Page 1 - Cannabis News Florida July 2022

CANNABIS BUSINESS

DIRECTORY

page 23

July 2022

2019 Cannabis Business Award’s Publication of the Year

Happy 710! Trulieve

Celebrates OIL Day

BY DANIEL CASCIATO

July 10th is a celebration of cannabis
concentrates. Cannabis concentrates con-
tain much more phytocannabinoids than
cannabis flower, making them a great
option for patients who have developed a
high tolerance for the heady effects of
cannabis. Jeff Greene
Brianna Bowes
According to Gina Collins, Vice
Cannabis President of Marketing at Trulieve, the Is the Hemp
largest cannabis company in Florida, leg-
end has it that this cannabis holiday
Spotlight: comes from turning the date 7/10 upside- Industry Dying?
down to spell “oil.” Some call it “Dab
Brianna Bowes Day,” a reference to the act of “dabbing” concentrates. You’ll also see it referred to sim-
Women’s Cannabis ply as “7/10.” BY JEFF GREENE
“No matter what you call it, July 10th is a day to raise awareness around these
Chamber of Commerce potent products and the difference between their many variants,” says Collins. Let me start by saying, I watched the
Trulieve patients can celebrate the 7/10 holiday with Muse, the company’s premium 2018 Farm Bill get passed in Congress
What benefits do you see for concentrate line. Extracted in its state-of-the-art lab with fresh frozen flower, Muse and signed by the President. I lobbied
patients throughout Florida provides a full-spectrum concentrate that is exceptionally flavorful and typically con- the Florida legislature to pass their hemp
within this space? tains higher levels of terpenes than other traditional concentrates. bills. I expected the industry to grow like
Compared to other adult-use and med- “We will be highlighting Muse and other concentrate products with promotions and a hockey stick, but I didn’t account for a
ical states, I’m happy to see Florida pro- Continued on page 26 pandemic, glass shortage, drivers and
vide comparatively strict yet clear guide- inflation.
lines for MMTCs from seed to sale to A crippling couple of bankruptcies
ensure consistency and quality for Cannabis in Sports Conference early in the industry’s development,
patients. GenCanna Global and United Cannabis,
Before recent advancements in the caused many farmers to follow into
medical marijuana space, we saw Come to Orlando bankruptcy. Farmers that were promised
patients forced to wait weeks to months $20 -$30 per pound and even got that for
to receive medication when their condi- BY CAROL NEWMAN a season or two ended up selling for $.50
tions were affecting their quality of life in to $1.00 per pound and many vowed to
the now. Other states limit access to In a recent column we took the time to highlight an never grow hemp again.
routes and potencies which will not only upcoming local conference: the Cannabis Clinical No, the industry is not dying, but it is
limit the potential benefits of cannabis, Outcomes Research Conference. At the conference, consolidating. Green Roads was bought
but continue to lead patients down a trail organizers took note that some participants only by Valens and Just CBD was acquired by
to pharmaceutical drugs that may very learned of the conference through this column. The Flora Grown, both publicly traded com-
well have negative consequences when conference was an overwhelming success and deliv- panies. Both were necessary for the com-
compared to cannabis. ered so much valuable information from local and panies to grow and thrive.
I am also happy to see a shift in respect national experts surrounding medical marijuana Hundreds of hemp companies have
for this alternative medication within the research. gone out of business, but almost as many,
medical community. I have been and Since the Summer tends to be “conference season” have started. The reality is that the plant
continue to be concerned with the lack and many are now getting more comfortable attend- is amazing. Now that the FDA is allow-
of knowledge or understanding medical ing in-person and live events, perhaps this is a good ing research; scientists will soon verify
professionals may possess or even have time to highlight another upcoming conference. The what the industry has been preaching.
access to with respect to recommending inaugural Cannabis in Sports Conference will take Dr. Jeff G. Konin That doesn’t stop the FDA from scold-
cannabis rather than prescribing some- place in Orlando at the Rosen Hotel from July 29-31, 2022. The conference organizers ing companies for making those claims
thing far more addictive and potentially are Gene and Dana Jones, who have successfully hosted the Florida Industrial Hemp prematurely. Early in the game, getting a
harmful in the long run. Conference and the Florida Medical Cannabis Conference & Exhibition over the past letter from the FDA was like a badge of
few years. honor, that you were fighting the big bad
What motivates you to be a The Cannabis in Sports Conference has been designed to foster education and net- government and consumers tended to
part of the cannabis Industry? working on the use of cannabis in sports in order to shed light on the proper use of rally around them. Lately, the opposite is
Beyond the potential health benefits cannabinoids as it relates to athletes. Conference-related topics include, but are not happening, industry long-timers have
cannabis is said to have, the possibility of navigated the waters of compliance and
Continued on page 24 Continued on page 25 Continued on page 27