing passersby to their smoke.

“With the US and Canada legalizing, Cannabis culture is only getting bigger and bigger,” Helms observes. “So instead of closing shops to tourists, we should embrace what this city was always known for and legalize. That’s the best, most obvious solution.”

As of now, plans to relocate the Red Light District from the city center to a new “sex zone” on the outskirts of town are already underway, and the Cannabis control proposal is on track to take effect next year.

Even if the ban does go into effect, however, many predict it will be short-lived, as the loss of Cannabis tourism is sure to have a devastating effect on the city’s economy – not just the coffeeshop owners, but also hotels, tour operators, restaurants and other businesses.

Hopefully, a fairer compromise can be negotiated that addresses residents’ legitimate concerns, while still allowing tourists to continue enjoying Amsterdam’s world-renowned coffeeshop culture.

STORY by BOBBY BLACK @BOBBYBLACK420 for LEAF NATION

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the GLOBAL issue

THE WIDE WORLD INDICA

MATANUSKA THUNDERFUCK

Alaska’s Matanuska-Susitna Valley is the origin of this classic strain that is commonly referred to as MTF. Popular since the 1980s and known to produce different effects in different users, this cultivar is a bit of a wild card. Those familiar with the varietal claim it is one of the most potent and complex strains in existence.

SATIVA

JACK HERER Jack Herer

is the name of both a legendary Cannabis activist, and an equally renowned, energetic and notoriously flavorful thin-leaf varietal hailing from Amsterdam. Bred from a threeway cross of Haze, Northern Lights #5 and Shiva Skunk, breeder Sensi Seeds created the strain in the mid‘90s in honor of the great activist.

This spice, pine and citrus forward cultivar is known to produce a heady, cerebral and creative high.

INDICA HYBRID

DJ SHORT BLUEBERRY

34 INDICA HYBRID

OG KUSH

Legend has it that DJ Short scoured Central America and Southeast Asia to find the genetics that would eventually be bred into the renowned DJ Short Blueberry, also known as the True Blueberry. The purported lineage of the strain is Highland Thai, Oregon Purple Thai and Afghani.

While the strain has international roots, the legwork to breed the strain was done in Seattle, Washington.

leafmagazines.com

The OG Kush has a truly wild history behind it. Reportedly, the strain originated in Florida in 1991 and in 1996, Josh D flew wet cuts from Florida to Los Angeles, California where it exploded in popularity amongst both consumers and celebrities. At one point in time, outrageous prices of SATIVA $6,000 to $10,000 per pound were MAUI WOWIE being paid to Hawaii is known to be home acquire this to some incredible tropical especially hefty ganja, as well as some smoke. prized genetics. Maui Wowie is a classic thin-leaf varietal that is arguably the most famous of the archipelago’s cultivars, bursting onto the scene after making its way stateside in the 1970s. Maui Wowie features a mango, lemon-lime, pine-forward aroma that is known for its euphoric and mellowing effects.

HYBRID

MONTANA SILVERTIP

This sparkling cultivar is Montana’s shining gem and a rare, but special cultivar. With storied lineage that is said to be a Grand Daddy Purple x Silver Kush cross, this heavy-duty hybrid packs a powerful punch, delivering characteristics of both the body-high-leaning GDP and the uppity zip of the Silver Kush.

SATIVA

NYC SOUR DIESEL

SATIVA

ACAPULCO GOLD Mexico’s most famous Cannabis strain and arguably the world’s best known sativa, Acapulco Gold is a musky, tropical, haze-esque landrace strain that exploded in popularity in the 1960s and was touted as the first “connoisseur pot.”

Though rare, it can still be found in old heads’ gardens along the West Coast and beyond.

The exact lineage of NYC Sour Diesel is a bit muddled, thanks to two versions of the strain existing. The original version was most likely a Chem Dog plant that was unintentionally pollinated by another plant in the same room in Staten Island, New York sometime in the early 1990s. Later, Soma Seeds got a cut of the Sour and put out their version – which many referred to as Grapefruit, thanks to its aroma and flavor that called the fruit to mind.

SATIVA

RED CONGOLESE

Popularized in California, this hybrid is derived from landrace strains from two different continents – South America and Africa – producing a notably stimulating, creative and motivating cultivar. The strain has a strong tendency to produce focused and functional effects, coupled with a high degree of mental clarity, making it an excellent choice for daytime consumption.

SATIVA HYBRID

DURBAN POISON

JUN. 2021

Durban Poison is a special landrace varietal originating from the South African port city of Durban. The strain is a classic thin-leaf varietal and produces a buzzy, energetic and motivating high via a piney, lemon-lime and musk-forward smoke. Rumor has it that the strain was popularized by Cannabis greats Ed Rosenthal and Mel Frank in the late 1970s.

OF WEED STRAINS

INDICA

HINDU KUSH This strain

is named after the mountain range stretching through Afghanistan from Pakistan to Tajikistan, which is the area this cultivar is indigenous to.

Hindu Kush is a short and bushy plant that produces thick, hefty and tree-like colas. The strain has a reputation for producing stunningly dark purple and black leaves, and is commonly known to create a couch-locking, heavy-handed body high for the user.

HYBRID

SHIATSU KUSH

Originally bred as an heirloom strain, Shiatsu Kush hails from the Japanese island of Amami Oshima. This rare varietal was originally brought to the Americas by legendary seed bank BC Bud Depot, known for its deeply relaxing effects and complex terpene profile that tends to present with prominent notes of cedar and menthol.

STORY by NATE WILLIAMS @NATEW415/LEAF NATION

CANNABIS HASN’T ALWAYS BEEN THE HIGHLY DEVELOPED, HYBRIDIZED AND SELECTIVELY HUNTED PLANT THAT IT IS TODAY. Once upon a time, certain Cannabis strains existed solely in specific regions throughout the world. As the popularity and value of the plant rose, so did cultivators’ interest in diversifying their product lines – thus beginning the development of our modern day Cannabis cultivars. Select growers took this niche interest and began traveling internationally, hunting for new varietals from select regions around the world. These growers, many of whom eventually changed their focus from cultivation to breeding, helped usher in a new era for the plant and the community around it.

WE CULLED TOGETHER SOME O F T H E T O P ST R A I N S F R O M AROUND THE WORLD TO SHOW HOW CANNABIS’ I N T E R N AT I O N A L R O O T S H AV E S E T T H E STA G E F O R A N E W G LO B A L M A R K E T.

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“A wonderful, substantial body high that’s probably best paired with minimal physical activity.”

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M

ANY BRANDS claim reverence for the rich traditions of Indian hash-making culture, but few have made good on their word quite like Nasha. Founded in the beautiful mountains of Humboldt, Nasha – which is named for a Sanskrit term that translates as “a state of transformed consciousness, exhilaration, or excitement of the mind” – was shaped by its founder’s years of experience living at the foothills of the Himalayas and studying the origins of hashish and its surrounding culture.

38

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The result? A company that makes old school hash in a natural way.

That means no solvents. Instead, Nasha relies on a traditional process for producing its cold-water hash: one which involves resin-rich, small-batch, locally-sourced Cannabis, pure mountain water and plenty of ice.

Such practice is perfectly embodied in Nasha’s pressed temple balls, which utilize a combination of heat and pressure to turn powdered raw resin into potent, flavorful, one gram chunks of heaven.

The temple ball form is also ideally suited for those who prefer smooth hits and a bold taste, as I learned after I crumbled most of a Nasha Slurricane temple ball over a generously packed pipe of fresh flower and got down to business.

Featuring flower cultivated by Southern Humboldt’s Alpenglow Farms, the essence of this outdoor grown, indica-leaning cross between Do-SiDos and Purple Punch was a dual success of flavor and effect.

Those who dig flavor profiles that fall on the sweeter side – think notes of grape and berries – should be all about Slurricane. This popular but potent strain is often known for coming with a subsequent nap (free of charge), but for those who regularly enjoy hash products, there’s nothing especially couchlock-esque to fret about.

Instead, just expect a wonderful, substantial body high that’s probably best paired with minimal physical activity.

More importantly, Nasha’s temple ball hash is more than up to the task of authentically capturing all of the nuances of the terpene profiles that collectively form Slurricane’s storm of flavor. And if that doesn’t reflect a true dedication to tradition, then it might be time to start a new one.

SLURRICANE

JUN. 2021

TEMPLE BALL HASH

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TECHNOLOGY ALPHAPEN BRNR LABS

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THE BATTERY

Introducing the BRNR Alpha – a premium vape pen at a price that anyone can afford.

“One of the safest, sturdiest, smoothest-pulling vape pens I’ve ever hit.”

JUN. 2021

THE PORTABILITY and discretion of a good vape pen make it an indispensable alternative to the desktop dab rig. But most of the vape pens on the market tend to fall into two categories: the cheap, disposable types that don’t last long and may or may not be off-gassing toxic fumes; and the higher-end vapes, which are better quality and typically come with a heftier price tag. But now, you can have the best of both worlds with the new Alpha Vape from BRNR Labs.

The BRNR Alpha has a sleek, spaceage design that’s available in four different colors: pink, blue, space gray and black. There’s no button to press – activation is triggered by inhalation. There’s also no light to show it’s on, instead using haptic feedback (a subtle vibration) to let you know it’s working.

It comes with a Grade-A battery that’s compatible with any standard 510-threaded cartridge, a refillable glass AVD cartridge, an aluminum sheath, an adapter ring (to adjust the sheath height for longer cartridges), and a micro-USB charging cord.

Let’s take a look at each of these components more closely:

Alpha features a Grade-A battery, meaning it has met the strictest of safety and quality standards. Unlike B and C-Grade batteries, Grade-A batteries have a longer life and are less likely to leak or explode. The bottom of Alpha’s battery features a micro-USB port for charging and a tiny switch used to toggle between the two heat settings: low and high.

Since there’s no button, there’s no messing around trying to remember how many clicks or which colored light corresponds to which setting. When set to low, the atomizer heats to the temperature where the terpenes just begin to vaporize, preserving as much flavor and aroma as possible – perfect for highterp sauce carts. On the high setting, it heats to just below the temperature where any off-gassing might conceivably occur – delivering a heavier hit that’s optimal for highTHC distillates. Both temperatures are sensor-controlled by BRNR’s proprietary Smart Pulse Technology – a sophisticated algorithm that sends automated intermittent pulses of power to the atomizer, rather than constant heat. This prevents the device from overheating and reduces stress on the ceramic core, extending its life.

THE CARTRIDGE

Alpha Pen comes equipped with an AVD (Advanced Vapor Devices, BRNR’s sister company) cartridge constructed using only the highest quality and safest materials available. All components within the air path – including a pure nickel and kanthal heating element, the zero-absorption borosilicate glass chamber, and the clean ceramic core – are certified non-toxic, non-reactive and inert. Thanks to AVD’s extensive quality control and testing, their carts are considered the new gold standard for many top-name concentrate producers.

THE RESULTS

In the final analysis, Alpha is one of the safest, sturdiest, smoothest-pulling vape pens I’ve ever hit. It provides strong, steady hits with no overheating and long battery life. It’s built to last years rather than months, which not only saves you money, but is also better for the environment. And with its one-year warranty and the very reasonable price point of just $25, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better vape pen for your money.

REVIEW & PHOTOS by BOBBY BLACK @BOBBYBLACK420 for LEAF NATION

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alternative medicine

KRATOM

Interview with Mac Haddow, Senior Fellow on Public Policy at the American Kratom Association

It was an unseasonably cold February night in 2018 when I found myself in one of Alaska’s roughest neighborhoods.

Indistinct shouting and blaring police sirens cut through my anxiety as I approached a wooden lean-to lit by only a neon green sign that read “Smoke Shop.” When I opened the creaky front door, I was greeted by dim fluorescent lights and a slew of unsavory characters who were probably just as confused by my presence as I was.

But we were all there for the same thing: kratom.

D

Effects

JUN. 2021

STORY by O’HARA SHIPE @SHIPESHOTS/LEAF NATION

Illustration by Adobe/Irissca

LEAFMAGAZINES.COM

42

erived from the Mitragyna speciosa tree that is native to Southeast Asia, kratom has been consumed for centuries.

An herbal cure-all of sorts, kratom is said to treat everything from impotence to stomach bugs, as well as ease pain and anxiety. While the plant has a rich history in Eastern medicine, it is relatively new to the Western consciousness.

First introduced to Europe in the early 19th century by Dutch botanist Pieter Korthals, the plant has yet to gain wide acceptance Suppose Haddow is correct in his assertions, and kratom can in the United States, in part, because of misinformation. wean those addicted to prescription opioids of their affliction. Why is So, why has this humble plant become so demonized in kratom currently classified as a Schedule I drug alongside Cannabis, the United States?

Used in small doses, heroin, LSD, ecstasy, meth and peyote?

According to Mac Haddow, a Senior Fellow on Public kratom works as a In this, Haddow is succinct.

Policy at the American Kratom Association, the answer is stimulant – similar to “[The FDA] has expansive power, and they disseminate relatively straightforward. drinking an energy propaganda about [kratom]. They infect the whole discussion from “It’s probably an outgrowth of the [FDA] bias against drink. In large quantities, a public policy standpoint by citing a string of deaths that were all-natural products. They hate homeopathic products, kratom can have an previously attributed to kratom, but have since been refuted,” says and they hate plants and anything that doesn’t require a analgesic effect as it Haddow.

‘New Drug Application,’” says Haddow. binds to the body’s The most damaging narrative to come from the FDA concerns the The problem, Haddow believes, is akin to the natural μ-opioid death of nine Swedes in 2010. Two years later, the original cause of FDA’s response to vitamin supplements in the ‘90s. In receptors death was redacted by The National Board of Forensic Medicine in 1991, the Nutrition Advertising Coordination Act was Sweden. While kratom was detected in the systems of the deceased, introduced, in which the FDA would have the power to the Board determined that it was not the primary cause of death, but rather, it was tighten the regulations regarding supplement labeling. The Act was shot the adulteration of the consumed kratom. down and replaced by the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act “Kratom in its pure state is not dangerous,” insists Haddow.

(DSHEA) in 1994 during the Clinton Administration. Under the DSHEA, Just like Cannabis, the problem is not the plant itself. It is the mismanagement a dietary supplement cannot be approved or authorized for investigation of the product by smoke shops and other entities that saw the analgesic effect of as a new drug, antibiotic, or biologic unless it was marketed as a food or kratom and thought, “Maybe we can mix it with some things.” dietary supplement before such approval or authorization.

On this, Haddow and the FDA agree.

This distinction becomes important when it comes to the ability of “As we work to combat the opioid crisis, we cannot allow unscrupulous vendors kratom producers to market or advertise their product as being able to take advantage of consumers by selling products with unsubstantiated claims to treat illness. More importantly, it stifles one major sector of kratom that they can treat opioid addiction or alleviate other medical conditions,” wrote consumers: those trying to beat their opioid addiction. acting FDA Commissioner Ned Sharpless, M.D., in a June 2019 press release.

When used in small doses, kratom works as a stimulant – similar Without tight regulations and rigorous testing protocols, consumers can be to drinking an energy drink. In large quantities, kratom can have an putting themselves at risk by consuming kratom. But that doesn’t mean that we analgesic effect as it binds to the body’s natural μ-opioid receptors should throw out the baby with the bathwater. As a 2020 Johns Hopkins led (MOR). Unlike prescribed opioid drugs such as Tramadol and Percocet, survey of 2,798 adult kratom users in the United States revealed, kratom is worth the bond kratom forms to the MOR are weak – reducing the likelihood of the investment of creating stringent regulations. In the survey, 87 percent of those forming an addiction, making it a possible answer to the opioid crisis. consuming kratom to treat opioid dependence reported relief from withdrawal “The difference is significant because kratom doesn’t give you that symptoms. Even more remarkable, 34 percent of addicts were free from opioids reinforcing high, so therefore, it doesn’t have addiction liability. What after a year. happens with traditional opioids is that they go to your respiratory system, “It’s just like the FDA’s response to supplements. The solution was not to ban and that’s what accounts for the them. The solution was to make sure that they were regulated properly. And that’s majority, or the vast majority, of IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN what kratom needs, which is why we advocate at the state level right now for the opioid overdoses. You literally LEARNING MORE ABOUT KRATOM kratom Consumer Protection Act, which essentially says you cannot adulterate it; suffocate.

Kratom has no significant AND THE COMPANIES BACKED BY THE you can’t synthesize the alkaloids, you have to manufacture properly and label it impact on your respiratory system,” AMERICAN KRATOM ASSOCIATION, properly,” says Haddow. explains Haddow.

VISIT AMERICANKRATOM.ORG.

cannthropology

WORLD OF Cannabis PRESENTS

Amsterdam’s Reefer Revolution

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44

How a handful of activists and entrepreneurs transformed the Venice of the North into the Cannabis capital of the world.

If there’s one city in all the world most associated with marijuana, it is undoubtedly Amsterdam. For decades, the city has been known for its liberal attitudes toward Cannabis … but it was not always this way. The Dutch policy of Cannabis tolerance—and the resulting coffeeshop industry— traces back to a handful of counterculture visionaries in the late 60s and early 70s who pushed back against the powersthat-be and paved the way for the thriving Cannabis culture that followed.

THE PROVOS Like America’s Diggers and Yippies (whom they influenced), Amsterdam’s Provos (short for provoceren, meaning “to provoke”) were a leftist group that combined political protests with absurdist street theater in an attempt to goad authority figures into making public fools of themselves. One of their founders was a performance artist and anti-tobacco activist named Robert Jasper Grootveld. Starting in the early 1960s, Grootveld and his Provos launched a guerilla war against the tobacco industry, as well as a pro-pot disinformation campaign called the “Marihuettegame” (marijuana game).

The premise was to score “points” by tricking police into arresting you for legal substances that looked similar to weed to demonstrate their ignorance about it. Those points could then be redeemed for real weed at the Afrikaanse Druk Stoor—an underground drug shop they opened in the Jordaan in 1963.

JUN. 2021

Dutch pot pioneers: Kees Hoekert and Provo Jasper Grootveld of the Lowland Weed Company selling Cannabis plants on their houseboat The White Raven. COURTESY COR JARING LOWLAND WEED COMPANY After the Provos disbanded in 1967, Grootveld partnered with a kindred spirit by the name of Kornelis “Kees” Hoekert. Like Grootveld, Hoekert was a disgruntled tobacco addict who’d switched to smoking weed and hash. Unfortunately, there wasn’t much Cannabis available in the Netherlands at that time—just imported black-market hash, typically of questionable quality.

Remarkably, it was Hoekert who first realized that Cannabis didn’t need to be imported—it could actually be grown anywhere, including there in Holland.

So in 1969, he and Grootveld bought a kilo of hemp seed pigeon feed from a pet store and began planting it everywhere—in the forests, in the parks, by the airport, and even in front of police stations.

More significantly, though, they grew thousands of plants out on the deck of Hoekert’s houseboat (The White Raven) and began selling seeds and plants as the Lowland Weed Company. The plants had no THC and weren’t suitable for smoking—it was just political theater designed to educate and trick authorities into creating a bogus scandal. But since Holland’s Opium Act (their version of the Controlled Substances Act) only forbade the sale of dried Cannabis leaves, not seeds or live plants, the police never took the bait.

Nevertheless, they achieved their desired result: The police’s lack of action led people to conclude that Cannabis was now legal to grow in the Netherlands—making the Lowlands Weed Company the country’s first “legal” Cannabis merchants. The publicity also drew Cannabis enthusiasts from around the world to the White Raven. It became such an attraction that a hippie tour

called the Magic Bus began stopping there twice a day, bringing tourists below deck for a smoke, a cup of “high tea,” and a speech from Kees or Jasper.

Meanwhile, a similar scene was playing out across town, where a hippie chick named Mila Jansen (known today as “The Hash Queen”) had opened a boutique/teahouse called Kink 22 where customers were served a joint alongside every cup of tea sold.

MELLOW YELLOW Soon, others would build upon the Cannabis teahouse concept. The first was a 23-year-old hippie friend of Hoekert’s named Wernard Bruining. Tired of dealing hash out of their apartment, Bruining and his roommates Amsterdam’s first coffeeshop, commandeered a the Mellow Yellow. vacant bakery outside COURTESY WERNARD BRUINING the city center and in 1973, opened Amsterdam’s first official coffeeshop. They called it the Mellow Yellow, after the Donovan song based on the urban myth of smoking banana peels to get high—an inside joke they believed only stoners would get.

Their plan was simple: Rather than haggling over prices for arbitrary amounts of hash and grass wrapped in foil as was the custom, dealers at the Mellow Yellow sold standard quantities packed in clear bags at set prices, so customers knew exactly what they were getting. To avoid detection, their rotating group of dealers would sling sacks from a leather satchel while disguised as customers.

RISE OF THE COFFEESHOPS Naturally, it wasn’t long before other entrepreneurial-minded stoners followed Bruining’s lead. In April 1975, Mellow Yellow regular Maarten Brusselers opened his own coffeeshop, the Rusland. Next came the Bulldog—opened that December by sex shop owner Henk de Vries, who applied a new level of business acumen to the model.

Within months of those first shops opening, the Dutch government made a fateful decision—one that would ultimately catapult Cannabis culture in Amsterdam from underground to mainstream. In 1976, they amended the Opium Act to create two distinct classes of drugs: “hard drugs,” considered dangerous to the public good; and less harmful, non-addictive “soft drugs,” under which hash and marijuana were classified.

Old-school Bulldog poster and a 1981 Lowland Seed Company promo.

COURTESY WORLD OF CANNABIS MUSEUM AND WERNARD BRUINING

Amsterdam didn’t just pioneer sales and social use of Cannabis—it was also at the forefront of genetics and cultivation.

Then, four years later in 1980, they went even further—announcing a pragmatic new harm-reduction policy of Cannabis “tolerance” (gedoogbeleid). After that, Cannabis use and sales—though still technically illegal—would now be decriminalized, thus paving the way for the rise of the coffeeshop industry.

In the two decades that followed, the number of coffeeshops in Amsterdam grew exponentially—up to 400 in 1990, then 750 in 1994. In an effort to manage the “wild west” situation unfolding, in October 1994 the Netherlands established a new regulatory system for coffeeshops called the AHOJG criteria (a Dutch acronym), which imposed some basic rules: no advertising, no hard drugs on the premises, no disturbing of the peace, no minors, and no large quantities (daily limits of 500 grams per shop and five grams per customer).

THE GREEN TEAM Amsterdam didn’t just pioneer sales and social use of Cannabis—it was also at the forefront of genetics and cultivation. After the Mellow Yellow mysteriously burned down in 1978, Bruining traveled to America in search of sinsemilla—returning the following year with new genetics and a hippie farmer from Oregon by the name of “Old Ed” Holloway. Together, the two set out to “make Holland the Jamaica of Europe”—establishing the first commercial cultivation operation in Europe and selling their harvests to the coffeeshops. Next, Bruining brought in his old friend Hoekert as a partner to launch the Lowland Seed Company—the first commercial Cannabis seed company.

Before long, some of the world’s top pot breeders were showing up wanting to join their “Green Team,” including Ed Rosenthal, Sam the Skunkman (developer of the groundbreaking Skunk strain), and Nevil Schoenmakers (who later co-founded the Seed Bank and Green House cofThe genetics feeshop). The genetics Master growers: Soma, Wernard developed in and sold developed in from Amsterdam by these Bruining, Old Ed Holloway, and and sold from legendary breeders would Ed Rosenthal in Amsterdam Amsterdam by serve as the basis for most around 1996. of the popular strains of these legendary COURTESY WERNARD BRUINING today.

breeders would serve as the basis for most of the popular strains of today.

AMSTERDAM DETHRONED Unfortunately, after decades of increasing Cannabis tourism (including the annual Cannabis Cup events each November), the Dutch government began taking steps to reign in the coffeeshop industry. In 2008, they enacted a rule prohibiting shops within 250 meters of a school—forcing 43 shops to close. Then in 2012, they passed the wietpas (weed pass) rule that effectively banned tourists from coffeeshops (for more on this, see this month’s special section). These new restrictions, coupled with the meteoric rise of legal Cannabis in the US, have essentially dethroned Amsterdam as the world’s Cannabis capital.

Nevertheless, the city’s groundbreaking policies and pioneers have undeniably paved the way for the Cannabis freedoms and phenotypes we now enjoy in America.

For more on Amsterdam’s Reefer Revolution, listen to Episode #12 of our podcast at worldofcannabis.museum/podcast.

Story and photos originally published on worldofcannabis.museum and reprinted with permission.

STO RY b y B O B BY B LAC K @ CAN N T H RO PO LO G Y for LEA F NAT IO N

MOSQUITOES SUCK

Y

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by Mike Ricker

ou work your ass off and deserve a vacation. You save, plan and prepare, while exerting double the energy for the chance to finally check out and head for that sandy paradise for a classic decompress. So, when the bags are loaded with your scene safely in the rearview, a healthy exhale loosens the shackles.

But there’s still the travel – the scramble to the airport for the obligatory grope from TSA, the uncomfortably close proximity to unsavory strangers, and the cultural barriers that add to uncertainty. Eventually, you settle in, figure out food and acclimate to the surroundings, as the echoes of your three-ring life finally begin to wither into inaudible static. Here, the suit noose is unknotted and traded for sandals in sand, memorable breezes and a fresh day at the beach.

You’ve earned this break.

The quietude of ocean whispers is palpable, accentuated with unapologetic sunshine and careless laughter. This is the perfect time for a spliff with a freshly hacked coconut served chilled, rightfully accompanied by a bamboo straw. This is your oasis of fluffy clouds and salt. A deserved respite to create open space in the crowded turnstile mind and begin the healing, so that you can return refreshed and recharged. This time is for you. This is where you relish in your accomplishments and reflect with gratitude.

Suddenly, what do you hear?

It’s a buzz – a fly, a mosquito? No, it is much bigger. “Is it someone’s music down the beach?” you ask, as the equivalent to a scratching needle down the vinyl breaks the hypnosis of your ambience. This is a dissonant tone, replete of anything remotely enjoyable. It is high, but nothing enters the periphery, until there, creating a smudge on your perfect horizon is a propeller plane lugging a banner that advertises a discount buffet. The invader, you surmise, probably cut a deal with the local sleazeball governor to rent the view, essentially putting a moustache on your Mona Lisa.

It is that moment that you realize there is no escape from the dirty pickpockets who scour the empty corners lurking for nefarious opportunities – the junk mailers, scam callers – and the perpetrators of personal space.

It is that moment that you realize nothing is sacred anymore.

JUN. 2021

F O L L OW @ R I C K E R D J | G E T T H E AU D I O V E R S I O N & EV E RY E P I S O D E AT L E A F M AG A Z I N E S . C O M

Indoor Flower by West Coast Treez

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