Page 1 - Cannabis New Florida Sept 2018

EMPOWERING Mindful
PEOPLE Medicinals -
Michael C. Sarasota’s Original
Minardi CBD Company
page 35
page 36

eXPO: Delivering Financial Services

in the Cannabis Space

BY DANIEL CASCIATO

Any cannabis business operating in a state where med-
ical or recreational marijuana is legal know firsthand
some of the operational hurdles it has to go through,
including working with banks and other financial institu-
tions. Think about the risks of having to deal with cash
in a highly profitable business, and even the challenges of
Brady Cobb
trying to pay employees, vendors and their taxes.
Alliance Financial Network Inc. recognized the prob- Irvin Rosenfeld
Canadian lem and came up with a solution. As a federally registered
financial institution committed to unbanked business
and consumers, the company developed a membership Irvin Rosenfeld
Biosciences Firm organization, eXPO, that performs compliance review on Larry Lipman
its members to enable its members to join the electronic currency economy. 'Wouldn't Be
Purchases “Banks that selectively preclude consumers and businesses from owning an account
generally are unable to perform necessary compliance and therefore turn them away,”
3 Boys Farms explains Larry Lipman, chief executive officer of eXPO. Alive' Without
As a result, eXPO created a non-fluctuating mobile currency where members exchange
their cash and other funds for one eXPO credit, which equals to $1.00, that moves elec- Medical
tronically and is backed by the U.S. equivalent of dollars in large tier one banks.
BY DANIEL CASCIATO “eXPO provides movement of currency in a compliant manner outside the banking sys-
tem in a private financial system utilizing existing anti money laundering protocol,” says Marijuana
Toronto-based Scythian Biosciences Lipman.
Corp. announced last month that it will
purchase Ruskin, Florida-based grower 3 Continued on page 40 BY LOIS THOMSON
Boys Farms, a U.S.D.A-certified organic
fruit and vegetable grower that received a Irvin Rosenfeld's story is amazing, and
medical marijuana license last year. Hemp & Heal Founder Focuses On he has told it thousands of times because
Scythian has initiatives and outreach he believes it's that important. Rosenfeld
throughout South and Central America Education Benefits of Full Spectrum has been receiving half a pound of mari-
and Europe, and this is its first foray into juana from the federal government every
the U.S. market. month since 1982, and says he wouldn't
“We’re purely medical-focused and Hemp Oil and The Entourage Effect be alive without it.
cultivation, processing and dispensing of Back in 1963, at age 10, Rosenfeld was
the highest quality medical cannabis diagnosed with a bone disorder called
products is truly in our DNA,” says BY BARBARA R. FALLON multiple hereditary exostoses, in which
Scythian director Brady Cobb. tumors grow outwardly from the long
The company hopes this recent acqui- Traditional medicine has worked modern miracles, bones of the body. He has had more than
sition will be the springboard to helping no doubt, but alternative therapies are often slow to be 200 tumors, growing into and stretching
to get some key changes regarding med- acknowledged and accepted, even when all customary the muscles and the veins, causing
ical cannabis on the federal level in the options have been exhausted. extreme pain. In fact, the condition is so
United States. That did not stop entrepreneur, Jonah Bolt, Founder painful that since the age of 10, Rosenfeld
“3 Boys Farms is well known through- of Hemp & Heal from growing his passion to bring use has had multiple operations and had been
out Florida as an organic grower and one of cannabis plant extracts to the table as a therapeutic taking a variety of narcotics and drugs to
of the top organic greenhouse growers in option. Cannabidiol (CBD full spectrum hemp oil) is a try to alleviate the pain, and assist with
the state,” says Cobb. “3 Boys has built non-intoxicating extract of the cannabis plant that sleeping, muscle tension, etc.
an amazing medical team and built an studies suggest has positive therapeutic impact on Because of the medications he was tak-
amazing, sustainable organic farm.” chronic disease, mood disorders, hormonal imbalance, ing, he was a strong advocate in high
3 Boys Farms’ existing facilities include neurological diseases, musculoskeletal issues; and, can Jonah Bolt school against illegal drugs. "This was the
a two-acre odor mitigation space that is provide symptomatic relief from pain, degenerative dis- late '60s and marijuana was becoming
run 100% with harvested rainwater, solar eases, and inflammation which result from a variety of diseases. prevalent at that time; but I couldn't
pumps and repurposed high-volume The personal experience that Bolt’s family and circle of friends had with the trauma understand why a healthy person would
chilled air from the cultivation green- of cancer triggered his exhaustive research into the benefits of cannabis use and even- use illegal drugs. I would speak at assem-
houses. Its innovations, including alter- tually the creation of Hemp & Heal, a pioneer in the hemp derived product market, blies where I would hold up my baggie
native energy use, greenhouse cooling based out of Boca Raton with major offices in North Carolina. with my prescriptions and say, 'Look at all
designs and rainwater harvesting, were In 2014, the U.S. Farm Bill opened the gateway for state level agricultural farm pro- the prescriptions I have to take. Be thank-
recognized and honored by the grams to ensure the legality of hemp use. Over the next three years several states - ful you're healthy, don't do illegal drugs."
Continued on page 39
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