Weed Like Change

Weed Like Change is a campaign led by Sun & Earth Certified farms, brands and dispensaries, allied businesses and non-profits to bring awareness of the perils that legalization has presented for sustainable farmers and most of all bring action to change onerous barriers to good actors in the cannabis space.

This coalition remains true to land-based community values and regenerative organic practices that craft cannabis is built upon.

So what does this all mean and why should you care? Let’s take a minute to break it down. It’s a complicated issue but the more we all understand, the more effective we can be in our actions. Let’s dive in, shall we?

What is Craft Cannabis?

First and foremost, craft cannabis is defined as cannabis grown at a small scale using sustainable and regenerative cultivation practices. Small farmers are able to have a better climatological effect and even improve the local ecology by continuing to operate on a small scale. Think of the differences between your local Farmer’s Market and a big Ag farm. The time and attention small farmers give to their crops are replaced with automation and chemical use on larger scales. This is true in farming as it is in cannabis. As a Sun & Earth Certified farm, we take a pledge to not only support a health environment, but we also commit to paying our employees and temporary workers a fair and living wage. Because the quality of our product is limited in size, small farms like ours are vulnerable to the commodification of cannabis.

Over Production Leads to Commodification

The other piece of the puzzle and the other large issue large scale productions pose is a continued downward trend in the market that threatens small farms existence. Naturally, in a market, the supply and demand create the price trends for any good, and cannabis is no exception. There is a large supply in the marketplace that puts more and more pressure on small farmers to be able to make ends meet. It also leads to a negative feedback loop of increased production in an already saturated market. It’s small farmers that take the hit. Larger operations can meet the necessary demand to make a profit at scale but Mom and Pop farms feel the strain at home. The direct impact to families and local economies is hard enough to deal with but small farms like our own face pressure from regulatory frameworks and double standards.

Regulations & Taxes Are Suffocating Small Farmers

One of the most onerous aspects of running a small cannabis farm are the regulations, fees and taxes that come along with the day to day farm work. While we’ve made some significant strides to bettering our situation, taxes to farmers are too high to be sustainable. Coupled with the fact that cannabis businesses are barred from making businesses expenses, the financial burden is too much for any business to have to bear. Without deep pockets and financial support, not a single cannabis company is able to be profitable. When you add up all of the state and local taxes to cannabis, this can amount to 60% of all revenue going towards taxes. We’re no accounting wizards, but no matter how you shake it, that’s a stacked deck and unless you have a VC behind you, it’s just a matter of time before you’re out of business.

So, What Can You Do About It?

Now, more than ever, it’s critical to support regenerative craft farmers who are under extreme threat of extinction due to unfair tax and regulatory structures.

Pledge your support by purchasing products from Sun & Earth Certified products (like ours!), shopping at allied dispensaries and pledging your support at the Weed Like Change website.

Most of all, cultivate curiosity about the cannabis that you consume. The more you know, the more we can all care and start to make some real changes. One great place to start is watching our friend’s movie Tending the Garden. This film documents the journey of three family farms cultivating cannabis, food and community in pursuit of a regenerative future.

The Benefits of Craft Cannabis

Not only does craft cannabis help the environment, people and local economies, protecting craft cannabis farmers ensures the genetics of heritage cannabis cultivars can be perpetuated into the future. We must not forget the medical value of this powerful plant as we shift our focus to the recreational market. By protecting biodiversity in cannabis we can ensure the growth and expansion of new genetic profiles as well as the people who have protected them.