News, Gossip, and Summer Events
1. Status of the new hemp law
→ The legislation that recently passed to reform Minnesota’s hemp laws is still awaiting Governor Walz’s signature. As yet, we have not seen any significant redflags that suggest he may not sign. Once enacted, the new law goes into effect on August 1.
Our friend Carol Moss, cannabis attorney extraordinaire, has written an excellent blog post explaining and contextualizing the new reforms.
2. Party and bullshit
→ Pre-Roll readers may have caught wind of a recent controversy pertaining to a poorly conceived and even more poorly executed attempt to change the name of one of Minnesota’s cannabis legalization third parties. One of our favorite cannabis publications wrote an uncharacteristically inaccurate article about the incident (so inaccurate that we are not linking to it here). To save you the hassle of wasting any of your precious indignation over this incident, here’s the bottomline—(1) it involved fewer people than you can count on one hand, (2) those people represented third-party, GOP, and DFL interests, (3) it didn’t work, and (4) stop worrying about it and vote for viable candidates who support legalization which, like it or not, are DFLers.
3. Spotlight on Native American entrepreneurs
→ Twin Cities Business Magazine features an article about Native American entrepreneurs in Minnesota whose businesses are rooted in their communities’ traditions and cultures. Among the entrepreneurs profiled are Patra and David Wise who own Nature Wise in Sawyer, Minnesota, a business that produces, among other products, CBD hemp and CBD products. From the article:
“Nature Wise has been able to build sales through its website and at farmers markets. Another sales channel is Indigenous First, an arts and gifts market that sells online as well as through a bricks-and-mortar location in downtown Duluth. It was launched in 2017 by the Duluth-based American Indian Community Housing Organization (AICHO), whose mission also includes economic development and entrepreneurship.”
4. Cannabis and autism
→ MedicalNewsToday has published an article featuring research conducted by a researcher at Minnesota State University on the therapeutic effects of cannabis for individuals with autism. Per the article, that research demonstrated that cannabis may be helpful for alleviating such symptoms as self-injury, restlessness, agitation, and more, but that additional research is necessary to better understand short- and long-term benefits and risks.
5. Listen up: How legalization can go wrong
→ In today’s episode of “The Intelligence” a podcast from The Economist, skip ahead to 9:54 to hear an excellent rundown of what’s going wrong in California’s legal cannabis market. TL;DL: It’s all the stuff we’ve been griping about needing to get right in Minnesota: no municipal opt-outs and zoning, regulations, and taxes that make sense. Just look at California for what happens when you bungle it: a black market that’s stronger than ever and a legal market that’s on the brink of a total bust.
6. Corporate structures and tax treatment
→ Seasoned cannabis attorney Ed Culhane has published a great blog post discussing considerations for cannabis businesses in deciding their corporate structure and tax treatment. It’s a must-read.
7. Summer events
RSVP now for 40 Acre Co-op’s second annual Juneteenth Celebration on Saturday, June 18 from 11AM-3PM. The theme for this year’s event is Freedom to Grow. The event will include local food grown on the farm and prepared by celebrity chef LaChelle Cunningham of the Health Roots Institute, a brief presentation by local food and agriculture leaders, networking with Co-op members and community, and engagement with the food justice timeline project.
40 Acre Co-op was founded by Angela Dawson and is located in Northern Minnesota. It is the first Black and Indigenous agricultural co-op in the country.
Grounded Gardens is hosting its second annual Hemp Fest on Saturday, June 25 from 12-6 PM in Silver Lake. There will be a hemp flower contest, a joint rolling contest, glassblowing, food trucks, music, prizes, and great company. If you’re interested in being a sponsor, entering the hemp flower contest, or have any questions, please contact groundedgardensllc@gmail.com.
Grounded Gardens is a woman-owned and operated hemp farm, CBD producer, and retail shop specializing in small-batch, health, sustainable, and handmade products.