March 5, 2023

Cannabist Show: He directed “The Legend of 420”; He runs an Oregon cultivation biz

Published: Sep 29, 2017, 5:09 pm • Updated: Sep 29, 2017, 6:05 pm

By The Cannabist Staff

Featured guests: Filmmaker Peter Spirer, producer/director of “The Legend of 420” documentary, and Jesse Peters, CEO of Eco Firma Farms, an Oregon cannabis cultivation company.

LOTS TO TALK ABOUT

• Documenting hip-hop’s influence on the cannabis scene: covering the counter-culture going mainstream over three decades.

• Getting embedded: Taking a First Amendment-protected ride to observe and document the illegal (and dangerous) sides of the American drug trade.

• Conservation, community and sustainability: The pillars of Oregon’s society are apparent in its cannabis cultivation.

• Pesticide issues and the need for growers to find common ground, together.

Watch: More videos on YouTube about marijuana in Colorado and beyond

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TOP MARIJUANA NEWS

Over 5% of all arrests in U.S. are for weed: In 2016 more people were arrested for marijuana possession than for all crimes the FBI classifies as violent, according to 2016 crime data released by the agency on Monday. Marijuana possession arrests edged up slightly in 2016, a year in which voters in four states approved recreational marijuana initiatives and voters in three others approved medical marijuana measures. These figures should be regarded as estimates, because not all law enforcement agencies provide detailed arrest information to the FBI. But they do show that the annual number of marijuana arrests is down from their peak in the mid-2000s and stands at levels last seen in the mid 1990s. Marijuana use, particularly among adults, rose during this time. –Report by The Washington Post’s Christopher Ingraham

Former NFL pros say CBD oil vital pain-management tool: After years of managing pain through the use of alcohol, nonprescription anti-inflammatory drugs and highly addictive opioids, some former football players are turning to cannabis — particularly hemp-derived CBD oil — for relief. Mostly through word-of-mouth exchanges, interest in marijuana and hemp products has increased as 29 states and Washington, D.C., have legalized marijuana for medicinal and, in some cases, recreational use. –Report by The Mercury News’ Elliot Almond

Only 15% of California’s cannabis growers can meet strict new standards, insider says: California consumers will soon have two choices in cannabis: clean, legal and pricey — or dirty, illicit and cheap. Think Whole Foods vs. El Chapo. The big difference will be the amount of pesticides in your weed. That’s because starting Jan. 2, when California’s vast legal marijuana market opens, all cannabis must be tested — and most chemicals will be banned. Much of California’s cannabis is tainted, including the “medicinal” stuff. But soon state-sanctioned weed may become the greenest in the nation. –Report by The Mercury News’ Lisa M. Krieger

Colorado cannabis safety regs limit edible shapes, enlarge potency labels: Out with the gummy bears, in with the squares … and circles, and triangles and diamonds. On Oct. 1, Colorado no longer will allow marijuana edibles shaped like humans, animals, fruits or cartoons — forms that could be confused with candy — and the state also will require more prominently displayed potency information on the labels of cannabis products. The new rules, which are more than a year in the making, are part of the ongoing evolution of Colorado’s pioneering foray into legalizing and regulating the sale of marijuana for medical and recreational purposes. –Report by The Cannabist’s Alicia Wallace