Green Zone Quarterly - Spring 2018

G SPRING 2018 • FREE

Z

Q

MUSIC

GREEN

ZONE QUARTERLY

SUPPLEMENT TO THE INLANDER

The can’t-miss festivals

TECH

The best pot-related apps

EDIBLES

Peanut butter + chocolate + cannabis = yum!

2 GREEN ZONE QUARTERLY SPRING 2018

GREEN

ZONE QUARTERLY

SPRING 2018 COVER ARTIST Hugh Russell ART DIRECTOR Derek Harrison

T

he spring rains may be turning everything green, but at the state’s biggest pot producer — located in Spokane Valley — it’s the growing season yearround. We get a tour of the operation behind the brand Phat Panda (page 14). “We’re really not doing anything differently than a lot of growers,” the head of agriculture tells us. “There’s no secret. Less is more.”

In News, we check out the latest legislative action in Olympia and in Boise, where the battle over CBDs is still being waged (page 11). And in Peeps (page 6), we talk with industry folks about the lingering stigmas surrounding the legal marketplace. As one tells us: “I have noticed the industry as a whole has become a lot more mainstream. We have our parents warming up to it, media in general warming up to it. That’s been interesting to see.” n

PAGE 4

PAGE 8

PAGE 12

PAGE 14

INLANDER

1227 WEST SUMMIT PARKWAY SPOKANE, WA 99201 PHONE: 509-325-0634 SALES @INLANDER.COM

BE AWARE: Marijuana is legal for adults 21 and older under Washington State law (e.g., RCW 69.50, RCW 69.51A, HB0001 Initiative 502 and Senate Bill 5052). State law does not preempt federal law; possessing, using, distributing and selling marijuana remains illegal under federal law. In Washington state, consuming marijuana in public, driving while under the influence of marijuana and transporting marijuana across state lines are all illegal. Marijuana has intoxicating effects; there may be health risks associated with its consumption, and it may be habit-forming. It can also impair concentration, coordination and judgment. Do not operate a vehicle or machinery under the influence of this drug. Keep out of reach of children. For more information, consult the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board at www.liq.wa.gov.

SPRING 2018 GREEN ZONE QUARTERLY

3

EDIBLES GEAR

Power Trifecta PB & MJ: chocolate peanut butter cup edibles

BY SAMANTHA WOHLFEIL

W

e could pretend like this recipe is only the result of clumsy stumbling around – hey, you got weed in my chocolate and my peanut butter! – but it’s better just to state the obvious: Peanut butter and chocolate are a match made in heaven. It seems like a logical step to add a little something

special to the time-tested combination.

If you use full-size muffin tin liners, this recipe will net you about a dozen candies that should probably be cut into smaller doses. To go for something bite sized (and less tempting to overindulge in), your best bet is to go straight for the mini-muffin size to yield 24 freezable treats.

CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER CUPS 12 full size or 24 mini-muffin paper liners

FOR THE CHOCOLATE:

1 ½ cups semisweet chocolate chips, divided ¼ cup marijuana-infused coconut oil, divided (make your own in advance by heating ground-up bud with coconut oil in a slow cooker for five-plus hours on low; strain, then save in the fridge or freezer for this and other recipes)

FOR THE PEANUT BUTTER:

½ cup peanut butter 2 tbsp honey 2 tbsp maple syrup (knockoff is totally fine, we’re not rich here) 2 tbsp marijuana-infused coconut oil

DIRECTIONS

YOUNG KWAK PHOTO

4 GREEN ZONE QUARTERLY SPRING 2018

Put paper liners in the muffin tin of your choosing (mini or full-sized).

Warm 3/4 cup of semisweet chocolate chips with 2 tbsp of weed-infused coconut oil in a double boiler, stirring until just melted and shiny. Divide evenly between the liners, making sure to spread the chocolate all the way to the edges. Freeze for 10-15 minutes.

Mix the peanut butter, honey, maple syrup and 2 tbsp of weedinfused coconut oil in a different heatproof bowl and microwave for 15 seconds until it’s easier to pour.

Pull the tin from the freezer and evenly divide the peanut butter, again making sure to quickly spread the mix to the edge of each liner. Freeze for another five minutes.

Warm the remaining 3/4 cup of semisweet chocolate chips with the remaining 2 tbsp of infused coconut oil over the double boiler again until just melted and shiny. Divide evenly to top off each peanut butter cup, then freeze them for at least an hour.

Pop them out of the liners and they’re ready to enjoy! Store in an airtight container for up to a few days in the fridge or even longer in the freezer.

As with any edible, until you’re sure how strong your infused oil is, and how well it was mixed into this batch, test a little bit of the recipe before eating an entire cup, and remember that sometimes it takes an hour or more for edibles to kick in. n

SPRING 2018 GREEN ZONE QUARTERLY

5

PEEPS

Overcoming the Stigma We asked industry pros about the lingering stereotypes

BY QUINN WELSCH CINDER

KASSI ANNE ROSENAU, general manager GZQ: How would you describe the stigma of working in the pot industry?

I’ve been here for almost two years and when I first started there was no way I would have ever talked to you or want to be in a magazine or put my picture out there because of the stigma.

How long did that take for you?

I would say probably about a year.

When do you think the stigma will go away?

I think it’s going to take maybe a generation. … The millennials’ children will probably be more open to it. It’s pretty crazy. The employees are not above 28 in general. People who are older just don’t apply. I think that’s very interesting, too. I think that will break some of the stigma when the people my age — I’m 43 — kind of step into this industry, because it needs some maturity, some life experience. This has been quite a journey for me.

SATORI SOUTH NICOL HURST, purchaser

ally had to deal with the “stoner stigma.”

I have noticed the industry as a whole has become a lot more mainstream. We have our parents warming up to it, media in general warming up to it. That’s been interesting to see. That’s never been a big thing for me.

How long do you think it will take until there is no longer a stigma?

Optimistically, I think we will see federal legalization. I mean, look at alcohol prohibition. Everyone drinks a beer after work and no one bats an eye at that.

SMOKANE

Have you ever had to hide your work from your family?

I’ve never had to hide it, I’ve never re-

MIKE SILVA, budtender

Have you ever had to hide

GREEN ZONE SECTION IN THE

NEWS POLICING BODY CAMERAS 42 FOOD THE ART OF SUMMER SALADS 51 MUSIC MARMOT FEST’S 2014 LINE-UP 13

JULY 10-16, 2014 | WITNESS TO HISTORY

EVERY THURSDAY

• Great deals and information from area retailers & more • Weekly Green Zone column with news you can use…

INLANDER.COM/GREEN ZONE

SUPPLEMENT TO THE INLANDER

PAGE 24

2018 •

EVERY DAY

FREE

G

WINTER

Z

Q SUPP LEME

NT TO THE

GREEN ZONE QUARTERLY

INLAN DER

Look for the next edition in July INS

GEAR the

gets for Hot gad of winter s dark day

GREEN ZONE

STRA

p you s that kee more The one back for coming

S MEtha t GAgam es

Video weed ll with play we

THE REGIONʼS LEGAL CANNABIS MARKETPLACE

6 GREEN ZONE QUARTERLY SPRING 2018

INTERESTED IN ADVERTISING? Advertising@Inlander.com • 509.325.0634 ext. 215

YOUNG KWAK PHOTO

S P R I N G I N FO R A M A Z I N G P R O D U C TS ! your work from your family?

I have personally been lucky enough that my family is accepting of it. I really just owned it and explained how it’s a serious profession and a professional industry and they definitely accepted it. Personally, I found the less I treat it with a stigma, the less the person I’m talking to treats it with a stigma as well. People are definitely skeptical about it, and it can make some people feel uncomfortable. We of course get people coming into the store who are uncomfortable.

GREEN STAR LANDON BAUM, budtender

Do you think we will ever see an end to the stigmatization of marijuana?

I think it’s really just a matter of time because you have to change a lot of people’s minds.

How long do you think it will take for that to happen?

Honestly, I didn’t think it would be legal now. I thought maybe in my 90s it will start to become legal. So honestly, we’ve already come so far. Now, it’s a matter of getting the education out there to people who do have this negative [stigma]. n

SPOKANE 21502 E GILBERT RD OTIS ORCHARDS, WA MOSES LAKE 955 W BROADWAY AVE MOSES LAKE, WA Warning: This product has intoxicating effects & may be habit forming. Marijuana can impair concentration, coordination, & 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 years or older. Keep out of reach of children.

CONCENTRATING ON THE BEST ASK FOR BLUE ROOTS AT YOUR FAVORITE RETAILER W W W.BLUEROOTSCANNABIS.COM

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 T WENT Y-ONE AND OLDER. KEEP OU T OF THE REACH OF CHILDREN. MARIJUANA PRODUCTS MAY BE PURCHASED OR POSSESSED ONLY BY PERSONS T WENT Y-ONE YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER.

SPRING 2018 GREEN ZONE QUARTERLY

7

EVENTS

C02 CARTRIDGES FROM $$17 FLOWER GRAMS FROM $$5 WAX GRAMS FROM $$13 $$ 100MG MG EDIBLES FROM 20

Hitting the High Notes NEW HOURS! MON–SAT: 8AM–MIDNIGHT SUN: 9AM–11PM

Featuring Indoor, Hand-Trimmed Flower by Small Batch Growers 509.919.3398 GreenStarCan.com 1403 N. Division St., Ste. A, Spokane, WA +21 and over. This product has intoxicating effects and may be habit forming. Marijuana can impair concentration 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 twenty-one and older. Keep out of the reach of children.

These Northwest music festivals are already great, but they’re probably better if you’re stoned

BY NATHAN WEINBENDER

T

here are two kinds of music festival attendees: Those who merely use it as an excuse to drink and party all weekend, and those who just want to chill and, you know, hear some music.

And since it’s usually so damn expensive to drink in designated beer gardens — and because pot consumption is restricted within festival grounds (and we’d never condone sneaking anything in) — it’s probably best to get your buzz on before you actually get there. Or, roll in with a weedinfused lozenge in your cheek. When you’re surrounded by mobs of people all weekend, it can make the experience a lot more pleasant.

Either way, here are some upcoming music festivals in and around Washington that you can look forward to.

SASQUATCH!

May 25-27 The Gorge Amphitheatre’s most anticipated annual event — save for, maybe, Dave Matthews’ semiregular residency — happens every Memorial Day weekend. If you’ve never been, it’s something every Washingtonian should experience at least once. Some of the big names at this year’s fest: Bon Iver, the National, Spoon, Modest Mouse and the legendary David Byrne. sasquatchfestival.com

VOLUME

June 1-2 Allow us to do a bit of self-promotion. The Inlander’s annual music festival has, since it started seven years ago, grown into a two-night event that fills downtown Spokane venues with local favorites (Marshall McLean, Mama Doll, Super Sparkle) and great touring acts (the Helio Sequence, Maps and Atlases, Broncho). You don’t wanna miss it. volume.inlander.com

UPSTREAM

8 GREEN ZONE QUARTERLY SPRING 2018

June 1-3 Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen’s festival, now in its second year, takes over Seattle’s Pioneer Square with live music and symposiums on the music industry. Upstream’s two main stages will feature the sultry R&B stylings of Miguel, the classic pop-punk of Jawbreaker and the DayGlo psychedelia of the Flaming Lips. Spokane’s own hip-hop artist Jango is also in the mix. upstreammusicfest.com

Angel’s

Volume returns to Spokane on June 1-2. YOUNG KWAK PHOTO

PARADISO

Bail Bonds

June 15-16 The Gorge’s second summertime festival is a must for fans of EDM and electronica. Deadmau5, the producer best known for always wearing that grinning mouse mascot head, is this year’s biggest get. We’re going to venture a guess that weed isn’t the only substance that’ll be consumed that weekend, so stay hydrated, kids. paradisofestival.com

CAPITOL HILL BLOCK PARTY

July 20-22 Seattle shuts down the Capitol Hill neighborhood every summer for this lively fest, which leans pretty heavily toward indie rock and pop. Amongst this year’s performers: Father John Misty, Bully, Dude York and Ryan Caraveo, who’s also performing at Volume. capitolhillblockparty.com

SUMMER MELTDOWN

509 326-2770 LIC#2015

815 N MONROE ST • SPOKANE, WA 99201

Aug. 2-5 If jam and roots bands are more your vibe, Summer Meltdown is where it’s at. Held in the small town of Darrington, Washington, it’s got Bassnectar, Greensky Bluegrass and Big Gigantic set to perform this year. And for anyone who happens to enjoy live music without the aid of substances, Meltdown offers sober campgrounds. summermeltdownfest.com

PICKATHON

Aug. 3-5 Broken Social Scene, Shakey Graves and Built to Spill are set to play 2018’s Pickathon, a small festival held in Happy Valley, Oregon, which is about 15 miles outside of Portland. It’s family friendly and environmentally conscious, dedicated to being plastic-free and solar powered. pickathon.com

WATERSHED

Aug. 3-5 For diehard country fans, it doesn’t get much better than Watershed, another Gorge-set festival that specializes solely in honky-tonk. They get some of the genre’s biggest names all in one place; Blake Shelton, Brad Paisley, Big and Rich, Clint Black and Brantley Gilbert are all set to perform this year. watershedfest.com

BUMBERSHOOT

Aug. 31-Sept. 2 The granddaddy of Washington music festivals, Seattle’s Bumbershoot has been rocking and rolling since 1971.

2018’s lineup hasn’t been announced yet, but last year brought the likes of Lorde, Weezer, Odesza and the Roots.

Expect something just as good. bumbershoot.com n

SPRING 2018 GREEN ZONE QUARTERLY

9

TECH

Weed App Showdown The best marijuana-related apps available on your mobile device

BY SARAH MUNDS

U

pon perusing the Google Play store for cannabis-related applications, I discovered two pop-out themes about stoners.

First, the only apps a stoner really needs are cool live wallpapers, a dope rasta keyboard on your phone, a dispensary locator and a weed-farming game.

Second, every stoner will rate an app four stars, even if their rating commentary berates every single aspect of said application.

The second discovery is problematic.

If everything is four stars, how do we know which apps to choose? Thus, the Weed App Showdown 2018 was born.

The contest is simple: Take all four major categories of cannabis apps and choose the strongest, most capable from among the contenders.

BEST LIVE WEED WALLPAPER

Smoke Weed USA Magic FX: The profoundly iconic American flag overlain by a shimmering, gossamer pot leaf that dances and swirls under the user’s touch. A strong contender in that this live wallpaper reaches the niche market of “hardcore conservative patriotic weed smoker.”

Marijuana Weed Live Wallpaper: Hits all the touching points of a basic cannabis wallpaper app: shoddy graphic design, sparkle effect gold lettering, a girl in a bikini, bright rasta colors, cliche pot mantra usage; a solid show pony.

Hypnotic Weed Live Wallpaper: Appreciate this app for the direct approach: Pot leaves spin around your classic black and white hypnotic spiral. Points deducted as I was not hypnotized, but rather nauseated.

WINNER: Smoke Weed USA Magic FX

BEST RASTA KEYBOARD

Weed Rasta Smoke Keyboard: Smoky

white keys and neon green highlights achieve a more elevated aesthetic, separating this keyboard from the stems and seeds of lesser apps. Users rave: “I like how the weed pops out,” “10000/10 on da weedscale of awesomeness” and “I like the way it looks like.”

Gold Rasta Keyboard: Gold is the color of victory and these app developers know it.

Keep it bold, keep it simple. Bonus points for classy pot leaf edging.

The sophisticated theming means this keyboard is a true companion for a multifaceted user, transitioning seamlessly from the boardroom to the grocery store to visiting grandma in the old folks home to the bedroom.

Weed Rasta Keyboard: App title and description in rainbow Comic Sans. Pot leaf symbols replacing backspace and enter keys. Including a fire emoji in an app name is a bold choice — but the symbolic usage of the fire emoji holds true with the other overtly rasta imagery.

WINNER: Gold Rasta Keyboard

BEST WEED LOCATOR MAP

Weedmaps Marijuana Cannabis Weed Reviews: Points for ultra-direct app name.

Humongous user base with all the goodies in the bag: dispensary info, menu items, local news, doctor finding, ad infinitum. No egregious bugs and solid UX design.

Leafly Marijuana Reviews: Virtually the same functionality as Weedmaps, but better. Better UX design, cooler articles, more relevant deals updates and a self-centering map. At this point we’re really just comparing apples to apples. If you

10 GREEN ZONE QUARTERLY SPRING 2018

were stranded in a foreign land (where pot was legal and you had a strong cell signal and a full phone charge), both apps would get you high.

ID WEEDS: Developed by the University of Missouri’s College of Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources’ plant science division, this app helps you identify weed plants in your area. App provides a list of weeds you can search by the weed’s common or Latin names, or you can input a variety of characteristic about the weed to identify the plant species!

WINNER: Leafly

BEST WEED FARMING APP

Wiz Khalifa’s Weed Farm: Classic weed farming app that’s become a staple in the cannabis gaming community. The Wiz Khalifa branding really makes this app sparkle, but I wasn’t a fan of the art style.

The character arc feels one-dimensional and I was left yearning for more meat on the plot bones of this game. Why does Wiz Khalifa, in all of his professional and artistic success, pivot his career in the direction of pot farming? Who is he as a person? What drives him?

Hempire Plant Growing Game: Same general process and concept as our friend Khalifa’s game, but with better graphics and art.

This game also drives the gameplay with a juicy plot — something that Wiz’s game was severely lacking. Plus, a punny title!

Weed Crush Match 3 Candy - ganja puzzle games: This is a blatant reskin of Candy Crush that is hitting a weird grayarea demographic of stoners who have, apparently, never heard of Candy Crush.

Literally just putting a transparent pot symbol over the original Candy Crush icons.

But one reviewer isn’t hoodwinked: “This game is kool it’s a lot like candy crush.”

WINNER: Hempire n

JUNE 1-2

downtown spokane PASSES ON SALE NOW

$25

IN ADVANCE $35 at festival

volume.inlander.com

THE 2018 LINEUP: Advertisement • ALL STAR OPERA • Bad Motivator • BAD YOSHI • BaLonely • Bar Talk • The Berries • Blake Braley • BLUES LAWYER • Boys Night • BRONCHO • Brotha Nature! • Buffalo Jones • Casual Hex • Cathedral Pearls • Chris Molitor • The City Hall • Clarko • Collate • Deer • DJ C-Mad • DJ Croquet • DJ Soul1 • DJ Unifest • DJ X • Donna Donna • Drunk On False Enlightenment • ExZac Change & Matisse • Fake News • Fat Lady • Feed • FLEE THE CENTURY • Gen Pop • Great Spiders • GUN OUTFIT • THE HELIO SEQUENCE • The Holy Broke • INDIAN GOAT • Jenny Don’t & The Spurs • KALAJ • Karate Chad • Karmaknows • Laminates • The Lavender Flu • Lavoy • Maidenhair • Mala Vida • MAMA DOLL • MAPS & ATLASES • MARSHALL McLEAN & THE HOLY ROLLERS • Meat Sweats • Mini Murders • Nat Park and the Tunnels of Love • Newman • The Paranoyds • Pat McHenry • Peru Resh • RIK AND THE PIGS • Runaway Octopus • RYAN CARAVEO • Sentient Divide • Seven Chains • Silver Treason • Skellee • Soul Man Black • Stares • Stiff Fish • Stiff Love • Summer in Siberia • SUPER SPARKLE • Supercrush • SUS • TRAVESURA • TREGO • Valen • Vernita Avenue • Water Monster • WILD ONES • Yung Crown SPRING 2018 GREEN ZONE QUARTERLY 11

NEWS

FRIDAY T S R I F EVERY IDAY!

HR PHAT P LIKE U

S ON FAC EBOOK FOLLO

US O INSTAW GRAM N

CHECK THE FEATU VENDOR CASE FOR RED THE

LATEST AND GREATEST!

ALL DAY LONG HAPPY HOURS:

Sunday

20% OFF TOPICALS

Monday

20% OFF EDIBLES

Tuesday

20% OFF CONCENTRATES & CARTS

Wednesday

20% OFF PARAPHERNALIA

Thursday

10 0FF MIX AND MATCH

$

10309 E TRENT AVE. SPOKANE VALLEY, WA

GREENLIGHTSPOKANE.COM 509.309.3193

HOURS: OPEN 8AM TO 11PM EVERYDAY FOLLOW US!

Greenlight Spokane

@greenlight502

WARNING: This product has intoxicating affects and may be habit forming. Smoking is hazardous to your health. There may be health risks associated with consumption of this product. Should not be used by women that are pregnant or breast feeding. For USE only by adults 21 and older. Marijuana can impair concentration, coordination and judgement. Do not operate a vehicle or machinery under the influence of this drug.

12 GREEN ZONE QUARTERLY SPRING 2018

Chill Session It was quiet in Olympia, but bigger proposals could be looming

BY DANIEL WALTERS

W

ith the threat of a federal crackdown from anti-weed Attorney General Jeff Sessions looming, you might have expected Washington’s most recent legislative session to bring a heap of new regulatory changes.

It didn’t. The session saw only relatively minor budgetary and regulatory tweaks.

“I think you mostly saw efforts to see us move in a direction toward consumer safety,” says Rep. David Sawyer, D-Tacoma.

One bill, sponsored by Sawyer, required laboratory testing for out-of-state cannabidiol supplements added to medical marijuana products. The products can sometimes be purchased out of state — or out of country — where they often aren’t tested for things like toxins or pesticides.

“When you’re using pesticides, the difference with marijuana is that you’re lighting it on fire and inhaling it,” Sawyer says. “We are being more vigilant to be precautionary of the public interest.”

Another bill passed required labeling on marijuana products, similar to how a tag on a shirt identifies where the shirt was made.

Most of the more major changes happened in the budgeting process. The Washington State Patrol got $2.8 million for a drug enforcement task force focusing on cracking down on the illegal black market for marijuana that still exists in the state.

The Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board was handed $782,000 to pay for six full-time positions focused on enforcing the laws around marijuana. And local governments, long frustrated with the way that the state was taking the bulk of the marijuana revenue, got a total of $18 million spread across the next two years to use to improve public safety. That, however, was only a fraction of the money the local governments wanted.

Many other proposals failed.

Republican Sen. Maureen Walsh, R-Walla Walla, introduced a bill that would have allowed people to grow their own recreational marijuana plants. Rep. Brad Klippert, R-Kennewick, wanted to address the marijuana odor problem with some facilities by requiring only indoor grow operations. Both failed.

Sawyer also proposed a law requiring a vote of the people — not just of the local city council or county commission — to implement a marijuana ban or moratorium.

“Because we have these bans and moratoriums, there are still parts of the state the black market has a stranglehold on,” Sawyer says.

That proposal, too, failed. But he plans to bring it up next year. n

Veto Power

Idaho still can’t get a CBD oil bill passed — but that could change with a new governor

BY WILSON CRISCIONE

D

orothy Moon felt like, this time, the bill she sponsored to legalize CBD oil for medical use in Idaho would pass.

Rep. Moon, R-Stanley, spoke to plenty of constituents who supported Idaho legalizing cannabidiol (CBD) oil — the oil extracted from cannabis plants containing little to no THC. They told her it could help them with diabetes, with epilepsy, with fibromyalgia. It is legal in 18 other states.

“A lot of people were already using it illegally, and they were looking for a path to use it legally,” Moon tells GZQ. Yet ultimately, in March, the bill failed, three years after a different bill to legalize CBD oil also failed.

It’s the latest development in the saga to legalize CBD oil in the Gem State, where a majority of lawmakers support the idea but have thus far been unable to make it law.

In 2015, Gov. Butch Otter vetoed a bill that would have allowed parents to use CBD oil to treat children with epilepsy, saying he received pressure from law enforcement who thought it would lead to looser drug laws.

This year’s bill would have allowed Idahoans to apply to the Idaho Board of Pharmacy for a cannabidiol registration card to use it for themselves or children.

Butch Otter When Moon’s bill made it to the House floor, it passed in a 59-11 vote. It had 45 co-sponsors between the House and Senate, and Moon was confident that it would pass both chambers. Otter suggested that he would veto the bill, just like he did three years ago, but Moon thought the support in the Legislature would make it veto-proof.

“I was very optimistic,” she says.

But it stalled in the Senate Health and Welfare Committee thanks to chairman Lee Heider, R-Twin Falls, who wouldn’t allow it to be discussed. When a lawmaker tried to discuss it, Sen. Heider pulled the committee into an office and closed the door. There, according to audio recorded by the Associated Press, Heider shouted, “The governor’s office doesn’t want this bill, the prosecutors don’t want this bill, the office on drug policy doesn’t want this bill.”

The meeting likely broke the state’s Open Meetings Law. Nevertheless, the bill was killed.

“I work for my constituents, but apparently [Heider] works for the governor,” Moon says.

Otter, however, won’t be in office next year, and those vying to replace him seem at least slightly more open to the idea of CBDs. “I do think we’ll have a governor who will sign it,” Moon says. n

Your Cannabis Clan!

MUNCHIE MONDAY 20% OFF EDIBLES TANKER TUESDAY $15 CARTRIDGES (SOME RESTRICTIONS MAY APPLY)

WAXY WEDNESDAY 20% OFF CONCENTRATES THIRSTY THURSDAY 20% OFF ALL DRINKS FIRE FRIDAY 20% OFF BUDTENDER PICK SUN 10A-11P • MON - SAT 8:30A-12A TOKERFRIENDLYSPOKANE.COM (509) 244-8728 1515 S. LYONS RD AIRWAY HEIGHTS Warning: This product has intoxicating affects and may be habit forming. Smoking is hazardous to your health. There may be health risks associated with consumption of this product. Should not be used by women that are pregnant or breast feeding. For USE only by adults 21 and older. Marijuana can impair concentration, coordination and judgement. Do not operate a vehicle or machinery under the influence of this drug.

SPRING 2018 GREEN ZONE QUARTERLY

13

NEWS

Debra Miller tends to plants at GrowOp Farms. YOUNG KWAK PHOTO

A Ton of Weed The top weed producer in the state is in Spokane Valley. They gave us a tour

BY MITCH RYALS

T

he inside of the top marijuana producer in Washington state feels a little like a hospital. But like, a chill hospital.

Bearded dudes shuffle around the cavernous facility in scrubs and beard nets.

Some are trimming the smokable flower while ladies with tattooed arms paint prerolled joints with a thick greenish brown liquid, pure THC, and then sprinkle kief on top — basically supercharged joints called firecrackers.

Some walls are painted with graffiti, others are decorated with trippy tapestries: a chimp smoking a joint and a tie-dye peace sign, for example. Michael Jackson and Bruno Mars play in the background and a dank aroma hovers over all of it.

The massive 85,000-square-foot facility in Spokane Valley houses all of GrowOp Farms’ production, which sells its flower weed under the brand Phat Panda. Teams of employees are experimenting with differ-

ent extraction methods while others are testing breeding and genetics different strains.

“We look for really outstanding plants, something fruity or gassy,” says Mohave Morelli, head of agriculture. “We want it to be unique. There’s a lot of good weed out there, but you don’t find a lot of great weed.”

There are about 75 to 80 different genetic variations growing at any one time, Morelli says. But including experiments with cross breeding, add another 200.

Standing outside one of the flowering rooms, where plants grow in 12 hours of light and 12 hours of darkness, Mohave says the operation doesn’t depend very heavily on cutting edge technology or innovative techniques (though there are some proprietary processes in the extraction lab and candy shop that he can’t get into). It’s more about the process.

“I mean we use top-of-the-line lighting, but we’re really not doing anything

14 GREEN ZONE QUARTERLY SPRING 2018

differently than a lot of growers,” he says.

“There’s no secret. Less is more. We used to feed a lot and push the plants a lot harder from a dietary standpoint. Now we feed a lot less.”

If there is one high-tech piece of the process, though, it’s the environmental controls. The whole system for regulating heating, cooling, air flow, humidity and watering was customized for Phat Panda.

“I can be on the beach in Hawaii and go in and look in all my rooms, tell my rooms when I want to water, I can shut off lights, change the temperature and shut an entire room down,” Morelli says. “Our digital controls of the rooms are pretty amazing.”

It takes about five months, from the time a plant has begun to take root until it’s ready to go to market. That translates to about a ton of usable flower per month, Morelli says.

“Phat Panda in one week sells more cannabis than the entire state of Alaska,” he adds. “Typically we have available 350 to 450 pounds of usable flower in a week.”

Each week, Phat Panda pumps out 100,000 joints, says Katrina McKinley, who co-owns the operation with her husband Robert. Last month, she says, the company sold about $3 million in product.

“Everything that’s being brought in is reinvested into the company so far,” she says. “At this point, $3 million sounds like a lot, but it’s not profit. It’s all being put right back into the company for our expansion and growth.” n

SPRING 2018 GREEN ZONE QUARTERLY

15

o n ly t h e f i n e s t

for your highness Order online and dash to your stash. royalscannabis.com/OrderOnline

7115 N DIVISION

509.808.2098 royalscannabis.com

This produc t has intoxicating effec ts and may be habit forming. Marijuana can impair concentration, coordination, and judgment. D o not operate a vehicle or machiner y under t h e i n f l u e n c e o f t h i s d r u g . T h e r e m a y b e h e a l t h r i s k s a s s o c i a t e d w i t h c o n s u m p t i o n o f t h i s p r o d u c t . F o r u s e o n l y b y a d u l t s t w e n t y - o n e a n d o l d e r. K e e p o u t o f t h e r e a c h o f c h i l d r e n .