Matt Borgersen, the 25-year-old executive chef at Westwood’s Caffe Anello, has fond memories of a creamy brie he enjoyed at a dining event in Colorado. Instead of honey, it was served with an agave nectar infused with THC — the psychoactive compound of marijuana.
"I can't wait until I can start making similar dishes in New Jersey, if and when recreational marijuana is legalized," said Borgersen.
Cannabis stocks were mostly lower Monday, as investors digested the first reports from Friday’s regulatory hearing on cannabis and its ingredients and the news that Illinois is legalizing weed for adult recreational use.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration conducted its first-ever hearing on cannabis and its nonintoxicating ingredient CBD all day Friday with more than 100 speakers offering views, including researchers, health professionals, advocates, manufacturers and opponents.
Typically, cannabis plants can produce buds or flowers that have a high level of THC. Hemp plants tend to have very little THC in them. However, that doesn't mean there is no THC or that the hemp plants couldn't be modified to contain more THC.
Mark Singleton, the owner of Singleton Investments said, "This removes the argument of .3% THC." He is referring to the designation that hemp-derived CBD is legal as long as there is less than .3% THC. If hemp THC is legal then it doesn't matter whether it is .3% or not.
New initiatives announced Monday by the NFL and the NFLPA will require every team to employ a mental health professional to work in its building and could conceivably lead to a change in the league's attitude toward marijuana as a pain management treatment.
The NFL and its players' union announced Monday the establishment of both a comprehensive mental health and wellness committee and a joint pain management committee. The latter will conduct research into pain management and alternative therapies, which could lead the league down previously unexplored roads.
2. Products other than flower are gaining market share.
Like many trends that spread from California eastward, vaping in 2018 outpaced flower as the most popular method of consumption in California. Similarly, people curious to try marijuana but unwilling to smoke it are turning to edibles. Expect one of the most significant cannabis industry trends to be the continued shift away from flower and towards other methods of consumption.
Down a quiet country road in Warwick, N.Y., just north of the Jersey border, past homes on large lots, an elementary school and open fields that create a patchwork quilt of greens and browns, is a farm where marijuana's close relative — hemp — is grown and cultivated.
Although both belong to the cannabis family, hemp may be grown legally in New York and New Jersey, but marijuana — not yet.
In a day and age when many farmers have folded their operations after selling their land to developers, others have pivoted to a form of cannabis as the new cash crop to grow their business.
Kenneth VandeVrede is a third generation farmer. His grandfather started raising mums and tomatoes in New Jersey 50 years ago and now, he’s trying to stay ahead of the curve by diversifying his crop.
The event was CannaGather, a monthly mixer of industry insiders and outsiders gathered to discuss, advocate, and dream about expanded legal use of cannabis.
“There’s so many benefits that would help people like myself,” said two-time Super Bowl champ and retired Giant Jonathan Casillas. “I’ve played football for 17 years, nine professionally, and I’m an undersized linebacker who’s always had issues staying healthy.”