We had lots of gorgeousentries in the Non-Solvent Hash Categoryat the 2016NorCalMedical Cannabis Cup. Here's which ones made it into our Top 5.
We had lots of awesomeentries in theTopical Categoryat the 2016NorCalMedical Cannabis Cup. Here's which ones made it into our Top 5.
SEATTLE (AP) — To comply with a new law, medical marijuana dispensaries without a recreational pot license were forced to shut down by July 1. After Friday, law enforcement will be in charge of cracking down on dispensaries that are not compliant in their jurisdictions.
The Washington Department of Health says more than 300 recreational cannabis stores are approved to sell medical marijuana, Q-13 reports, but patients still worry about access.
Meagan Holt’s three-year-old daughter, Madeline, has Zellweger syndrome, a terminal illness that has left her deaf, blind, seizure-prone, and dependent on a feeding tube. Holt told Q-13 that not only will her medical cannabis be more expensive under the new scheme, but it will also be difficult to find products appropriate for her daughter’s treatment.
“These stores are not ready, not prepared, neither with product or trained consultants,” Holt said. “The types of products that’s in the stores are completely different.”
Even many in Seattle’s adult-use marketplace have expressed concerns about the need to ensure patients don’t lose access to needed medicine:
#I502 focus should still be on making sure people get the strain that helps them the most. 😔😤👎🏾
— Marques (@schmoart) July 1, 2016
Others simply expressed frustrated with the new regulations and higher tax rates. A number of medical shops offered bargain-basement prices to clear inventory as the state deadline drew near.
Enjoying the last day of medical marijuana as we know it before the greedy politicians take over. #WAweed #I502 pic.twitter.com/hEDIeeDypw
— StonerRoyalty (@Stoner_Royalty) June 30, 2016
Under a law passed by the Legislature last year, unlicensed dispensaries that proliferated in the past decade were required to close. Large-scale growing cooperatives that supplied the medical stores were also forced to shut down, to eliminate competition with Washington's pioneering legal marijuana law, Initiative 502, approved by voters in 2012.
Washington in 1998 became one of the first states to approve the use of marijuana as medicine, but the initiative passed by voters did not allow commercial sales. Instead, patients had to grow the marijuana for themselves or designate someone to grow it for them. The measure did not prohibit patients from pooling their resources together to have large collective gardens on a single property, which police sometimes raided.
After Initiative 502 passed, lawmakers had a financial incentive to reduce competition with the state's recreational market, and they did so last year. The Liquor and Cannabis Board decided to boost the maximum number of licensed pot shops statewide from 334 to 556 to accommodate the medical market, and it adopted a merit system for helping decide who got the additional licenses.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Did you know that many beloved cannabis strains hail from the United States' northern neighbors? In honor of Canada Day and the promising strides the country has made towards nationwide legalization, here are 11 strains with Canadian roots. Pick one up and raise a joint to celebrate the friendly Canucks up north!
Manitoba PoisonThe Manitoba province is located at the longitudinal center of Canada, so it's only fitting that Manitoba Poison is a 50/50 hybrid (though you'll likely feel the heavy indica properties pretty quickly).
Sweet ToothAn oldie but a goodie, Sweet Tooth won 1st Place in the 2001 High Times Cannabis Cup.
Mendocino PurpsMendocino Purps, or simply "The Purps," is one of a few living legends that made this list. Handed off as a clone-only cut, this plant was stabilized by BC Bud Depot and has since made its way around the world.
ChemoChemo, or UBC Chemo, is named for the university where the strain was allegedly created and for its supplementary effects on patients going through chemotherapy. This strain is an international treasure with origins that reach back to the 1970s.
M-39The clever astronomical designation of M-39 speaks to the Northern Light #5 portion of this cross.
God BudGod Bud is some of the finest around. This incredible indica-dominant strain lives in the pantheon of cannabis deities, but like many of the old gods, this strain is the primogenitor to many other floral demigods like Blue God and Grape God.
DJ Short BlueberryDJ Short is one of the principal breeders in the cannabis industry. With cuts like Juicy Fruit and Flo, he's left a lasting mark on the cannabis industry with exotic genetic crosses cultivated through a life of world travel and reverence for this resinous flower. DJ Short Blueberry is known as THE west coast Blueberry phenotype.
Blue DynamiteBlue Dynamite was featured as one of the top 10 strains of 2007 in High Times magazine.
Island Sweet SkunkBred by Federation Seed Company in Canada, this beautiful blend of strong landrace genetics offers a smoke that is stimulating and versatile. Known for creating considerable amounts of tertiary CBD, Island Sweet Skunk invigorates the user while still offering anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects.
LowryderLowryder is a squat and resilient plant that is ideal for outdoor grows in less than pleasant climates, making it a seasoned fit for Canadians seeking a plant that could grow and hide in plain sight while weathering a rugged season.
RomulanRomulan is a space-age indica sent to Earth to expand our mind. And with Canada's savvy immigration policy, it's no wonder this heady smoker stopped there first.
On this Canada Day, we’d like to celebrate a few of our favorite Canadian cannabis champions. Let’s applaud the strength and efforts of these heroes of Canada’s cannabis scene — thank you for your hard work!
We know we’ve missed many others, of course. Who else should be on the list? Give us your nominees in the comments section at the end of the article.
Abi Roach is the BOSS of Toronto activism and a one-woman canna-activist Energizer Bunny. She’s the owner and operator of the HotBox Café, Canada’s first vapor lounge, located in the back of Roach-O-Rama, a local head shop in the Kensington Market district. She also runs the Cannabis Friendly Business Association, Toronto’s leading cannabiz organization. In her spare time, Roach writes and publishes Spliff Magazine to raise awareness and celebrate all things cannabis.
Kirk Tousaw is one of the most famous cannabis legal advocates in Canada, if not the world. Most of the nation’s high-profile cannabis cases have some connection to his Tousaw Law Corp., including the recent Canadian Supreme Court case that struck down regulations restricting the right of patients to grow their own medicine. As a board member of NORML Canada and former board member of the BC Civil Liberties Association, Tousaw continues to be a tireless advocate for cannabis policy reform in Canada.
John Conroy represents the other half of the defense team for the infamous Allard case. His specialization relates to matters of constitutionality, but he has been fighting Canada’s marijuana laws for almost 40 years. Conroy was an original founder of the National Organization to Reform Marijuana Laws (NORML) in Canada, way back in 1978. He has continually defended the right of dispensaries and cannabis business owners for their right to co-exist peacefully alongside other industries. In addition to defending patients and cannabis advocates, Conroy provides an invaluable service to the cannabis community through his vocal support and incredibly comprehensive knowledge as a legal resource.
Virginia Vidal discovered the benefits of medical cannabis more than a decade ago, then faced arrest and criminal charges for using it to relieve her symptoms. As a mother of six concerned about the pungent odor of cannabis smoke, she found her own way to medicate inconspicuously, and turned that discovery into one of Canada’s fastest-growing edibles companies. Vidal launched Mary’s Original Coffee & Teas, a healthy, tasty infused product line available at dispensaries across Canada.
Lisa Campbell is a badass lady in the cannabiz. She’s the Outreach Director for Canadian Students for Sensible Drug Policy, founder and chairwoman of Women Grow Toronto, and, as if that weren’t enough, she also works at Queens of Cannabis, Toronto’s only all-female-run dispensary and retail shop. Her work in drug policy reform is inspired in part by her own family’s fight to end alcohol prohibition decades ago.
Owen Smith represents the plaintiff in another landmark ruling for cannabis in Canada. In 2009, Owen Smith was working as head baker for the Victoria Cannabis Buyers Club, creating cannabis-infused cookies and edibles for sale in their shop. One day, the authorities came calling, arrested him and charged him with possession for the purposes of trafficking cannabis. During the trial, one of the most crucial elements for the defense came down to the Canadian government’s definition of cannabis, which was limited to “dried marihuana plant material.” In challenging the legal definition, the Canadian Supreme Court eventually ruled that the current restriction to cannabis flower “unjustifiably violates the guarantee of life, liberty and security of the person.” This opened the door to expanding products available to patients to medicate with and allowed for the legal production and sale of cannabis oils, edibles, and tinctures for the first time.
Zach Walsh is an associate professor at the University of British Columbia’s Department of Psychology. He’s also one of the foremost clinical researchers of the effects of cannabis as a course of treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in Canada. As part of a clinical study funded by Canadian licensed producer, Tilray, 40 Canadian men and woman who meet the clinical criteria for PTSD will undergo medical cannabis treatment and, with any luck, result in proven scientific data on hoe medical marijuana can be beneficial for Canadians suffering from the disorder. [Editor's note: Tilray and Leafly are both owned by Privateer Holdings.]
Tania Jackett is the director of the Cannabis Growers of Canada. Her background is in clinical medicine, which has prepared her to interact in the cannabis world with compassion, as well as scientific authority. She is a proponent of including both small, artisanal cannabis farmers, in addition to larger commercial cannabis growing operations, with the belief that small, independent growers will be crucial for maintaining genetic diversity in medicinal cannabis strains.
No list of cannabis heroes would be complete without the Canada’s Prince and Princess of Pot. Marc Emery is a marijuana legalization activist, and he’s got the stripes to prove it. He spent four years in an American prison for selling seeds. Yes, seeds: The 2005 case caused international controversy, as seed-selling isn’t a crime in Canada and Emery wasn’t accused of selling in the United States. Nonetheless, Canada extradited him south of the border, where he spent four years of a five-year sentence behind bars.
Jodie Emery, who is married to Marc, is an equally well known and outspoken cannabist activist, having run for office and applied to participate in the recently announced task force for the legalization of cannabis in Canada. Jodie and Marc opened their latest venture, a Cannabis Culture store in Toronto, the day after Toronto police carried out their recent “Project Claudia” raids. In Toronto and Vancouver, the Emerys are openly allowing anyone 19 or older to purchase cannabis, with or without their medical marijuana authorization. The Emerys continue to pay the price — their Toronto location was raided last week — but Cannabis Culture outlets continue to operate in both cities, defiantly and openly breaking the rules — rules they believe are unjust and ripe for change.
While a band of anti-pot crusaders work to cripple the Colorado cannabis industry with a proposed ballot measure that would render most of the state’s recreational products illegal, a well-funded super group, of sorts, has emerged from out of nowhere to unleash a vi...
Washington state's Department of Agriculture says it has found traces of undisclosed pesticides in many of the marijuana-growing fertilizers and other products it tested recently.
