ROI-NJ spoke with four key experts in the cannabis space to discuss industry factors, trends and obstacles affecting businesses and the industry’s environment. Introducing ROI-NJ’s 2024 Cannabis Resource Guide: Everything you need to know about the current cannabis landscape.
How do environmental issues and sustainability play a major role in the cannabis industry?
Joshua S. Bauchner
Most manufacturers use every part of the plant to prevent waste. Trim is made into extract for any number of uses, while the flower (i.e., bud) is harvested and sold. That said, indoor cultivation, as in New Jersey, relies on a lot of electricity for lighting and ventilation (~200 watts per square foot), among other things. Many indoor growers install solar panels to offset drawing on the grid. And, as many in the field are environmentally conscious, there is a lot of focus on offsetting these negative environmental impacts; for example, hemp can be converted to biodiesel fuel, most cultivators avoid pesticides that can seep into the water table and there is a strong focus on recycling packaging and making it biodegradable where permitted by regulators.
Cynthia Tantum
Medical cannabis offers treatment alternatives for patients unable to find relief through traditional medicine. Sustainability comes through effective industry support that enables patients to experience quality of life improvements and share these personal experiences. Inclusion of plant-based medicine, where appropriate, is better for the environment, as it helps reduce toxic waste from unused and expired medications.
Angela Speakman
When considering cannabis and environmental issues, hemp often comes up. Hemp, a variety of cannabis with less than 0.3% THC, is one of the world’s strongest natural fibers. If hemp had been more accessible over the last century, we likely would have seen innovative, environmentally friendly hemp products. As the industry grows, so will more sustainable hemp options.
Scott Rudder
Being good stewards of our environment is important for both the industry as well as our customers. We are seeing more and more companies using recycled and sustainable packaging because it is the right thing to do and it is what our customers expect. Cannabis consumers are typically thoughtful about their own health and wellness, and this translates to protecting the environment around us just as well.
Influences like education, media, religion and entertainment contribute to messaging, ultimately affecting attitudes and beliefs about cannabis. What is the best way for cannabis professionals to benefit from messaging around the topic of cannabis?
Joshua S. Bauchner
There are many. As an initial matter, there would not be an opioid crisis in this country if cannabis were legal and readily available. Because of the federal prohibition, we are only now learning about the cannabinoid system in the human body and the many cannabinoids, terpenes and related benefits from the plant. While adult, or recreational, use is on the rise, the medicinal properties of cannabis are striking — in fact, the largest increase in use, demographically, is among the Baby Boomer generation who use it to treat a plethora of conditions associated with aging.
Cynthia Tantum
We need to make sure the messaging is accurate and unbiased. Industry professionals can help by sharing accurate information and point to reliable resources. There is a tremendous need for education around cannabis and the medical benefits it can offer. The over 55 population is the faster growing demographic, having embraced the benefits of medical cannabis despite the stigma that such influences imposed on it for years.
Angela Speakman
When it comes to messaging, acknowledging the complexities, particularly through historical context, is a productive place to start. For decades, Americans have received inaccurate and problematic messaging about cannabis. Many narratives have been negative
and damaging, feeding into individual perspective, which informs public opinion. Public opinion fuels policy, which, in turn, informs individual perspective. It’s cyclical. Understanding how previous communications shaped our views definitely helps when crafting current messaging.
Scott Rudder
The most important thing to understand about cannabis is that it is a medicine first. It helps people deal with ailments like pain and anxiety. It helps people relax at the end of the day or get a good night’s sleep. The more people learn about the plant, the faster the outdated stigmas and stereotypes fade away. Once people understand the plant for what it actually is, instead of what they fear it to be, the stigmas disappear.
Why is social justice important within the cannabis industry? What ways can the industry be fair, inclusive and appreciate the different approaches that states are taking to implement social justice policy?
Joshua S. Bauchner
Cannabis prohibitions are founded on endemic racism. The Marijuana Tax Act of 1937, which initially criminalized cannabis, was promulgated by a known racist specifically to target African Americans. Fast forward three decades to President Richard Nixon, who also wanted to target minorities and hippies. He commissioned a blue-ribbon panel to study the purportedly harmful effects of cannabis, although it concluded just the opposite, finding: “There is almost total agreement among competent scientists and physicians that marihuana is not a narcotic drug like heroin or morphine … (and to) equate its risks … with the risks inherent in the use of hard narcotics is neither medically or legally defensible.” Rejecting this, Nixon insisted cannabis be listed as a Schedule I narcotic, meaning it has no medicinal value, and we have been wrongfully suffering the consequences ever since. Now that it is being legalized, we owe it to the communities who suffered horribly from these lies by providing expungements and licensing preferences, among other things.
Cynthia Tantum
In health care, clinical trials underrepresent minority groups, and these social determinants of health must come to an end. The cannabis industry, through social justice programs, can be a leader for change. Bennabis Health is focused on patient-centric care and encourages medical studies to include minorities to better represent the total patient population.
Angela Speakman
We can examine historical instances of decisions and messaging from those in positions of power that demonstrate how cannabis control has been used to target certain populations over the last century. At Elucidation Strategies, we believe that a wide understanding of history is an often-overlooked, but crucial component for developing effective policy. Through the examination of historical legislative events and outcomes, we can then more deeply understand why social justice is a significant topic.
Scott Rudder
Social justice is the cornerstone to creating an inclusive and responsible industry. We know the history, the racism, the legal abuse that surrounding making cannabis illegal. We know the lives destroyed for possessing a plant that is healthier than alcohol and many prescription drugs. We know this and we must remember this, so we never repeat the gross injustice of the past.
What is risk management and how is it utilized in the business of cannabis? How does risk management apply to different activities and stages of a company’s growth and expansion?
Joshua S. Bauchner
Cannabis is a highly regulated industry — all product is carefully tracked from seed to sale. As it is being made for human consumption, operators are incredibly diligent about how product is handled and what goes into manufactured goods. In addition to safety concerns, security issues also predominate, particularly because it is a cash-intensive industry as a result of the federal prohibition that limits access to traditional commercial banking. On top of all this, businesses must comply with different, sometimes competing, regulations in each state where they operate complicating risk. It is not for the tender of heart …
Cynthia Tantum
The risk management employed by traditional health plans prevents coverage for medical cannabis. However, we recognize that medical cannabis can provide benefits for some where traditional medical treatment isn’t effective and have developed a benefit program that allows employers to normalize cannabis as a medical treatment and provide financial support. Self-funded employers and health plans should start to consider risk management strategies to implement a medical cannabis benefit now, even under ERISA.
Angela Speakman
Risk management distills down to proactive planning, based on informed decision-making. The newness of the industry, the challenging legalization pathway and the complex views associated with the plant — it is essential for any company in cannabis to be thinking risk management from inception. It should always be treated as continuing process that needs constant attention.
Scott Rudder
One of the many benefits of cannabis legalization is the surety of the quality of the product you are ingesting. One never knows what they are getting from the illicit market, but you know exactly what you are getting in the regulated market. You know it was tested and that quality control measures were utilized for your safety throughout.
This is paramount for any cannabis company as we win the trust of our consumer base.
Conversation Starters
Reach Mandelbaum Barrett P.C. at: mblawfirm.com or call 973-736-4600.
Reach Bennabis Health at: bennabishealth.com or email team@bennabishealth.com.
Reach Elucidation Strategies at: elucidationstrategies.com or call 856-345-9327.
Reach Township Green at: townshipgreen.com or call 856-544-3065.
