Cultivation & Growing | Cannabis Industry Journal

Featured Articles

March 3, 2021

Navigating Compliance: Practical Application of Fit-For-Purpose

By Darwin Millard

In this piece Millard explains the concept of “fit-for-purpose” and how this can be applied to navigating regulatory compliance in the US cannabis/hemp marketplace.

February 23, 2021

Flower-Side Chats Part 2: A Q&A with Bill Conkling, Founder and CEO of Maggie’s Farm

By Aaron Green

In this series, Aaron Green sits down and interviews a number of integrated cannabis companies and flower brands. In Part 2, Green chats with Bill Conkling, Founder and CEO at Maggie’s Farm, to learn more about the benefits of outdoor growing, localism and their recent Clean Green certification.

February 16, 2021

Flower-Side Chats Part 1: A Q&A with Sam Ghods, CEO of Connected

By Aaron Green

In this series, Aaron Green sits down and interviews a number of integrated cannabis companies and flower brands. In Part 1, Green chats with Sam Ghods, CEO at Connected, to learn more about how he got into cannabis and Connected’s product and branding strategy.

February 11, 2021

New Guidance on Waste Disposal for Hemp Producers

By Stephanie McGraw, Emily Sellers

On January 15, 2021, the USDA published its final rule on US hemp production. Producers will not be required to use a DEA reverse distributor or law enforcement to dispose of non-compliant plants. Instead, producers will be able to use common on-farm practices for disposal.

February 9, 2021

Learning from the First Wave Part 2: California’s Cannabis Supply Chain and Vertical Integration, with a Grain of Salt

By Todd Feldman

In this three-part series, cannabis lawyer and compliance expert Todd Feldman takes a look at how laws shape California’s supply chain, constrains business practices and affects the cost of doing business. In Part Two, we take a look at how regulation defines vertical integration in California.

February 1, 2021

Integrating a Culture of Quality Into the Cannabis Industry

By David Vaillencourt

Cannabis businesses know that compliance with state regulations are critical to surviving, but overlook the benefits of a quality management system that can allow them to thrive.

January 28, 2021

Due Diligence for Suppliers & Cannabis Supply Chain Partners

By Mark Slaugh

Ensuring accountability across the supply chain means selectively choosing partners who share the same values of integrity and professionalism. Compliance affects most everyone in the supply chain and the loss of any operator hurts the entire industry.

January 21, 2021

Q&A with Bruce Macdonald, Chairman of C21 Investments

By Aaron Green

In this article, Aaron Green sits down with Bruce Macdonald, Chairman of C21 Investments, Inc. to learn more about the how he got involved with the MSO, the company’s strategy and how C21 delivers competitive advantage in today’s market.

January 12, 2021

QIMA/WQS to Audit Cannabis Companies as CSQ Certification Body

By Cannabis Industry Journal Staff

The Cannabis Safety & Quality Certification program, launched by ASI in 2020, just welcomed QIMA/WQS as their newest licensed certification body.

January 5, 2021

The Hidden Costs of Non-Compliance for Consumers

By Mark Slaugh

Over the long run, compliance is key to tracking the consistency and safety of products to avoid long-term liability and costs on consumers. Consumers would be wise to gravitate towards compliant brands and companies that focus on consistent quality and safety to minimize potential long-term negative impacts and costs.

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Columns

February 9, 2021

The (Arrested) Rise of Craft Cannabis in Canada

By Steven Burton

While the cannabis legalization story in Canada has had its bumps, the clear path forward for greater legal market success lies in increased support for micro-cultivators. By increasing support for these small-scale producers to navigate regulatory requirements, more will be able to enter the legal market and actually compete against their illicit counterparts.

January 7, 2021

Soapbox

Break Up Vertical Integration

By Ryan Douglas

In this excerpt from his book, From Seed to Success: How to Launch a Great Cannabis Cultivation Business in Record Time, Ryan Douglas offers an interesting take on the vertically integrated cannabis business model. He argues vertical integration is not in the best interest of the consumer and that businesses should identify their strengths and seek to specialize in one aspect of the supply chain.

September 22, 2020

Why You Should Consider Parametric Insurance to Protect Your Outdoor Cannabis Crop

By Evan Stait

Outdoor cannabis crops aren’t covered by traditional crop insurance. But in a hardening property insurance market, a world of climate change and shifting weather patterns, growers are looking for a way to mitigate their risk. Parametric insurance may be your best bet.

August 5, 2020

The Brand Marketing Byte

The Hottest U.S. Cannabis Brands Right Now

By Cannabis Industry Journal Staff

In this week’s Brand Marketing Byte, we take a look at Pioneer Intelligence’s hottest U.S. (non-retail) cannabis brands for the month of July. Using their large data set and gauging metrics within social media, earned media attention and more, these are the companies that are getting the most out of their marketing.

June 16, 2020

The Hopes of Illinois Social Equity Applicants

By Taneeshia Thomas

At the intersection of the Black Lives Matter movement, protests across the country and socio-economic woes facing the nation, comes some hope for change in Illinois. “I speak for all the ghettos when I say this: give us access to the capital and we will get the rest done on our own.”

June 16, 2020

Soapbox

Cannabis Shifts to a Luxury Brand

By John Shearman

From authentication to tagging and tracing: In this piece, Shearman takes a look at all of the innovative ways growers are elevating cannabis products to luxury status.

June 8, 2020

The Top 4 Things Cultivation Directors Should Discuss With Their Operations Manager Right Now

By Lucas Targos

Communication is key for efficient interaction between cultivation and business functions at any cannabis operator. According to Lucas, cultivation directors should be tackling these topics with their operations managers as they prepare for summer 2020 and beyond.

March 25, 2020

Soapbox

Clean Grow Still Failing? Check for Endophytic Mold

By Bernie Lorenz, PhD

The practice of checking mother plants for Endophytic mold is not yet commonplace in cannabis, but the hemp business is leading the way. They’re testing to create very clean plants, so you don’t have issues during cultivation.

March 5, 2020

Thinking of Hiring a Cultivation Consultant? Here’s What You Can Expect

By David Perkins

Don’t make the same mistakes that others have – hire an experienced consultant, do your homework and know what to expect.

March 2, 2020

Product Safety Hazards: Looking Beyond Food Safety in Cannabis

By Radojka Barycki

Cannabis safety is not just about edibles and food-borne illness. Take a look at several safety hazards encountered by cultivators, processors, manufacturers and retailers.

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Upcoming Events & Webinars

March 23, 2021 – 12:00 pm – 4:00 pm

Cannabis Cultivation Virtual Conference

Preliminary agenda just announced! Click the link to see the full agenda. This complimentary virtual conference returns on March 23. Four sessions back-to-back, all on the same day and free to attend. Get access to a number of cultivation experts speaking on topics from facility design to pest management and sustainability and much more.

May 4, 2021 – 12:00 pm – 4:00 pm

Cannabis Labs Virtual Conference

For five years now, we have been hosting this complimentary collection of webinar presentations, designed to help attendees better understand some of the more technical aspects of starting and operating a laboratory. We will take a deep dive into cannabis and hemp testing, laboratory accreditation, regulatory compliance and much more. Four sessions back-to-back, all on the same day and free to attend. Stay tuned for the agenda announcement and registration page coming soon!