Home Cannabis Cultivation – How to Keep Monopolies at Bay

home cannabis grows as personal freedom

I have long been an advocate of Home Cultivation. In fact, I’d go as far as to say that home cultivation is the final frontier of freedom and if we’re not careful – cannabis companies would like to snuff that right away.

In a recent Yahoo News Article, Home Cultivation was the focal point of the article. To quote the beginning of the article,

“Home cultivation has emerged as a clear sticking point in cannabis reform across many states. While it faces pushback, including from several cannabis brands, home grow is making incremental progress in medical and adult use markets, and ushering in a variety of parameters to meet state needs.”

In essence, the article talks about how some cannabis brands are some of the major-“opposers” to home cultivation and it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out why.

A simple case of Corporate Greed?

Let’s take a look at a recent case in New York, where the “New York Medical Cannabis Industry Association” – or the “union for millionaires” – send Governor Andrew Cuomo a 29-page memo where they laid out why they were so strongly opposed to home cultivation.

Some of their major claims related to;

Home Cultivation will make it impossible to eradicate the black market

Home cultivation will make it “impossible” for law enforcement to distinguish between legal and illegal products.

Home Cultivation will undermine the state’s harm reduction in respects to regulating pesticides and other contaminants

Home Cultivation will cost the state tax money by removing cultivators from as potential buyers.

Home cultivation will undermine New York’s public health interest.

Who said this Anslinger-esque bullshit you ask?

The group's current board includes leadership from Columbia Care Inc. (OTCQX: CCHWF), Acreage Holdings Inc. (OTCQX: ACRHF), Curaleaf Holdings Inc. (OTCQX: CURLF) and Cresco Labs Inc. (OTCQX: CRLBF).

Let’s take a closer look why these claims are merely reefer madness being spewed this time not by the government – but cannabis companies.

Impossible to eradicate the black market

One would argue that Home Cultivation is the ONLY WAY to eradicate the black market. The black market can only exist in a space where prohibition exists. If you prohibit people from growing cannabis – then those who don’t mind breaking the law, will simply grow a bunch of weed and sell it illegally.

How do I know this?

Well – let’s take a walk down memory lane when cannabis was completely illegal all over the world. Pre 1997, there was no real pro-cannabis laws on the books. For a stint Alaska had some legal weed, but then it switched back. It’s all confusing.

But for the most part, apart from the Netherlands, cannabis was essentially an “illegal good”. Yet despite the fact that law enforcement had full support from the government to literally scorch the earth to rid us of…errr…plants?...for our own good? Home cultivation continued. Illegal cultivation thrived. Weed became the most consumed illegal drug in the world.

So it’s safe to say that post legalization – people will continue to grow weed at home like they have always done.

Does this mean that the black market will be a threat to the legal market? Of course not, home cultivators typically aren’t interested in selling their bud. At most they may have a small community of folks who buy from them, helping fund the project – but it’s not the same as Cresco Labs for instance.

The only way you eradicate the black market is by making everything about the substance – legal. For example – we’re not concerned about the “tomato black market” now are we?

Home Cultivation is Impossible to distinguish from legal products

What the hell are they smoking? This idea is asinine at best. As mentioned in the earlier response, most home cultivators are growing for personal supply [I know I am].

At most, they have a small group of friends of family members that buy from them, but this is not a significant income. Even if they were to generate $100,000 in revenue in a year – it would be but a drop in the bucket of the legal market.

That’s because the vast majority of people will not be growing at home – even if it is legal. People are intrinsically lazy – they will continue to purchase at large retailers like the assholes at Acreage Holdings.

Home cultivators for the most part will also be doing “farmer’s market” type product placements. It’s not the same market. In fact, it would be a national outrage if Walmart went after farmer’s markets. Yet here we have these million dollar companies trying to snuff out craft cannabis like the bunch of filthy swine they are.

Home Cultivators and Pesticides and Contaminants

Pre-cannabis industry – people were smoking whatever the fuck you sold them. Hell, they even smoked the “Paraquat Pot” the government was responsible for in the late 1970s.

However – home cultivators are like organic farmers. They know when to use certain stuff and when to avoid them. Go to any grower’s forum and you’ll see a common question to pest control is “What’s a natural way to do X, Y, or Z”.

For example, my plants have no pesticides and are completely organic. When I cultivate them, I will know exactly who touched them, where they went, the time spent curing, the nutrient profile throughout the process…I know this, because it’s HOME CULTIVATION!

Of course – he (or she) who grows cannabis will do whatever it takes to ensure that the weed they are smoking is of the ‘highest’ quality and purity. I have not smoked dispensary weed that beat my own – except maybe this one time on a the peer in Santa Monica when a rando dude smoked me out…but I bet you that was homegrown too!

Home Cultivation will remove “potential buyers”

Really? Everyone can grow vegetables at their home. I once grew an entire garden in about a 6x6 ft space. I got carrots, onions, peas, green beans, sweet potatoes, sunflowers, weed…and a bunch of other shit in that small space.

My neighbors, who had more space – had nothing. They knew I grew my own vegetables. They ate the chilies that came from my garden but never started to grow their own – despite it being insanely easy to do.

Do you honestly think that cannabis would be any different? Most people ain’t growing shit. Home cultivators are a different breed of consumer – the vast majority will continue to buy retail.

Home Cultivation Undermines the Public Health Interest

To be fair the document specifically said, “Home grow will undermine the state’s public health interest in ensuring that cannabis sold in New York State is tested, packaged, and labeled correctly.” But once again – home grow doesn’t participate in that market.

I mean realistically, even if you can grow 20 plants at home – you’re maybe producing enough product to sustain your operation and a bit more. The problem is that keeping 20 plants indoor requires money and that becomes a hassle for most.

For those who’s growing for personal consumption, 6-8 plants is a more reasonable and manageable number. Thus, we’re not seeing these folks “labeling and packaging” their weed for sale.

HOME CULTIVATION THE FINAL FRONTIER TO PERSONAL FREEDOM

As you very well know, I advocate the legality of all drugs. I would like to see all criminal penalties related to drugs evaporate and instead treat drug abuse as a public health issue. Just like smoking tobacco.

I believe that everyone should be able to grow whatever plant they can grow, because nature should never be a crime. You can’t legislate against nature – only against people. And thus, the drug laws are not laws against drugs but laws against you.

Home cultivation is the last bit of freedom they can never take away from you. This is the reason why so many cannabis heroes went to jail for growing their freedom in their homes – despite the oppressive system that was actively hunting them for decades.

Plant a seed and remember the fallen who fought for your right to Grow Cannabis.