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Small Cannabis Entrepreneurs Say They Can’t Compete Against ‘Walmart of Weed’

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Many small cannabis entrepreneurs say large companies are jockeying to lock them out of the industry and have funding that gives them more access to lawmakers.

“Small businesses are the backbone of the country,” said Sarah Grant, general manager of The Dispensary in Richmond.

The shop opened last year and sells Delta-8-THC flower and vape cartridges. 

“It’s hard to compete if you’re going against the Walmart of weed,” Grant said. 

Grant said the lack of structure in the recreational cannabis market is stressful for smaller businesses and that her store could never compete with lobbyists from national cannabis corporations. 

New lobbying clients, special interest groups and investors have entered the arena in the past four years as Virginia lawmakers grappled with medical and recreational cannabis legislation. State lawmakers decriminalized simple possession of cannabis in 2021 with initial plans to legalize recreational cannabis by 2024 — though that floundered in this year’s session. Potential sellers were left in limbo and parts of the legislation needed to be reenacted or passed again the next year before becoming law. 

The market currently favors the four companies licensed to serve five health districts in Virginia. The Northwest health district does not currently have a licensed company. Only state licensed companies can open medical cannabis dispensaries in their district. 

Some of those companies have merged to expand their business and have the cash to inject into Virginia politics. 

Stephen Farnsworth is a political science professor at the University of Mary Washington and director of the school’s Center for Leadership and Media Studies.

“The recreational marijuana industry is the wild, wild West right now,” Farnsworth said. 

The Dispensary employee measuring flowers in Richmond, Virginia. By Josephine Walker.

The state’s commercial cannabis market could yield between $30 million to $60 million in tax revenue in the first year, according to a 2020 report by the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission, the state’s legislative watchdog agency. JLARC estimated that by the fifth year, commercial cannabis sales could generate between $154 million to $308 million in tax revenue.

Virginia’s illicit recreational cannabis market is estimated to be the No. 4 in the nation, according to the 2020 U.S. Cannabis Report. Virginia’s market generated roughly $1.8 billion of America’s estimated $60 billion in total illegal cannabis sales in 2020. 

A burgeoning industry always has numerous wealthy interests competing for the best position in the field, Farnsworth said. 

“From the point of view of an elected official, that means there are a lot of people who want to influence you,” Farnsworth said.

High stakes to get into the business

Sen. Adam Ebbin, D-Alexandria, sponsored a bill to establish a recreational cannabis market through a handful of medical dispensaries that already operate in the state, and large-scale industrial hemp processors. The measure was an attempt to reenact legislation passed last year and accelerate the creation of the recreational cannabis market. 

The currently licensed medical cannabis dispensaries each paid $70,000 total in permit fees for their medical facilities to become operational. The annual renewal fee is $10,000. The dispensaries would have paid $6 million to hold another license to open recreational retail stores and hemp growers would pay half a million dollars each, under Ebbin’s amended bill. Lawmakers were unable to agree on several conditions of the bill, choosing instead to carry it over to the 2023 legislative session.

Jason Amatucci is president of the Virginia Industrial Hemp Coalition, a group that wants to establish robust hemp-centered agricultural and manufacturing industries in the commonwealth. Amatucci pointed to California’s thriving hemp industry. California produced almost 4 million square feet of hemp grown in protected areas in 2021 — about double the production amount of the next largest state, Colorado, according to the ​​U.S. Department of Agriculture. California has a $4 billion annual market, according to Forbes business magazine, though the majority is medical and recreational cannabis sales. 

Amatucci said he didn’t want to see pharmaceutical companies gain a foothold in the recreational market before small businesses could. 

“The government wants to protect Big Pharma,” Amatucci said, referring to the retail purchasing power of national medical marijuana companies and the donations made to legislators. “Follow the money on this, because it’s all in plain view for everyone to see.”

The Dispensary sells CBD cartridges and flowers in Richmond, Virginia. By Josephine Walker.

Medical cannabis monopolies

The only way to legally purchase cannabis with over .3% THC is by going to a practitioner licensed by the Virginia Board of Pharmacy. The practitioners issue a written certification that the patient suffers from an ailment and would benefit from the use of medical cannabis. Approved patients then apply to the board to get their official card. The General Assembly recently passed a bill that, starting in July, allows patients to bypass the Board of Pharmacy application and take the referral to the dispensary.

Virginia’s licensed medical cannabis companies can grow cannabis at their processing facility and sell it through their dispensaries. There are currently 11 medical cannabis dispensaries open throughout the state, according to cannabis legalization advocacy group Virginia NORML. Each licensee is allowed to operate one dispensary for growing and processing cannabis, and up to five satellite locations for retail.

The four operators licensed to serve Virginia are:

  • Dalitso, which also goes by Beyond / Hello, for the Northern health district. 
  • Dharma Pharmaceuticals, which also goes by RISE, in the Southwest health district.
  • Green Leaf Medical in the Central health district.
  • Columbia Care in the Eastern health district.

Green Leaf Medical, headquartered in Richmond, was acquired by Columbia Care in 2021. 

Cresco Labs, a Chicago-based medical cannabis giant, announced plans to acquire Columbia Care in late March for $2 billion, but the deal has not closed yet. 

Florida-based Jushi Holdings, which operates in five other states, acquired the Virginia-based Dalitso in 2021 for approximately $22 million. 

Dharma Pharmaceuticals was acquired in 2021 by Chicago-based Green Thumb Industries, which operates in 13 other markets, according to the Bristol Herald Courier.

The state’s four licensed pharmaceutical processing firms now fall under the ownership of three out-of-state companies valued at hundreds of millions and traded on the stock market.

The Dispensary Manager Sarah Grant and an employee measuring flowers in Richmond, Virginia. By Josephine Walker.

Cannabis lobbyists

The merger of Cresco Labs and Columbia Care could make them the second-largest retailer in the country and the largest retailer outside of Florida if the company hits its forecasted revenue, according to a joint press release. They would have 130 retail shops in eight states, the company stated. The company estimated it could make over $100 million annually.

Cannabis money has made its way into campaign donations. The licensed operators donated between 2021-2022 a combined amount close to $160,000 to Democrats and just over $100,000 to Republicans, according to the Virginia Public Access Project, a nonprofit that tracks campaign finance reports.

Jushi donated the most with $117,000 total. Dalitso, now owned by Jushi, contributed $30,000. The other operators donated total amounts between approximately $21,000 and $50,000. Then there are other donations from testing labs and individuals involved in the industry. 

The amounts don’t rival the hundreds of thousands of dollars, or even millions, that other political special interest groups have spent. But the cannabis industry is new and smaller business owners who thought last year they would have a clearer path to the market are worried.

“At a minimum, a campaign donation is going to buy you an opportunity to be heard,” Farnsworth said. 

Donations don’t guarantee a lawmaker will support legislation favorable to a lobbying firm, but money can buy access, Farnsworth said.

Del. Dawn Adams, D-Richmond, is the only nurse practitioner in the House of Delegates, according to VPAP. Adams is registered with the state to refer patients for medical cannabis. Adams owns RVA Telecare, where a consultation for a medical cannabis card costs $155.

Adams has sponsored several pieces of legislation on cannabis reform. She provided testimony in favor of the now-dead bill introduced by Sen. Emmett Hanger, R-Augusta, which many hemp advocates said would limit their products and instead favor the medical cannabis industry. The bill also aimed to eliminate access to synthetic Delta-8 products.

Adams declined interview requests to discuss the revenue she makes from issuing medical cannabis referrals. Adams did not respond to a follow-up phone call and email to comment if she feels there is any conflict of interest between her two roles as a lawmaker and her medical cannabis referral practice. 

State code defines conflict of interest for lawmakers. A legislator with a personal interest should disqualify themselves from voting on measures, according to state code. They can participate in discussions if any potential interest is disclosed. Personal interest can exist when a lawmaker has a personal interest in a business or provides a service related to the proposed measure, according to state code. 

Adams listed her Integrated Health Consulting business earlier this year as an economic interest with the state’s Ethics Advisory Council. RVA Telecare is listed twice with the State Corporation Commission, once under Integrated Health, and once as its own entity. The company is not listed as a potential conflict of interest with the council.

The lawmaker voted on a bill that allows a patient to bypass obtaining a medical cannabis card from the Board of Pharmacy after getting a referral from a medical provider, which her office could do. She later was recorded as “present but not voting” on an identical Senate bill. The lawmaker did not excuse herself from voting in support of Hanger’s bill. 

The delegate spoke before the final House vote on Hanger’s bill, and said that she has no financial interest in her support of the legislation. 

“All I can tell you is that I spend a lot of time reading, studying,” Adams said. “I have no financial stake in anything … this is a public safety issue.”

Adams wanted the market to be safer and more regulated, she said in testimony. 

Cannabis advocates said Hanger’s bill would push people toward the medical cannabis industry, which Adams is a part of, while eliminating access to certain hemp produced, low-THC CBD products. 

“They can position themselves so that the medical monopoly is the only ones that can sell these products,” Amatucci said. “What we have now, with this medical monopoly system is worst product, worst prices.”

Social equity licenses

Luke Greer is the owner of the Northern Virginia Hemp Co. and has operated in Virginia since industrial hemp farming was legalized.

“I don’t mean to villainize large money interests,” Greer said. “But I don’t feel that they should prioritize that over the small businesses that have been operating in the space prior.”

Colorado’s Department of Revenue issues licenses to recreational cannabis retailers for approximately $7,500 per license and application fees. California’s Department of Cannabis Control issues licenses on a ranked revenue system capped at $96,000 for a retailer making more than $7.5 million. Applicants negatively affected by the criminalization of cannabis can apply in California to have the fee waived.

Virginia lawmakers have also disagreed on how and whether to make the recreational market more accessible to people who have been operating in it prior to decriminalization, or what cannabis reform advocates call the legacy market. 

Del. Charniele Herring, D-Alexandria, introduced the 2021 House bill that legalized simple possession of cannabis and established the initial outline for a recreational market. The bill included social equity provisions intended to keep already existing processors from squeezing out smaller entrepreneurs. It also confronted decades of disproportionate policing for cannabis crimes. 

Lawmakers disagreed on the number of licenses allocated to social equity applicants and how much these sellers should pay for licensing. 

Legislators killed a bill proposed by Del. Danny Marshall, R-Danville, which required licensed industrial hemp sellers wanting to have an additional license, for example, to sell recreational cannabis, to pay a $1 million fee to the Board of Pharmacy and be a long-time resident or business owner in an economically disadvantaged area. 

Grant said these fees are inaccessible to small business owners, especially if they have already been financially impacted by the legal system. 

“People have been in this business their whole life, just in the illicit market,” Grant said. “Those folks should definitely have an opportunity to get into this legally.”

Amber Littlejohn is executive director of the Minority Cannabis Business Association, a group that wants Virginia to establish a legal market that is favorable to minorities targeted by the war on drugs. 

“When we make the investment in social equity programs, we are going to get that back,” Littlejohn said.

Supernova Women is an advocacy group run by women of color who want to lower barriers of entry and build sustainability in the cannabis industry. A Supernova Women study this year found for every dollar invested in a social cannabis equity program, there is a $1.20 return. 

“Even if people are not compelled by the moral imperative, there is actually economic and broader social reasons to do it,” Littlejohn said. 

She was hopeful that her groups’ demands for inclusion in the industry would be met but said that it would be an uphill battle.

Michael Carter Jr. is an 11th-generation farmer whose family owns Carter Farms in Orange County. Carter said social equity programs won’t solve the damage done to communities of color but recognizing the past by opening access to licensing could be a start. 

“We had the opportunity to make up the deficit when it comes to opportunities like this,” Carter said. “But many farmers and many African Americans realize that we’re not gonna get that opportunity.”

Written by Josephine Walker, Capital News Service. Top Photo: The Dispensary employee measures product for sale at the Richmond-based location. Photo by Josephine Walker.

Legalize It: Several Bills Introduced In General Assembly Would Decriminalize Cannabis

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Lawmakers are divided on timelines, and the extent to which Virginia should move toward outright legalization, but one thing seems clear: marijuana reform is on the agenda at the General Assembly.

With Democrats controlling both chambers of the General Assembly and the governor’s office for the first time in over 25 years, lawmakers have introduced numerous bills in the current session in an effort to decriminalize and legalize marijuana.  

Right now, Virginia permits the use of CBD oil for medical use, and is one of 24 states who have not decriminalized cannabis. There are 12 states in the U.S. who have fully legalized the sale and use of marijuana. 

Possession of marijuana is a Class I misdemeanor in the Commonwealth, while subsequent offenses are punishable by a maximum amount of 12 months in jail or a fine up to $2,500. Selling over half-an-ounce of marijuana is punishable by a minimum of one year in prison. 

“You see prosecutors in Virginia saying they’re no longer going to prosecute [marijuana] crimes — [charges] disproportionately target people of color and there are more serious crimes that prosecutors should be prosecuting,” said Del. Charniele Herring, D-Alexandria. 

Del. Charniele Herring. Photo via Facebook.

Some bills introduced reduce the penalties for marijuana possession, rather than legalizing the sales of it in stores and dispensaries. House Bill 265 decreases the maximum fine of marijuana possession from $500 to $25, turns the possession of marijuana from a criminal offense to a civil penalty, and gives no criminal charge for possession of less than a half-ounce of marijuana.

Advocates of such legislation believe there needs to be a more gradual process, beginning with decriminalizing before fully legalizing. 

“I think there should be a study before legalization, because there are a lot of implications,” said Herring. “We have to think about how we want to regulate marijuana, the oils that are already causing health issues, and think about how this is all going to work together.” 

Other legislation is advancing a fully legal system of cannabis sales. House Bill 87, put forward by Del. Lee Carter, D-Manassas, creates a regulated system for marijuana cultivation facilities, marijuana manufacturing facilities, marijuana testing facilities, and retail marijuana stores by the Board of Agriculture and Consumer Services. 

“If you simply legalize it and don’t create a system of legal sale, then organized crime will often step into that void, and it’s hard to get them out,” said Del. Nancy Guy, D-Virginia Beach. “Regulation and taxation would also create a revenue stream for the state.”

“Decriminalization does nothing to address the disparate enforcement of marijuana laws, nor does it provide for public and consumer safety or prevent youth access,” said Jenn Michelle Pedini, executive director at Virginia NORML. “Legalization reflects the reality that cannabis is already here, and provides lawmakers the opportunity to govern its use and sale accordingly.”

Members of Virginia NORML meet with Rep. Abigail Spanberger in September 2019. Photo via Facebook.

Virginia spent $81.2 million in 2016 enforcing marijuana laws, while marijuana related arrests reached an all-time high in 2018 with almost 29,000. A recent poll by Christopher Newport University found that 83 percent of Virginians support decriminalizing possession of small amounts of marijuana.

Governor Northam signed a medical marijuana bill in 2018, permitting the supply of CBD oil or THC-A oil to treat symptoms of any diagnosed condition or disease determined by the practitioner. However, legislation to legalize cannabis use for those 21 or older was struck down by the House Courts of Justice Committee last year. With the Democrats taking power in the General Assembly, though, some legislators believe that the time for passage of such laws has arrived.

“Members of the General Assembly have unsuccessfully attempted for several years to introduce measures to decriminalize the simple possession of marijuana,” said Del. Steve Heretick, D-Portsmouth. “This year, such efforts are likely to finally find success.”

Top Photo by Add Weed on Unsplash.

Virginia’s Legal Landscape Shifts As Support For Cannabis Grows

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With cannabis decriminalization, cultivation, and legalization at the forefront of political conversations in Virginia, farmers and legislators are grappling with a changing legal and cultural landscape.

“We do grams, eighths, quarters, half ounces, pounds, wholesale pounds — however you want it,” Jacob Stretch said, standing between crates of dried hemp in his living room that doubles as his hemp processing and drying facility. Stretch, owner of Chesapeake Blue, just finished his first season growing industrial hemp as a registered grower and processor on his family’s farm.

Industrial hemp is poised to be a fast growing sector of agriculture in Virginia. Hemp advocacy group Vote Hemp estimates 2017 retail sales of hemp products neared $820 million nationally and will continue to grow. 

Hemp is a versatile material that can be used in foods and beverages, personal care products, nutritional supplements, fabrics and textiles, paper, construction materials and other manufactured goods, according to a report from the Congressional Research Service.

In an October press release, Gov. Ralph Northam announced Virginia’s first commercial industrial hemp fiber processing facility. Appalachian Biomass Processing, in Wytheville, will create 13 new jobs and purchase more than 6,000 tons of Virginia-grown industrial hemp over the next three years, at a value of more than $1 million, the governor stated.

“I am committed to pursuing every path that will attract economic prosperity to our rural communities, and hemp production opens up a wealth of opportunity to bring new jobs and new business to Virginia,” Northam wrote.

The processor will mainly create hemp hurd, a woody fiber extracted from the plant stalk to be used for animal bedding. Hurd can also be used to make industrial items such as hemp-based concrete and hemp-derived plastics.

In 2018, when hemp could only be grown for research purposes in Virginia, there were 135 acres of hemp planted and about 85 registered growers, according to Erin Williams, senior policy analyst with the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. As of Nov. 15, VDACS had registered 1,183 industrial hemp growers, 262 processors and 117 dealers, Williams said. Nearly 2,200 acres of hemp were planted in Virginia this year. The economic impact of industrial hemp in the state has yet to be determined, Williams said. The harvest season has just finished and crops are being sold to processors. 

“So we should know soon what this past growing season’s impact will be,” Williams said. “We’re going to conduct a grower survey towards the end of the year and hopefully have some data at the beginning of next year.”

When the 2018 federal Farm Bill went into effect, industrial hemp was listed as an agricultural commodity and removed as a controlled substance under the Controlled Substances Act. It is now placed under United States Department of Agriculture regulation. The bill also allowed state agriculture departments to submit plans for the regulation of hemp cultivation to the USDA. 

Jacob Stretch showing his industrial hemp leaves in storage after being dried. Field Station Farm. Friday, Nov. 22, 2019. (CNS photo by Morgan Edwards)

VDACS expects to submit its state hemp production plan to the USDA before the end of the year, according to its website. It is likely there will not be major issues with the plan, according to Tyson Daniel, a trial lawyer and founder of Virginia Hemp Lawyers, a law firm specializing in the hemp and cannabis business.

On the VDACS website, there is a list of applications and guidelines for the industrial hemp grower registration, industrial hemp processor registration, and industrial hemp dealer registration. Each registration costs $50 annually, and one person can have all three registrations.

“It will be interesting to see if it stays at that rate,” Daniel said. “Compared to some other states, it is a very reasonable rate.”

An industrial hemp grower registration in Maryland costs $250. In North Carolina there is a $250 initial fee with an annual fee of $250 for less than 50 acres or $500 for more than 50 acres. Additionally, growers must pay $2 per acre of hemp or $2 per 1,000 square feet in a greenhouse of hemp.

Stretch, who is also a registered processor, said he was approved for his grower registration in around 40 days. Jacob Williamson, owner of Hens and Hemp, said he is registered as a grower and is on his way to becoming a registered processor. Williamson said having both permits is worthwhile because of their low cost and the extra level of protection it provides — since growing and then drying, trimming, and packing hemp could be considered processing. Williamson, like many other small farmers, mainly grows hemp to be sold as CBD products. 

Jacob Stretch smoking his CBD flower. Friday, Nov. 22, 2019. (CNS photo by Morgan Edwards)

Defining the difference between hemp, marijuana, and CBD

In its infancy, the Virginia hemp industry is not without issues — namely in defining the difference between legal industrial hemp and illegal marijuana. There is also general confusion surrounding hemp and hemp products derived from the cannabis plant, namely CBD. CBD is considered non-intoxicating and touted to have multiple medical benefits. It is sold in a variety of ingestible and topical products, and also in flower form that looks identical to marijuana. 

Daniel explained the distinction between legal cannabis derived products and marijuana.

“If you are going to draw a diagram, put cannabis at the top, hemp on one side, marijuana on the other,” Daniel said. “They are both the cannabis plant, it’s just the level of Delta-9 that is different.” Delta-9 is the THC molecule associated with intoxication or “getting high.” It is commonly referred to as THC instead of Delta-9 THC.

The non psychoactive version of THC is THC-A; it does not produce a high. The molecule is considered the precursor to THC, and once heat is applied THC-A is converted into THC, say through the use of a vaporizer. 

The combined amount of THC-A and THC present in hemp is referred to as total, whole, or max THC.

Legally, when hemp reaches a THC concentration of more than 0.3 percent on a dry weight basis, it is classified as marijuana. According to the VDACS industrial hemp registration guide, anything grown above the 0.3 percent limit will be destroyed, in accordance with Virginia code.

Growers contest how the hemp is tested to determine that 0.3 percent, and its validity as an indicator of whether or not hemp has crossed into being marijuana. Daniel said the biggest issue right now has to do with testing; whether it is strictly THC or combined THC and THC-A.

The mother cannabis plant Jacob Williamson got his industrial hemp clones from during his first growing season. Hens and Hemp. Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2019. (CNS Photo by Morgan Edwards)

Williamson said one passage of the USDA guidelines sounds like it’s talking about THC, and another passage says whole THC, which would include both.

“That’s why everyone freaked out about the USDA guidelines,” he said. “All the sudden it was total THC that was 0.3 percent.”

CEO and founder of East Coast Cannalytics Rebecca Hobden said the VDACS testing method for appropriate levels is to heat up the hemp. It then goes through a heating process which converts THC-A into THC. So if a crop has combined THC-A and THC, the testing process will increase the actual THC, potentially raising it over the acceptable levels allowed.

Williamson harvested his hemp plants at 13 percent CBD and 0.1 percent THC. “I probably pulled them a little early because I was nervous, but that’s fine — 13 percent is plenty,” he said. 

Hobden explained that as THC levels increase in a plant, CBD levels increase. She said farmers will try to get as close to the allowed 0.3 percent THC limit as they can to raise CBD levels. Hobden said hemp with CBD levels closer to 20 percent is more desirable for farmers, as it has a higher market value. 

Stretch said the 0.3 percent limit is arbitrary and could be a colossal loss for farmers.

“The number 0.3 percent was put on there by who, you know? Who decided 0.3 percent was the right number?”

“I’ve heard more experienced growers talk about how it can creep up in the flower period, and then at a certain point, it will go back down,” Stretch said. “So if you harvested at the wrong time, you run a higher risk of being hot.” 

Jacob Williamson showing the mother cannabis plant he got his industrial hemp clones from during his first growing season. Hens and Hemp. Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2019. (CNS Photo by Morgan Edwards)

The limit needs to be raised from 0.3 percent, according to Rebecca Caffrey, founder and chief scientific officer of Delta-9 Scientific, a cannabis testing lab based outside of Richmond.

“There’s no functional difference between something that’s 0.3 percent THC and something that’s 1 percent THC,” she said. “Neither one of them is going to get you high, no matter how hard you try.”

Caffrey said she has tested thousands of hemp samples for “honest” farmers. “They are spending beaucoup money on hemp seeds and hemp clones, and you know, then it comes back and it’s like 0.57 percent [THC],” she said. Caffrey believes farmers should not be penalized for that.

Williamson said he didn’t think VDACS tested many hemp farmers to see if their hemp was “hot,” meaning above the 0.3 percent limit.

“I guess they originally wrote the law because they thought people were going to pretend to grow hemp and then grow real bud … I thought there would be more of that, but I don’t see anybody doing that,” he said. 

VDACS used random testing to track THC levels. Hobden and Caffrey believe VDACS did not test many farmers. 

“I was in a meeting of probably about 40 farmers and asked how many people actually got tested, and one person raised their hand,” Hobden said. 

Jacob Williamson’ hens and the source of his compost. Hens and Hemp. Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2019. (CNS Photo by Morgan Edwards)

Hemp and CBD products in the marketplace

The General Assembly this year approved a bill that allows CBD and THC oil with up to 10 milligrams of THC to be legally sold, with a doctor’s recommendation, through an approved state pharmacy. THC above 0.3 percent is federally illegal and CBD of any level is legal. 

However, the Food and Drug Administration does not allow CBD to be marketed as a dietary supplement, or to be advertised as having medical benefits. The FDA has only approved one CBD product, for epilepsy. The agency recently issued a consumer update, noting that “there are many unanswered questions about the science, safety, and quality of products containing CBD.”

Mike Betts, owner of the online hemp and CBD store Red Beard Alternatives, believes CBD offers relief from anxiety, depression, and symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.

Betts is a retired Marine Corps veteran who for years battled to treat physical and mental wounds sustained while serving. Betts said he turned to hemp and CBD after finding no relief in prescribed medications and self-medicating. He uses hemp products and grows his own hemp plants as a form of therapy in itself. He said nurturing them from a tiny seed has given him something to look forward to, and it is something he wants to share with fellow veterans.

Rebecca Caffrey demonstrating the “espresso” like consistency she gets industrial hemp to before testing. Delta9 Scientific. Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2019. (CNS photo by Morgan Edwards)

 He said the purpose of Red Beard Alternatives is to provide veterans access to alternative forms of therapy; the proceeds from his online market help fund alternative therapies for veterans. 

“Whether we give them a greenhouse or a gym membership… in order to fund that mission, we’ve created an online farmers market where other hemp farmers can showcase their products and sell them to consumers,” Betts said.

However, he said is not allowed to advertise his products due to legal restrictions and a wariness from various social media sites in advertising products that closely resemble marijuana. He said many consumers are unfamiliar with hemp, and often confuse it with marijuana. Betts sees the next step in expanding his business centered on product education.

Alongside growers Williamson and Stretch, Betts hopes to see more defined regulations and loosened restrictions for growing and selling hemp and CBD products. Daniel said the easiest and fastest way for this to be accomplished would be through legislation in the General Assembly. 

Rebecca Caffrey holding an industrial hemp sample in the middle of the testing process. Delta9 Scientific. Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2019. (CNS photo by Morgan Edwards)

Legal landscape rapidly shifting as cannabis support grows 

Del. Steve Heretick, D-Portsmouth, said he has encountered a groundswell of support for changing state law.

“Over 80 percent of all Virginians, regardless of political stripe, advocate or support the decriminalization of simple possession,” Heretick said. “You can’t get 80 percent of the people in Virginia to agree on anything, but they agree on that much.”

The statistic Heretick quoted refers to a September University of Mary Washington study. The poll noted that 80 percent of Virginians 25 and under support legalization, not all Virginians. However, 61 percent of all Virginians are in favor of legalization, according to the poll.

Heretick said he plans to form a “cannabis caucus” — the second state caucus of its kind in the country — “to put all of the stakeholders at the same table.” He believes the caucus will foster productive conversations on how to move the hemp industry forward and how to eventually legalize adult marijuana use in the state.

“I think in creating the cannabis caucus, we’re trying to create an organization that we can invite all the stakeholders to participate in,” Heretick said. “Not only members of the legislature, but members of the farming community, the community that would do distribution advertising and dispensing.”

A variety of industrial hemp samples in the middle of the testing process. Delta9 Scientific. Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2019. (CNS photo by Morgan Edwards)

Heretick sees decriminalization of simple possession as the first step on the journey to legalization and is confident that the General Assembly will pass Senate Bill 2 or a similar bill on the issue in 2020. SB2 specifically calls for the decriminalization of simple possession of marijuana, turning the offense into a civil penalty with a fine of no more than $50 attached. Heretick said he and his colleagues want to make sure that legalization in Virginia is thoughtfully enacted.

“I really don’t think that legislatively we’re doing anybody any favors by legalizing marijuana and then having nothing in place to do that effectively,” Heretick said. “We’re trying to avoid the obvious problems that have plagued other states that have beat us to the punch in terms of legalization.”

Daniel explained the differences between decriminalization and full legalization. He said the short answer is that decriminalization means it is no longer being prosecuted.

What separates decriminalization from legalization is that legalization provides a mechanism for marijuana to be brought to market, according to Daniel. “But we haven’t set up a mechanism for it to go to retail sale,” Daniel said. Regardless, he believes people would work around this.

The gifting system in Washington D.C. is an example of creative solutions when marijuana is legalized, but no system is established to regulate the buying and selling of it. People can purchase a shirt, sticker, or even cookies, all of which come with a free gift of marijuana. 

“This is a civics lesson,” Daniel said. “We don’t need permission in our country to do something. We act under the premise that unless it’s prohibited specifically by law, then we can do what we want to do.”

A display of the products sold on the Richmond based online farmers market, Red Beard Alternatives. Sunday, Dec. 1, 2019. (CNS Photo by Morgan Edwards)

Hemp Becoming Less of a Partisan Issue

“I don’t think that it’s so much a partisan issue,” Daniel said. “Frankly, I think both sides of the aisle see it as an enormous revenue producer and a gigantic cost saver, in terms of the amount of money that’s spent on the prosecution and enforcement of marijuana laws.”

Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring expressed his support for decriminalizing cannabis in an op-ed for the Daily Press in June, writing that criminalizing minor marijuana possession has major “human and social costs,” which disproportionately affect minorities and people of color.

“That is why Virginia should decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana, address past convictions, and start moving toward legal and regulated adult use,” Herring wrote.

In a November interview with Capital News Service, Herring said that while he acknowledges the economic benefits of legalization, he is more concerned about the criminal justice aspects of the state ban on legal marijuana. 

“Virginia is moving in the wrong direction,” Herring said. “We have 29,500 Virginians who were arrested for marijuana possession in 2017. That is a huge number, and it is not working.”

CNS Reporter Jeff Raines interviewing employees of Kultivate Wellness. Kultivate Wellness. Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2019. (CNS Photo by Morgan Edwards)

Herring stated in his op-ed that citizens arrested for marijuana possession could “still be stuck with a criminal record, lose their job, student aid, certain public benefits including housing assistance, and it can even affect custody rights.”

Jenn Michelle Pedini, executive director for the nonprofit Virginia National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, said the 2020 General Assembly session could be incredibly consequential for the future of the cannabis industry in the commonwealth and feels that “several very historic” bills could be passed.

NORML has worked since the 1970s to legalize non-medical marijuana in the U.S. and advocates for responsible, adult cannabis use without penalty.

“Last year, we became the fourth state in the nation to allow school medical professionals to administer medical cannabis to registered kids,” Pedini. “We really are doing big things in Virginia — it just largely goes unnoticed.”

Back on the farming side, Williamson and Stretch are finishing what they consider to be a successful first harvest. This winter will be used to strategize how they can improve their operations and accommodate more plants. Williamson said that smaller farmers like themselves are working cooperatively to purchase wholesale seeds and streamline operations. Williams said VDACS expects Virginia hemp to grow in acreage as growers ramp up their operations in the spring. 

Written by Jeff Raines and Morgan Edwards, Capital News Service. Christopher Brown contributed to this report. Top Photo: Jacob Stretch showing his industrial hemp flower. Field Station Farm. Friday, Nov. 22, 2019. (CNS photo by Morgan Edwards)

Why Is It Still So Hard To Legalize Marijuana?

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Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring has asked that question in public lately, and it’s one that all of our lawmakers should be considering.

Weed isn’t a big deal. The military is treating PTSD with ecstacy. The legal right to grow weed has existed in our nation’s capital for years. The city of Denver has medical mushrooms, while the state of Colorado has earned over $1 billion from pot sales.

The passage of the 2018 Farm Bill in December clears CBD to hit its projection as a $22 billion industry by 2022, despite the FDA dragging their feet. Cannabis may remain illegal at the federal level, but the majority of the country currently utilizes weed for medicinal purposes. Even as the war on drugs is waged by our executive leadership, a multi-billion dollar pot market continues to steamroll across the country, with Illinois becoming the 11th state to legalize recreational use. 

America’s political machine has moved on; presidential debates revolve around fresh topics, like immigration, gun control, and climate change. In the most recent Democratic debate, cannabis wasn’t even discussed, as legalization was approved all-but-unanimously by 21 of 22 candidates — the exception being our Uncle-in-Chief, Joe Biden. 

Today, you can not only smoke weed: you can drink it, drop it in your eye, have sex with it, prepare entire meals with it, open restaurants based on it, tax it for college funds, and make an honest career of growing it. And far more people use it than you might expect — even Jesus dabbled in some cannabis oil. 

Campaigns for legalization have been backed by a myriad of findings that, under safe administration, show the medicinal benefits outweigh the risks of cannabis use. Gateway-drug theories and communist sympathies once tied to the drug have been debunked. Cannabis legalization has also been shown to reverse rates of opioid abuse and deaths.

Save societies’ religious zealots and frothing teabaggers, people don’t really have any issues with weed. So why isn’t it legal here in Virginia yet?

Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring was the latest to ask that very question, in an Op-Ed published by the Daily Press. 

“Criminalizing minor marijuana possession is just not working. It is needlessly creating criminals. It is costing us a lot of money — the social cost is enormous, and there are disparities in enforcement you reported,” Herring wrote. “Virginia should decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana, address past convictions, and start moving toward legal and regulated adult use.”

While Herring’s opinion revitalized the topic of cannabis reform, he isn’t the first state official to speak up in recent months. Gov. Ralph Northam suggested decriminalization of simple possession during his State of the Commonwealth speech in January.

“We want to keep people safe,” Northam said. “But we shouldn’t use valuable law enforcement time, or costly prison space, on laws that don’t enhance public safety.” 

“Current law imposes a maximum 30 days in jail for a first offense of marijuana possession. Making simple possession a civil penalty will ease overcrowding in our jails and prisons, and free up our law enforcement and court resources for offenses that are a true threat to public safety.”

And before Northam’s speech, many Virginia judges publicly refused to jail first offenders for misdemeanor cases of marijuana possession. In a letter sent on January 3, Greg Underwood, the Commonwealth’s Attorney for the City of Norfolk, informed judges, law enforcement, and public safety officials that he won’t prosecute misdemeanor marijuana charges. He also stated that his office would support the release of defendants on bail in more misdemeanor and felony cases. Portsmouth’s Commonwealth Attorney Stephanie Morales rolled out a similar policy.

“The Office will cease prosecuting all misdemeanor marijuana possession cases and will move to nolle prosequi or dismiss such cases that fall within our purview,” read the memorandum published by Underwood.

Underwood cited an annual report that showed about 80 percent of first-offense marijuana possession arrests in Norfolk were African Americans in 2016 and 2017, despite the city’s population being 43 percent African American.

Federally, marijuana remains a Schedule I drug. The DEA still pairs it with LSD and heroin in its potential for abuse, with no federally recognized medical benefits, despite national polls showing significant public support for its legalization. Even CBD is hampered by the FDA, an organization infamous for approving controversial drugs like Zoloft and Dsuvia with little to no clinical testing.

And it isn’t much better here in Virginia. In 2015, the state general assembly passed a special case usage of non-psychoactive marijuana oils to treat intractable epilepsy — making us the 46th state to pass any form of cannabis legislation. The Commonwealth also allows prescribed marijuana and THC, but only for alleviating effects of chemo treatment in cases of cancer and glaucoma. 

Aside from that, all other cannabis legislation — six bills thus far, under the recommendation of law enforcement, Governor Northam and researchers alike — have died in committee.

“It’s not the governor, it’s not the bill sponsor themselves,” Virginia NORML (National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws) Executive Director Jenn Michelle Pedini told RVA Magazine. “It really comes down to the Senate Courts of Justice Committee and the House Courts of Justice Committee. That’s where marijuana reform goes to die.”

Just this past January, the Virginia House’s Courts of Justice defeated HB 2317 in a 5-3 vote, a bill that proposed legalizing cannabis for those over 21, decriminalizing simple possession of cannabis and reducing maximum jail time for those underage. The Virginia state Senate’s Courts of Justice also defeated SB 997, a similar measure proposed by Sen. Adam Ebbin. A first offense for simple possession of marijuana (under 14 grams) remains a Class 1 misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of up to $500 and jail time of up to 30 days. 

“I will continue to fight for Virginians of all walks of life, from all political backgrounds, who believe as I do, that marijuana prohibition has been a failure,” said Sen. Stephen Heretick (D-Portsmouth), who proposed the bill. “From the bottom of my heart, I thank you for your support and for standing with me.”

Many argue that jail time served on marijuana charges is a financial waste disproportionately affecting African Americans. According to a report by the Virginia Crime Commission, African Americans constitute a majority of small possession cases, despite the fact that only 20 percent of Virginia residents are black.  

The report also stated that a first-time marijuana offender with court-appointed counsel can “expect to pay approximately $400 to $800 in costs and fees depending on the type of probation ordered.”

“Studies show that blacks and whites use marijuana at about the same rate,” said American Civil Liberties Union-Virginia executive director Claire Guthrie Gastañaga. A 2017 ACLU report concluded black Americans are 3.73 times more likely than whites to be arrested for marijuana possession.

“It is not surprising that the War on Marijuana, waged with far less fanfare than the earlier phases of the drug war, has gone largely, if not entirely, unnoticed by middle- and upper-class white communities,” stated the report.

A 2017 Virginia State Police report shared similar results, reporting that African Americans are more likely to be jailed for marijuana possession, despite using the drug at the same rate. Black defendants are also more likely than white defendants to be found guilty, rather than have their charges dismissed, according to state court records. 

Crime analyst and former detective Richard James told WKTR that law enforcement can still cite you for possession of marijuana, and explained what could happen in that case. 

The evidence is clear that there are racial biases in the enforcement of marijuana,” said James.

Democrats argue it is a Republican-controlled assembly that has stalled marijuana reform. 

“If we elect a Democratic majority, I think you are looking at a clear, distinct possibility marijuana will be part of a new Virginia economy, along with clean energy,” said Kathy Galvin, a 2019 Virginia delegate candidate, according to news reports.

Yet, sympathy for cannabis has even come from Republican legislators, like the case of former Speaker Of The US House of Representatives John Boehner, who sees the plant, under the appropriate supervision, as a cash crop and a personal liberty. 

“It can be used to excess, and likely will,” Boehner told NPR. “But that doesn’t mean that we should take wine or liquor off the market, or beer or cigarettes for that matter. And I do think that by decriminalizing, you’re going to open up a lot more research so we can learn more about the 4,000 year history of the use of this plant.”

In 2018, the Virginia Senate authorized the first five medical cannabis dispensaries for non-psychoactive CBD and THC-A oils, most of which will be open by the fall 2019. In the next session, Del. Glenn Davis, R-Virginia Beach, filed HB 2245, a bill to double the number of medical cannabis dispensaries. 

An estimated 1.1 million jobs could be created by 2025 if marijuana were legalized, according to an analysis by New Frontier Data. Dalitso, a Manassas-based investor group that owns one of the first five dispensaries licensed in Virginia, began with an initial staff of 50 and has significantly grown, based solely on projected sales within the state.

Photo by Marijuana Pictures

“The cannabis industry is growing, and Virginia is growing along with it,” said Greg Kennedy, a partner with Dalitso, according to news reports.

In contrast, some Virginia Republicans have merely paraded legislation under the banner of reform. In 2018, state Senate Majority Leader Tommy Norment proposed his own marijuana legislation, SB 954, at first touting it as cannabis legislation, only to later restate that the bill would only offer a chance for expungement of records and negation of possible jail time to first offenders.

“Legislative change is about the possible,” said Jeff Ryer, a spokesman for Norment. Ryer told the Richmond Times-Dispatch that Norment removed measures to decriminalize because with those measures in place, the bill would have no chance of passage.

The problem is, Virginia does not allow expungement. Norment’s bill would have simply created a separate registry apart from the national criminal database, though offenses would still show up in background checks. Tickets and fees issued through the program would be funneled into a separate fund for the state police, who would have been required to run the registry.

“Senator Norment’s bill is an expungement measure not sharing a freckle in common with decriminalization,” Bill Farrar, ACLU of Virginia public policy and communication director, told the Richmond Times-Dispatch. “This is an urgent criminal justice and racial justice issue in Virginia that lawmakers should be taking more seriously.”

The bill passed the Senate by a near unanimous 38-2 vote, but others involving marijuana died in the House Courts of Justice Committee. And though Norment said he favored decriminalization, he later voted against Senator Adam Ebbin’s 2019 decriminalization bill, SB997, in the Senate Courts of Justice Committee.

“Virginians want marijuana possession decriminalized, not to be charged three times as much as a regular expungement in order to be tracked on a ‘marijuana offender’ list,” Pedini said.

“The primary impediment to meaningful marijuana law reform in Virginia is the leadership of legislative committees,” Pedini said. “While the overwhelming majority of Virginia lawmakers may favor decriminalizing marijuana, or even legalizing responsible adult use, unless those bills can advance through committee to the floor for a vote, they simply cannot succeed. ”

The main contention over marijuana legislation today is where the road ends; Herring and many Democrats want eventual legalization, while many Republican legislators don’t want anything beyond decriminalization. Though some GOP legislators have humored small measures toward weed reform, short sporadic bursts will never be enough to break up the party’s closed front; concrete changes in Virginia will require the unanimous assent of Republican leadership. Until then, any efforts to pass cannabis legislation will be crippled by the very saboteurs that have gone to battle where other issues are concerned over GOP-endorsed virtues of personal liberty, limited government, and free markets that, where marijuana is concerned, they stand firmly against.  

If Virginians want fairer and safer marijuana laws, they must elect those candidates who will support such measures,” Pedini said.

And despite a public that supports reform at historic highs, politicians are prepared to vote along party lines rather than the wishes of their own constituency. It’s true that the war on drugs was a failure; so why are so many Virginia lawmakers still fighting?

Advocates Seek More Access To Medical Marijuana In Virginia

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Virginians with a variety of medical issues are hoping the state will make it easier for them to access medical marijuana.

RICHMOND, Va. — As other states have relaxed their laws against marijuana, citizens across Virginia gathered here Saturday to discuss how to persuade the General Assembly to legalize medical and recreational marijuana in the Commonwealth.

About 150 people, including health care providers and attorneys, attended the Virginia 2019 Cannabis Conference, held by the Virginia chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.

Virginia NORML advocates decriminalizing possession of marijuana and regulating medical and recreational-use production and sales of the substance.

Members of NORML are hopeful after Gov. Ralph Northam voiced support for decriminalizing possession of small amounts of marijuana during his State of the Commonwealth speech on Wednesday, the first day of the General Assembly’s 2019 session.

“We want to keep people safe. But we shouldn’t use valuable law enforcement time, or costly prison space, on laws that don’t enhance public safety,” the governor said in his speech. “Current law imposes a maximum 30 days in jail for a first offense of marijuana possession.”

So far, lawmakers have proposed six bills to decriminalize simple marijuana possession. For example, HB 2371, sponsored by Del. Steve Heretick, D-Portsmouth, and HB 2373, by Del. Lee Carter, D-Prince William, would legalize marijuana for Virginians 21 and older and have the state operate retail marijuana stores. Under such proposals, Virginians under 21 who are caught with marijuana would have to pay a civil penalty.

Most attendees at the conference, held at the Delta by Marriott hotel, seemed particularly interested in medical marijuana and how to access it without traveling to another state.

Lorene Davidson of Richmond works in anesthesia as a nurse practitioner. She came to the conference because of her ongoing struggle with antidepressants, which she found were bad for her liver.

“I’m looking mostly for a way to find out more about getting a medical card and furthering getting that taken care of,” Davidson said.

As a speaker at the event, Melanie Seifert Davis of Richmond shared the story of her 10-year-old daughter Madison, who was diagnosed with ependymoma brain cancer in 2014.

“Although I’m not new to the world of cannabis, I’m brand new to the world of cannabis reform,” Davis said.

Madison is on four different cannabis-based products including CBD, THC, THCA and FECO (full extract cannabis oil) to help with seizures and the cancer itself, Davis said.

“Today and for every tomorrow I’m given, I will fill seven capsules with high doses of four different cannabis medications and watch as Madison swallows each one,” Davis said. “Science, research and experience in my heart all know that it can and will and has helped her.”

At the conference, Davis said the family recently received good news about Madison’s cancer: Four of the five tumors were gone.

“Cannabis is an important and essential part of why she is still here and still her, five years into this battle for her life,” Davis shared. “Cannabis is why she has never, not even once, suffered from the nausea, vomiting or seizures that are expected side effects of her chemo.”

Not only does Davis’ daughter suffer from cancer, but her son, Aiden, has Crohn’s disease. Aiden also uses cannabis to ease the pain of everyday life, Davis said.

“I fight because when I told my son about today, the first thing he said with legitimate fear in his voice was, ‘Mom, you can’t tell them those things. You can’t tell them about Maddie’s medicine. Cannabis is illegal. I need you; you can’t go to jail,’” Davis said.

Madison has been on cannabis products since June 2017. Davis said she gets Madison and Aiden’s cannabis from a licensed doctor in California.

Jenn Michelle Pedini, the executive director for Virginia NORML, said progress had been made in getting the state to expand access to medical cannabis.

According to the Virginia Board of Pharmacy, patients and their legal guardians can register to obtain such products if they have a certification issued by a physician.

“In 2016, we passed a bill that let us go forth and write a regulatory program that was based on Connecticut’s then-program, which was also low-THC, extraction-based products only and served to a small set of patients,” Pedini said.

In 2018, the General Assembly passed a law allowing practitioners to issue certifications for the use of cannabis-based products to alleviate symptoms “of any diagnosed condition or disease determined by the practitioner to benefit from such use.”

The Board of Pharmacy has given approval to pharmaceutical companies to open five dispensaries across the state where CBD and THC-A oils will be sold to authorized patients.

Del. Glenn Davis, R-Virginia Beach, has filed a bill (HB 2245) to double the number of medical cannabis dispensaries.

Written by Madison Manske, Capital News Service. Image via Facebook

Norfolk’s Commonwealth Attorney Announces Weed Just Isn’t A Big Deal

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In spirit of the new year, Norfolk’s office of the Commonwealth Attorney took the “new year, new me” goal to unprecedented heights. In line with Virginia’s continuing push for cannabis decriminalization, Norfolk’s Commonwealth’s Attorney, Greg Underwood, said in a letter addressed last Thursday that he will largely stop prosecuting people for possession of marijuana.

The letter’s intent is to establish a new directive for the year; it was forwarded to judges, city and state leaders, and criminal justice/public safety colleagues, according to a press release by Virginia NORML.

“The Office already does not prosecute these cases; however, some come to the office as misdemeanor appeals or when attached to felony charges or misdemeanor charges the Office handles,” Underwood wrote in the letter. “The Office will cease prosecuting all misdemeanor marijuana possession cases and will move to nolle prosequi or dismiss such cases that fall within our purview.”

According to Virginia NORML, marijuana arrests in Virginia increased 20% between 2016 and 2017. They expect that over $100M will be spent on enforcing marijuana prohibition across the Commonwealth, “with nearly 28,000 Virginians arrested for marijuana-related crimes.” According to the same release, Mr. Underwood has already established his stance on cannabis; last fall, at a Virginia NORML-sponsored panel discussion, he stated, “I support legalizing marijuana.”

Jenn Michelle Pedini, executive director of Virginia NORML, was impressed by Underwood’s initiative. “The fruits of Mr. Underwood’s leadership on marijuana possession prosecution can be seen in Commonwealth’s Attorney races throughout Virginia,” she said. “On the 2018 campaign trail, Chesterfield Commonwealth’s Attorney Scott Miles embraced a more progressive approach to enforcement than his predecessor or challenger. This year, three Northern Virginia Commonwealth’s Attorney candidates are echoing Mr. Underwood’s policy, pledging not to waste taxpayer resources prosecuting simple misdemeanor marijuana possession.”

The General Assembly approved the use of cannabidiol oils in 2018, but Virginia is still currently one of 20 states that bans both recreational and medicinal marijuana use. But it seems attitudes are changing. “It’s time for the Virginia General Assembly to take legislative action to decriminalize marijuana,” Pedini said. “Seven out of ten Virginians favor fines, not crimes, for possession of small amounts of marijuana for personal use. In the absence of such action, we can expect to see municipalities and Commonwealth’s Attorneys leverage the powers they do have when it comes to enforcing marijuana prohibition.”

The City of Norfolk officially endorsed marijuana decriminalization in 2018 and has already added it to the docket for the General Assembly in their 2019 legislative agenda. SB 997 sponsored by Senator Adam Ebbin (D-30), would decriminalize small-time possession of cannabis by adults and instead issue tickets; $50 for first violation, $100 for a second violation, and $250 for a third or subsequent violation.

The Virginia 2019 Cannabis Conference & Lobby Day starts in Richmond this Saturday, January 12th, and continues on to the 14th. The conference will feature expert speakers on the Virginia’s emerging hemp industry, medical cannabis, and marijuana law reform. For more information or to register, click here. For more information on Cannabis reform in Virginia or to keep up with the conversation, visit the Virginia NORML site.